Georgia awarded grant to help grow and save 14 rare plants

ATLANTA - A federal grant has been awarded to sample, grow and save 14 rare plant species in Georgia.

The $780,000 grant will support work by a partnership led by the state Department of Natural Resources, the agency said in a news release.

It will also increase the capacity to preserve plants at the State Botanical Garden of Georgia, Atlanta Botanical Garden and the Chattahoochee Nature Center and to spread expertise and support to others in the Georgia Plant Conservation Alliance, the release says.

"The grant is going to fortify (the Georgia alliance’s) main partners and build the diversity and number of botanical gardens that can help preserve rare plants," Department of Natural resources senior botanist Lisa Kruse said. The alliance includes more than 50 universities, agencies, nonprofits and companies.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Recovery Challenge grant was awarded for a five-year project to protect the 14 plants, which are all listed as endangered or threatened by federal authorities, and to all members to the alliance to help do that work, the release says.

"It takes careful observation of natural habitats, experimentation and horticultural expertise to safeguard imperiled plants," said Jenny Cruse-Sanders, director of the State Botanical Garden of Georgia. "Georgia is a leader in identifying critical habitat, imperiled species and the conservation action needed to preserve our precious natural heritage in the southeastern U.S., one of the most botanically diverse areas of our country."

Safeguarding the plants includes protecting species’ genetic stock, growing the plants in a nursery, and planting them in the wild, the release says. Protecting and restoring habitats is also crucial to saving at-risk plants.

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