Set deep in the U.S. Forest Service Stephen F. Austin Experimental Forest, the East Texas Plant Materials Center (ETPMC) is providing seeds of hope and innovation for conservation efforts in the Western Coastal Plain. 

Established in 1982, the ETPMC was the result of a joint venture between the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Deep East and Northeast Texas Association of Conservation Districts and the Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture at Stephen F. Austin State University. The center found its permanent home in 1987 amidst the towering trees and rich biodiversity of the experimental forest. Its mission is to develop plant-based solutions for conservation needs across 44 million acres encompassing East Texas, Northwest Louisiana, Southwest Arkansas, and Southeast Oklahoma.

The Heart of ETPMC: Alan Shadow and Dawn Stover

At the core of the ETPMC are two dedicated individuals, NRCS Plant Materials Center Manager, Alan Shadow, and NRCS Agronomist, Dawn Stover. Their passion for conservation and deep connection to the land drive the center's success. The dynamic duo keeps the center running smoothly. They bring decades of experience, knowledge, and a shared commitment to preserving and restoring natural habitats.

“We practice what we preach,” says Shadow. “We use multi-species cover crops to improve soil health on fallow fields and planters that minimize the disturbance to the soil. This helps minimize soil erosion and decreases the need for herbicide use.”  

For Shadow and Stover, the ETPMC is more than just a workplace; it’s a labor of love. Their dedication to the mission of the center is evident in every aspect of their work. This includes careful selection and testing of native plants and education efforts. 

“I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else,” Stover says. “Conservation is a passion of mine and I’m pretty sure a passion of Alan’s. We’d like to see habitats returned to what they should be. That in itself is all the reward we need.”

Shadow and Stover have found an ally offsite through State Resource Conservationist, Charles Kneuper, who they credit with helping to spread the word about the ETPMC.

“Charles has really integrated the three Texas PMC’s into the state office staff, the principal staff, and ecological sciences staff. So now these specialists know what we’re doing and we’re hearing what their needs are and experiences in the field,” Shadow says.  

Stover adds the support has helped them to do their jobs. “It’s our purpose to communicate with the field office. We are their plant specialists. If they have a problem, they can come to us. We can wave that wand and say, ‘yes this will work or no this won’t work.’ Our role is to help them do their jobs better, more efficiently, and more successfully.”

How It Works: The Process from Seed to Solution

The process of bringing a new plant species into the conservation fold is a time-intensive endeavor. It begins with a needs assessment conducted by state specialists and national and regional leadership. They identify specific conservation challenges that require plant-based solutions. Once a need is identified, the ETPMC gets to work, developing projects that can range from plant releases to educational brochures and videos. 

“We try to deliver the appropriate product to the field office staff or conservation community. Plant releases require multiple years of evaluation, area of adaptation testing to determine their area of use, and seed increase fields to deliver seed to commercial growers.”  We try to develop a release that has a wide area of use, multiple conservation applications, and can be commercially produced.” 

The journey of a plant release at the ETPMC begins with wild seed collections across the ETPMC’s 44-million-acre service area in East Texas, Northwest Louisiana, Southwest Arkansas and Southeast Oklahoma. Each seed collection is carefully cataloged and assigned a specific accession number so it can be tracked throughout the process. It is then evaluated under different conditions over a span of three to five years to determine its viability and performance. This rigorous testing ensures only the best-performing plants are selected for further propagation and eventual release. 

“We are not genetically manipulating native plants, we are selecting the top performing plants from nature and using those as our parent material for our releases and seed production.   In the past we would narrow this selection to a single elite accession, however now we try to include 5 to 10 of the top performing accessions in the release to help with genetic diversity. The benefit is that releases from the Plant Materials Program have a known level of performance and a defined area of use,” says Shadow.

The Unique Role of the ETPMC

Unlike typical USDA NRCS field offices, the ETPMC does not interact directly with the public except for at various field days and other training opportunities for farmers, ranchers and forest stewards. Instead, they focus on developing products for the commercial seed market, creating technical documents and brochures, and participating in educational opportunities for landowners to learn more about conservation practices. 

“The public never comes here and says, ‘hey, I need that.’ We develop products for the commercial seed market and NRCS field offices to put into conservation planning,” Shadow explains. “Producers go to the field office and the field office relays their needs to us through our needs assessment; then we develop the appropriate product to meet these needs.”

