Farmworkers Heal Climate-Scarred Land With #NativeSeeds

At #California’s #HedgerowFarms, specialists produce seeds to #revegetate burned areas, reestablish #wetlands, and transform drought-prone #farmland

By Caleb Hampton

July 7, 2025

"Quiroz and Gómez are seed-cleaning specialists and field workers at Hedgerow Farms, a native seed farm near the #CentralValley town of #WintersCA. Hedgerow’s collectors gather seeds from native plants in the wild, and field workers grow them out at the 300-acre farm to produce more seeds. This spring, neat rows of #mugwort, #PurpleNeedlegrass, and #CaliforniaPoppies sprouted in the midst of neighboring almond orchards, tomatoes, and alfalfa.

"Government agencies, tribes, and other land managers use the seeds to revegetate #FireRavagedAreas, transform #AbandonedFarmland, reestablish wetlands, and repair other damaged or altered lands, creating environments that support local #ecosystems and #biodiversity.

" 'We’re doing something for the planet,' Quiroz said in Spanish.

"Recreational areas have benefited too: Hedgerow Farms’ #SilverbushLupine grows in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, and its #NativeGrasses can be found in the Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area outside Sacramento. The farm also supplies native seeds to seed packet retailers, helping sow #DroughtResistant plants and establish #pollinator habitat in #urban environments.

"Some projects, such as the ongoing restoration of the #KlamathRiverBasin in Oregon and California, involve billions of seeds — from various suppliers, including Hedgerow — spread across thousands of acres. 'Native vegetation is the foundation of a healthy #ecosystem,' the #YurokTribe said in a social media post showing #wildflowers blooming this spring in the scar of a former reservoir.

"After four dams were removed from the #KlamathRiver, the tribe began #revegetating the riverbanks last year, planting species such as #milkweed — a key food source for #MonarchButterflies — that once flourished in the watershed."

Read more:
https://civileats.com/2025/07/07/farmworkers-heal-climate-scarred-land-with-native-seeds/

#SolarPunkSunday #FoodSecurity #RegenerativeAgriculture #Restoration #GardeningForPollinators #RestorativeAgriculture

#NASA #Supercomputer Detects “#Glacial #Flood Unleashes #Marine Bloom” as #Greenland #Ice Melt Sparks Unprecedented Boost in Global #Ocean #Ecosystems

https://www.sustainability-times.com/research/nasa-supercomputer-detects-glacial-flood-unleashes-marine-bloom-as-greenland-ice-melt-sparks-unprecedented-boost-in-global-ocean-ecosystems/

The hidden climate battle between forests and the ocean | ScienceDaily…

Between 2003 and 2021, #Earth saw a net boost in photosynthesis, mainly thanks to land plants thriving in warming, wetter conditions—especially in temperate and high-latitude regions. Meanwhile, ocean algae struggled in increasingly stratified and nutrient-poor tropical waters. Scientists tracked this global energy shift using satellite data, revealing that land #ecosystems not only added more…

https://formuchdeliberation.wordpress.com/2025/08/06/the-hidden-climate-battle-between-forests-and-the-ocean-sciencedaily/

Warming Winters Sabotage Trees’ Carbon Uptake

https://eos.org/articles/warming-winters-sabotage-trees-carbon-uptake

#climatechange #climatecrisis #nature #wildlife #wilderness #ecosystems #carbon

Slowing ocean currents could dry out the tropics – Earth.com…

#Climatechange may cut rainfall across the tropics by slowing a key Atlantic current, threatening #ecosystems and livelihoods... #AMOC #globalwarming #climatechange #precipitation Source: Slowing ocean currents could dry out the tropics - Earth.com

https://formuchdeliberation.wordpress.com/2025/08/03/slowing-ocean-currents-could-dry-out-the-tropics-earth-com/

Rupestrian grasslands form an ecosystem of extremes: covering a mere 0.8% of Brazil’s territory, they are home to 15% of the nation’s flora.

The list of threats to this mountaintop ecosystem is long, but mining poses the greatest threat.

Conservation units to protect rupestrian grasslands have been set up, while universities are partnering with mining companies to drive restoration projects.

by Letícia Klein
https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/scientists-communities-rush-to-save-rare-diverse-brazilian-grassland-ecosystem/

#news #mining #ecosystems #environment #conservation