2011 CSR EcoExpo!

Conservation, Seeding and Restoration Inc. and Neuhoff Media are proud to present The CSR EcoExpo! Please join us today, April 29th and tomorrow, the 30th, at the Twin Falls County Fairgrounds 10am-6pm for the first annual CSR EcoExpo.

This 2 day event will truly be a celebration. A 2 day trade show FREE to the public with vendors to help you “go green” in every aspect of your life. LIVE concert Friday April 29th at 6pm featuring The Clumsy Lovers with Ethan Tucker opening. Educational presentations to help you and your household learn about sustainable living. Eco Kid’s Zone with hands on activities for kids to learn about eco friendly topics. Live entertainment all day Saturday, April 30th. Food and beverage vendors and much more!

Native Focus: Penstemon venustus, Lovely Penstemon

Native Focus: Penstemon venustus, Lovely Penstemon, is native to the northwestern United States, where it grows in many types of open habitat. It is a spreading shrub growing erect to a maximum height near 80 centimeters. The thick, stiff leaves are lance-shaped, serrated, and up to 12 centimeters in length. The showy inflorescence bears many tubular lavender flowers, the largest nearly 4 centimeters long. The mouth of the flower and the staminode are covered in long, white hairs. This penstemon is cultivated for use in wilderness landscaping in its native habitat and is available from the CSR nursery.

CSR Sagebrush for the Ruby Pipeline

The CSR Production Department has grown out several species of sagebrush for the Ruby Pipeline restoration project. Species include Black sagebrush, Low sagebrush, Mountain Big sagebrush, Wyoming Big sagebrush, and Basin Big sagebrush.

Earth Day 2011 Book Giveaway!

In honor of Earth Day 2011, Conservation Seeding and Restoration Inc. would like to offer our blog readers the chance to win a two book set, Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants, Updated and Expanded, by Douglas W. Tallamy and The Lorax, by Dr. Seuss. To enter this giveaway, simply leave a comment in today’s post sharing how you are celebrating Earth Day 2011.

Comments will close on Sunday, April 24, 2011 at 10pm MST. (one entry per person, please) Winners will be chosen by Random Number Generator and announced here in this post Wednesday, April 27,2011.

Congratulations to blog reader, Domestic Diva! You were chosen to be CSR’s Earth Day 2011 book giveaway winner!

Be sure to also join us next weekend, April 29th and 30th for the CSR EcoExpo!

Happy Earth Day from all of us at Conservation Seeding and Restoration Inc!

CSR Job Fair, April 21, 2011

Thursday, April 21, 2011, CSR will be hosting a ONE DAY JOB FAIR at the Idaho Department of Labor. We are promoting immediate need for the RUBY Pipeline Restoration, as well as other positions. We will be hiring immediately and “on the spot”.

Come join our team and help “Restore the Planet, one Native Plant at a Time”.

Invasive Focus: Convolvulus arvensis, Field Bindweed

Invasive Focus: Convolvulus arvensis, Field bindweed, is a perennial vine native to Eurasia. Leaves are round to arrow-shaped, 1-2.25 in. (2.5-5.7 cm) long and alternate. Flowering occurs in the mid-summer, when white to pale pink, funnel-shaped flowers develop. Flowers are approximately 0.75-1 in. (1.9-2.5 cm) across and are subtended by small bracts. Fruit are light brown, rounded and 1/8 in. (0.3 cm) wide. Each fruit contains 2 seeds that are eaten by birds and can remain viable in the soil for decades. Field bindweed, most likely, was introduced into North America as a contaminant in crop seed as early as 1739. Plants typically inhabit roadsides, grasslands and also along streams. (invasive.org)

“Field bindweed intertwines and topples native species. It competes with other species for sunlight, moisture and nutrients. It poses threats to restoration efforts and riparian corridors by choking out grasses and forbs. It can decrease habitat biodiversity. It is one of the most serious weeds of agricultural fields in temperate regions of the world.” (source)

Convolvulus arvensis, Field Bindweed, is listed in the top ten widespread invasive plants in Idaho, according to EDDMapS. (Early Detection & Distribution Mapping System: providing a picture of the distribution of invasive species across the U.S.)

CSR and D&B Supply

D&B Supply in Garden City, ID is now offering CSR’s native plants! Stop by and check out the great selection.

Transporting Sagebrush, Ruby Pipeline Restoration

CSR Restoration work on the Ruby Pipeline has officially begun!

44,000 sagebrush plants were transported last week to staging areas along the Ruby Pipeline.

In Celebration of Earth Day 2011

Join us April 29th and 30th at the Twin Falls, ID County Fairgrounds 10am-6pm

Native Focus: Artemisia tridentata, Great Basin Sagebrush

Native Focus: Artemisia tridentata, Great Basin Sagebrush, is an evergreen shrub, 1 1/2-9 ft. tall, with a gnarled spread somewhat less than its height. It may have a short trunk or be branched from the base. Small, velvety, silvery leaves have a sweet, pungent aroma and, en masse, give a bluish-gray effect.

Big Sagebrush is the dominant shrub over vast areas of the Great Basin region. Several subspecies have been identified, all more or less similar to the typical form. Sagebrush is a valuable forage plant for wildlife, particularly during the winter. It is browsed by deer, moose, elk, antelope, and bighorn sheep, especially in late winter and spring. Sage grouse also feed heavily on sagebrush, which also provides nesting sites for a variety of songbirds. Even more nutritious than alfalfa, this shrub consists of 16 percent proteins, 15 percent fats, and 47 percent carbohydrates. Humans have used the plant primarily as firewood—the volatile oils responsible for its pungent aroma are so flammable that they can cause even green plants to burn.  (Lady Bird Johnson)

Artemisia tridentata is a larval host and/or nectar source for the Hera buckmoth (Hemileuca hera) and is available from the CSR Nursery.