Plant Materials Program “The Plant Materials Program and its cooperators have contributed the bulk of the material and technology now used in ecosystem

restoration and are our foundation for meeting conservation challenges of the future.”

-- D.T. Booth and T.A. Jones, Native Plants Journal

Implementing the Farm Bill 

Farm Bill programs can be implemented by 

using structural (vegetative and engineering) or 

management conservation practices. Plants 

make conservation happen. And plants can help 

you implement the 2008 Farm Bill. 

 

No matter which Farm Bill program you are 

working with, you will most likely utilize vegetative 

and management practices to accomplish some of 

your customers’ conservation goals. Your Plant 

Materials Specialist and Plant Materials Center staff 

can provide recommendations and assistance with: 

Helping People Help the Land 

• Conservation plants that are performance tested 

in specific growing environments to solve 

various conservation problems; 

• Applied technology developed for successful 

plant establishment and management of seeding 

mixtures; and 

• On-site technical assistance to field offices, 

partners, farmers, and ranchers. 

Conservation Plants 

More than 75 percent of the grasses, forbs, shrubs 

and trees listed in the Field Office Technical Guide 

(FOTG) are Plant Materials Program (PMP) 

releases. Plant Materials Program studies have 

produced over 65 percent of the plant management 

information used by NRCS. Your Plant Materials 

staff is available to assist NRCS field offices with 

species recommendations and planting technology 

for all the programs in the Farm Bill including: 

• Conservation Reserve Program (CRP)- Practices 

addressing erosion control on range and pasture 

lands, development of wildlife habitat, restoring 

native plant communities, and revegetating 

disturbed areas. Adapted native species such as 

bluebunch wheatgrass, big bluegrass, big bluestem, 

Indiangrass, and prairie flax. Effective seed mixes, 

planting times, and seedbed preparation techniques 

are found in the FOTG. 

• Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP)- Plants and 

technology for restoring or enhancing wetland and 

riparian areas. Adaptive native species include 

willows, sedges, creeping spike rush, and alkali 

bulrush. The PMP has developed countless 

technologies that are adapted to specific ecological 

regions of the country, including soil 

bioengineering techniques in wet and dry areas and 

containers designed for transplanting in arid 

regions. 

• Environmental Quality Incentives Program 

(EQIP)- This includes plant materials and 

technology for practices that address animal waste 

treatment, nutrient uptake, odor control, 

windbreaks, living snow fences, pollinators, 

invasive species suppression, and plant diversity. 

Improved species include switchgrass, Indiangrass, 

creeping foxtail, and tall wheatgrass for use in 

nutrient uptake; hybrid poplars, green ash, 

dogwoods and willows for odor control and 

windbreaks; Rocky Mountain juniper and 

purpleosier willows and other small trees for living 

snow fences; and western yarrow, coneflower, and 

sunflowers for pollinators. 
About Us 

The USDA NRCS Plant Materials Program consists of a 

network of 27 Plant Materials Centers (PMCs) and Plant 

Materials Specialists located throughout the United 

States. For over 70 years, PMCs and Specialists have 

provided essential and effective plant solutions for 

critical habitats, environmental concerns, management 

practices, and key farm and ranch programs. 

For more information, visit: 

http://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov 

http://www.nrcs.usda.gov 

June 2008 

The USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. 

• Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP)- 

Plants and technology for practices that address 

pollinators, revegetation after removal of invasive 

species, plants to improve wildlife habitat, and 

plants to provide food and shelter for the species 

of concern. Adapted plant species include 

western yarrow, purple prairieclover, black-eyed 

susan, coneflower, silverberry, sunflowers, 

switchgrass, basin wildrye, lupines, and 

lespedeza. 

• Biomass Research – Research continues on the 

development of cultural practices that will result 

in high quality and higher yields of biomass. 

Species being evaluated include switchgrass, big 

bluestem, indiangrass, giant miscanthus, and tall 

wheatgrass. 

• Chesapeake Bay Program – Plants and 

technology for a new program to implement 

vegetative measures on agricultural lands in the 

Chesapeake Bay Watershed. 

Fourwing saltbush is used for restoration in the 

southwest, providing food and habitat for wildlife and 

livestock. 

Technical Assistance 

Your Plant Materials staff provides new technology 

and one-on-one technical assistance including: 

• Recommendations for enhancing ecological 

diversity, stabilizing streambanks, revegetating 

wetlands, implementing odor control, establishing 

buffers, and improving range and pastureland 

quality. 

‘Shelter’ switchgrass provides cover in the snow 

• Advice on cultural practices, such as seedbed 

preparation, seed placement, seedling 

establishment and stand management, etc. 

• On-site technical assistance with land managers, 

and field tours and training sessions for field 

office and conservation district staff partners, 

farmers and ranchers, Tribes, limited resource 

producers, and other land managers. 

• Demonstration plantings and cooperative research 

projects to help local land managers find solutions 

for specific conservation problems. 

• Coordination of seed production with commercial 

growers to assure seed of adapted conservation 

plants is available to the public. 

• Reference materials, such as brochures, plant 

guides, technical guides, newsletters and technical 

articles are available to the public and NRCS 

personnel on the Plant Materials website at 

http://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov.