Project title: New England Plant Conservation Program Surveying & Seed Collection 2026
Principal investigator: Dr. Lea Johnson, Director of Conservation, Native Plant Trust.
Describe the goal of your research: The New England Plant Conservation Program, which is administered by Native Plant Trust (formerly New England Wild Flower Society), coordinates professional botanists and trained volunteers to survey rare plant populations across New England. The goal of this program is to prevent the extinction and promote the recovery of native plant species in New England. Voluntary collaboration of botanists, state agencies and conservation organizations enables focused and timely understanding of natural communities and rare plant population dynamics to help our regional conservation stakeholders to conserve New England’s flora. The information collected during these surveys is in partnership with the Massachusetts Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program, which maintains a database on rare plants, animals and natural communities. As part of our conservation efforts, we have also included seed collection and banking as an ex situ conservation tool. Native Plant Trust collects and stores seed for plant conservation to ensure the preservation of genetic material for future population augmentation, species reintroduction, biological studies and other future uses.
