Seed Mixing at Citizens for Conservation

At Citizens for Conservation in Barrington, this year’s crop of prairie plant seeds have been harvested and cleaned.  On Saturday, November 9, from 9 to 11 a.m. volunteers will gather at CFC headquarters, 459 W. Hwy 22 to take the cleaned seeds and arrange them into categories for grasslands or woodlands.  

The work isn’t strenuous and it’s a good way to learn what plants belong in which habitats.  It’s also a wonderful way to see the wide assortment of seeds with their amazing variety of textures, shapes, colors and sweet earthy smells.

The earlier work to clean the seed was  done by hand during a series of six special workdays.  Cleaning was done the old-fashioned way, using a two-piece cleaning box and rubbing the dry chaff (plant parts) over a metal screen to separate the seed from the chaff.  Once complete, the seeds were bagged by species.

During mixing, the seeds are poured onto a heaping mound of moistened perlite then stirred with shovels.  The seeds are mixed for one of many ecosystems—perhaps as many as 13.  These are specific, living environments, which include dry prairie, mesic prairie, wet savanna, upland savanna, mesic wetland, etc.  It takes experienced management to know which crucial species and the quantity of its seed is needed at each restoration site.  

CFC’s November workdays will focus on seeds, with sowing in Barrington area preserves beginning on November 10. Thursday, Saturday and Sunday workdays will continue through Sunday, November 24.

On Saturday, November 30, the winter workday schedule will begin,  when brush cutting workdays will be held on Saturdays from 9 to 11 a.m. 

To volunteer, visit the Citizens for Conservation website.