BLM Arizona Native Plants Program
Congress created the Native Plant Materials Development Program in 2001 to help ensure a stable and economical supply of genetically appropriate native plant materials for use in restoration and rehabilitation efforts on public lands. It is the first program to coordinate native plant materials development on a national scale. The program seeks to expand seed collection and curation, increase seed storage capacity, and develop seed transfer zones and guidelines.
BLM Arizona manages approximately 12.2 million surface acres of public land, and realizes that public involvement is critical in the development and implementation of its RMPs. Public lands in Arizona include portions of the Mojave, Sonoran, Chihuahuan and Great Basin Deserts as well as pinyon-juniper and ponderosa pine forested lands.
The BLM’s Arizona plant conservation and management activities is to ensure that native plants and native plant communities on public lands are managed, conserved, and/or restored for the benefit of present and future generations.
In August 2015, the BLM unveiled the National Seed Strategy for Rehabilitation and Restoration 2015-2020. Working with non-federal partners and 11 other agencies, the Strategy will provide a more coordinated approach to restoring plant communities.