University of Texas at Austin (Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center)

The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center at the University of Texas at Austin will address the need to test and assess viability of their collection of over 800 seed accessions, many of which are rare and over 20 years old. Project activities will include acquiring germination chambers and lab materials; researching and testing germination protocols for a subset of priority collections; and conducting germination trials and developing protocols for systematically testing viability of new and existing seed collections. Staff will also document procedures for continued testing and create a plan for future management of the seed bank. The final products will benefit the users of the seed bank, including professionals in the Center for Plant Conservation network, researchers, government agencies, and other conservation partners.