Real-World Impact: From Prairies to Medians

The work of the ETPMC extends far beyond the confines of their 72-acre experimental field. The center’s influence can be seen in conservation projects across the region, from the sprawling Winston 8 Ranch Tree Farm to the historic Caddo Mounds State Historic Site and even an urban median in the city of Nacogdoches. 

At the Winston 8 Ranch Tree Farm, Shadow and Stover use the land as a living laboratory to demonstrate effective forest management and conservation practices. The 3,400 acres of longleaf and shortleaf pine open range, and wetlands provide a perfect backdrop for teaching others about the importance of diverse plant communities and sustainable land management. 

“We can take people and show them what a loblolly forest, with little to no prescribed burning, looks like, and then go across the street (to the Winston Tree Farm) and show them what uneven stand management with frequent fire intervals looks like and how they can do things a little differently,” says Shadow. 

The Caddo Mounds State Historic Site, located in the Neches River Basin, is another area where they’ve had a significant impact in helping restore the native prairie that once thrived there. 
 

“We developed a seed mix and provided technical assistance on how to set up and do the site prep for the planting, and how to care for the planting afterwards in terms of chemicals and mechanical controls to use for weed competition,” Shadow explains. “They wanted to convert their open grounds back to the plant community that was there when the Caddo occupied the site.” 

One of the ETPMC’s most public efforts took place in an unexpected location: a median along Highway 59 in Nacogdoches. Their efforts not only beautified the city and reduced mowing requirements but also showcased sustainable, urban conservation practices using native vegetation to the public.

Choosing Seeds, Tough Love, and Bluestem

Selecting the right seeds for a conservation planting is a critical step that can impact the success of the project. The ETPMC considers forage quality, wildlife value, seed production, and disease resistance to ensure the plants they release are both viable and suitable for their intended purposes. 

“We look at plants that have potential to address resource concerns and develop releases accordingly. Our Coastal Plains Germplasm little bluestem was developed out of necessity for regional genetics that tolerate the heat and humidity of the southeastern United States. This grass is important as a fine fuel, as habitat for ground nesting birds, for soil stabilization, and forage for wildlife,” Stover explains. 

One of the key philosophies at the ETPMC is to grow plants under natural, challenging conditions to ensure they are resilient and adaptable. This approach may seem counterintuitive to traditional agricultural practices, but it is crucial for the success of conservation plantings. 

“The main thing we do is counterproductive to what you would normally think,” says Shadow. “In a normal ag situation, we’d want to pamper these plants—fertilize, irrigate, and take care of them. From a conservation standpoint, that is exactly what you don’t want to do.” 

Instead, the ETPMC grows plants as transplants, irrigating them at first to establish them, but then ending both fertilization and irrigation. This “tough love” approach ensures only the strongest, most adaptable plants survive and thrive, making them ideal for use in conservation projects. 

“It’s time to get tough or die,” Shadow says. “You get to see which ones are adapted to this kind of rainfall and climate. When these releases are used in conservation plantings they will not be irrigated or fertilized, so it’s imperative that we test them under this same scenario.” 

By carefully selecting and testing different commercially available releases of little bluestem from various regions, for example, the ETPMC ensures the plants used in conservation programs are well-suited to their specific environments. This approach helps maximize the success of conservation plantings and ensures that producers are using the best possible plant releases for their needs. 

“It gives you an idea of the plant performance based on region and why it’s important. People may wonder why we need so many different little bluestem releases. It’s because they don’t perform the same at all the locations in the United States, each release is regionally adapted to its intended area of use.” Shadow explains. 

Looking to the Future

As the ETPMC continues to develop new plant releases and conservation tools, Shadow and Stover remain committed to their mission.  

“It’s a lot of work—to maintain the research and seed production fields and to maintain the equipment associated with harvesting and cleaning seed, as well as conducting trainings, and producing technical documents from brochures to peer reviewed journal articles, Shadow says, “this is where I’m most effective.” 
 

Through their tireless efforts and commitment, Shadow and Stover have helped to shape the ETPMC into a center of excellence for plant-based conservation solutions.  

“There’s nothing fast that happens out here,” Stover says. “I joke that my job is to watch grass grow, but realistically, the evaluation process is not something that should be rushed. It takes time to get things right.”