Plant Materials Center Update: September 22, 2022

Here are 5 things that you should know about the PMC for September 22, 2022:

Sales

Sales remain very strong. In last weeks update they were ahead of this time last year by 70% which continues.

Seed Collections

Seed Collections continue with Red Osier Dogwood, Pea Fruit Rose, and Pacific Crabapple collections beginning, to name a few.

Upcoming

The big change ahead is the start of the live stake harvest. Unrooted Willow, Cottonwood, and Red Osier Dogwood cuttings do not need to go dormant before harvesting, processing, shipping, and planting. This fall there is much more demand than ever before. An 8-person crew will begin cutting and processing live stakes on October 3.

Jim Attends PNW Bare Root Growers Meeting

A couple of weeks ago our Director of Nursery Operations, Jim Brown, attended a meeting of bare root nursery growers from regional conservation and forest nurseries. It was the first time this group has gathered in person since before COVID. It was nice to see that everyone made it through the pandemic and to exchange stories of what it took to get through that ordeal. It is always good to visit with others in the business to learn about their challenges and successes, share problems, and get feedback about yours.

Jim Will Attend the Western Forest and Conservation Nurseries Meeting

Jim will be gone the week of September 26 to attend the first meeting of the Western Forest and Conservation Nursery Association (WFCNA) since before COVID. As with the bare root growers meeting, it is a great opportunity to meet with others about a field with relatively few peers to share with. The theme of the meeting is expanding the tree seedling pipeline which is timely given the current surge in demand. There probably will not be an opportunity to post a PMC update next week as a result.

I hope this helps. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Jim Brown
Director of Nursery Operations