Collecting Seeds

M. Van Slageren with CNSF staff collecting Terminalia mollis, near Niangoloko, Burkina Faso

MSBP works with partners worldwide to identify habitats and species that are a priority for seed conservation. We take account of international policy, national biodiversity strategies, land use changes and available knowledge about plant distribution in order to focus our efforts.

With the help of published information and specially prepared collection guides, experienced project staff undertake expeditions to make seed collections of the highest quality. They ensure that the seed, together with pressed plant specimens and field data is safely brought back to their facilities for processing and study.

Depending on the level of seed conservation capacity available in the partner country, seed collections are processed, tested, and studied at partner laboratories and/or at the MSB Wakehurst Place.

As technology is transferred and personnel gain further experience, MSBP partners increasingly carry out each step of the seed conservation process themselves and act as centres of excellence within their countries.