A gathering of staff and volunteers Wednesday at the Oneida county courthouse were all working toward renewing the Northwoods for native plants next spring.
Hands were putting soil in pots and gathering donated seeds as part of the annual 'Seed Sowing Party'.
The Oneida County Land & Water Conservation Department's Pollinator Team and the Aquatic Invasive Species Team have been working on habitat restoration projects in the county. Those include AIS-affected sites to roadside polllinator habitat sites.
Pollinator Coordinator Baerbel Ehrig says they have 10,000 seeds from 30 different species of native wildflowers, many donated from groups and individuals...
"This way, we can use the plants, once they have germinated, in our own pollinator garden or restoration projects because we will be using them in areas where invasive plants are being removed and then we want to bring in some native ones. We have prairie plants and wetland plants..."
Ehrig says they have seeds that support the endangered Monarch butterflies, but also many others that provide food and habitat for all types of native species...
"These plants, the native wildflowers of our area, they need cold and snow in order to germinate. We will take these home and set them in seed frames. They will be sitting outside all winter long. Then they will germinate as the snow melts and the sun warms them..."
Ehrig says the germinated seeds will be used in projects around Oneida and other counties.
