Adventures in Seed Collection

Published by Kassidy Kelly on 07/24/2025 07/24/2025

Navigating by a small site map and GPS unit, we’re on the hunt for some very special seeds. There’s a confirmed sighting in the area and it’s up to us to find it. Bushwacking over ferns and ducking under low-hanging branches, we pause every few metres to scan the forest floor for clues. We’re in the right area. The GPS can no longer help us. We observe the area carefully and – there!  A small red beacon in the form of a lone red columbine flower waves gently at us behind a shield of ferns, our welcome guide to the rest of the patch that have already gone to seed. Any later in the season and that last flower would have fallen, making our quest that much more difficult. Any earlier and the seeds would not have been ready. Our timing is perfect, and we are ready to harvest.

My name is Kassidy and I have joined the Mayne Conservancy team this summer in the role of Ecosystem Technician from July-August. This time of year heralds the important tasks of keeping our nursery well-watered and collecting seeds from native plants as they develop throughout the season. These seeds will be propagated to grow the next generation of native plants in our nursery—a protected cradle where young plants can gain their footing without the threat of deer browse. These nursery plants are used in ecological restoration projects throughout the island and are sold locally to landholders to plant on their properties. The seed collection process is vital in allowing these projects to continue each year.

Seed Harvesting for Biodiversity

Growing up, I helped my mom with her garden every spring from the time I had useful limbs up until I left for university. We planted tomatoes, carrots, snap peas, cucumbers, chives and squash, the seeds of which came out of little packages we picked up from the garden centre. Where did these seeds come from? This was not a question either of us asked at the time, and if we had, the answer would have been simple: the shelf at the store.

Now that I’m working with the Mayne Conservancy, the question of where seeds come from is much more pressing, as I’m one of the people collecting them. Seed harvesting is a fun and rewarding process, from the adventure of navigating to plant locations to the beauty of seeing the diversity of seeds laid out for processing at the office. More critically, this project helps to protect the biodiversity of the ecosystems of SḴŦAḴ | Mayne Island at a time of local and global biodiversity decline. Native plants are a crucial component of the complex web of life in our region and local wildlife rely heavily on them for food and shelter. When native species disappear, they leave gaps in the ecosystem that reduce its health and resiliency – possibly even leading to ecosystem collapse over time. Despite their small size, these seeds are part of a mighty effort to preserve our ecosystems for the future.

Seed Collection Process

The first step to seed collection is determining which populations to harvest from. If you are thinking about collecting your own seeds, please remember you cannot collect seeds from public parks or private lands without permission. Many of our plant populations are small and could suffer from over harvesting. The Mayne Conservancy takes great care to follow strict seed collection guidelines to protect native plant populations. Throughout the year, we keep notes on any wild patches of target species we encounter as we conduct field work (often easiest to see in spring when plants are in flower) so that we can return later in the season. We also harvest seeds from our nursery stock and habitat restoration sites.

After choosing the populations to harvest from, we navigate back to the plants at the right time to catch them seeding. Getting the timing right can be tricky. This guide shows the general harvesting window for some plants in the region, and the rest comes down to observation and taking notice as the plants around you change throughout the season. When collecting from non-berrying plants, we often harvest the entire seed head. This allows any underripe seeds to continue developing on the stems after they have been harvested.

The harvested seeds are labelled with the collection date and location and left to dry for awhile to prevent mold growth before being packaged up for later propagation. Seeds are generally sown in the fall and undergo a natural cold stratification process through the winter with the goal of germination in the spring. Some species need sowing fresh in the summer and do not tolerate drying, while others germinate in the fall to take advantage of the brief fall growing period. When they are ready, the new seedlings will be potted up and added to the stock in our nursery. More information on how to grow plants from seed can be found here.

Genetic Diversity

The wild patch of red columbine that we harvested on our bushwhacking excursion is a particularly important find due to the genetic diversity it will provide to our future plant stock. Most of the red columbine plants used in our restoration projects all come from the same lineage of plants in our nursery, whose seeds continue to be collected for future propagation. This narrows the genetic line of the plants we propagate and can make them less resilient to diseases and other environmental challenges over time.

Due to deer browse and habitat loss, finding wild populations of certain species (such as red columbine) can be difficult, and the plants that remain are often out of reach to us – either hanging over cliffs or growing in fenced areas on private property. For this reason, the overpopulation of black-tailed deer and the introduction of fallow deer to SḴŦAḴ | Mayne Island present significant challenges to preserving the biodiversity of native ecosystems on the island. As our biologist Rob Underhill explains,

“Although palatable species such as arbutus and oceanspray are still present in large numbers on SḴŦAḴ | Mayne Island, without the survival of young plants, these and other species will be drastically reduced in abundance over time. As existing mature plants die, there will be no new generation with which to replace them. In addition, the plants and animals that rely on historic patterns of forest succession and plant community structure will be negatively affected through loss of food and habitat.” (Underhill, 2013).

We were lucky to find our wild patch growing within a deer-exclusion zone of one of our conservation sites. For the genetic diversity of our seed supply, this small patch of flowers is carrying the weight of many generations to come.

Calls to Action

Are you interested in helping our efforts to preserve biodiversity on SḴŦAḴ | Mayne Island? Here are few ways you can help:

• Create space for native plants on your property. Growing native plants at home is an excellent way to support our native pollinators and bird species which are impacted through biodiversity loss. Many native plants have beautiful seasonal blooms which are a lovely addition to your garden.
• Check out the fall plant sale. Experience the fruits of our hard work for yourself and find your perfect plant match at the fall plant sale! We sell our nursery plants in time for fall planting season. Stay tuned for when we announce this year’s date.
• Grow plants from seeds. Interested in growing your own plants from seed? Why not give it a shot! Just remember to follow seed collection guidelines to protect our ecosystems.
• Ask us your questions. Wondering which plants will grow best on your property? Worried about the encroachment of invasive species or deer? We provide free landholder consultations to help answer these and other questions specific to your property. Contact Rob Underhill at biologist@mayneconservancy.ca or 250-539-2535 to participate.