Paul, I didn't realize this was connected with the CPC. Thanks for pointing that out! I visited a lady with CPC at Missouri Botanic Gardens this past summer, where she told me much of the story. I'm pleased to hear that CBG has had a small success with its experiment. I had heard at Mobot that success at re-introduction was next to nil. It seems reasonable to start with common species, but of course they are common because they have a high survivability. The rare ones are rare because they do not have this capability! These are almost the definitions. So success with rare and endangered species of plants is likely to always be difficult to achieve. Niche species will always be a great challenge to keep alive as the planet changes. I'm just happy to hear about any instances of success! Let's definitely keep trying. Jim At 01:13 PM 11/11/2009 -0800, you wrote: >Jim >The program referred to here is part of the larger 'Seeds of Success' >program (http://www.nps.gov/plants/SOS/index.htm) designed to 'save' >many plants. Here at Berkeley, we are involved in collected about four >dozen native Californian species as part of this program which focuses >on more or less common species. In addition, we have been collecting and >are now introducing several extremely endangered local species under >the sponsorship of the Center for Plant >Conservation.(http://www.centerforplantconservation.org/). > >Perhaps these efforts are at least biding us time until we solve some >environmental issues that are causing all the trouble in the first >place. Unfortunately, their aren't a lot of success stories with >reintroducing endangered plants. >Paul > >Paul Licht, Director >Univ. California Botanical Garden >200 Centennial Drive >Berkeley, CA 94720 >(510)-643-8999 >http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu/ > > ************************************************* Jim Shields USDA Zone 5 Shields Gardens, Ltd. P.O. Box 92 WWW: http://www.shieldsgardens.com/ Westfield, Indiana 46074, USA Tel. ++1-317-867-3344 or toll-free 1-866-449-3344 in USA