Hi all, we need your help collecting Microstegium (stiltgrass) seed! We have a new grant where we are trying to understand the long-term effects of pathogens on invaded plant communities. Seed from populations throughout the invaded range would be helpful. Our seed collecting protocol is outlined below, note that we can cover shipping charges via FedEx. It would be helpful if you could provide a close up photo of the plants so we can determine if the population is infected, and if you happened to know the approximate age of the invasion that also could be useful. Please circulate this to others who might be able to help out. Thank you! Jules NeSmith (on behalf of) S. Luke Flory University of Florida ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Note: Microstegium seed is mature when it is mostly brown and can be easily shaken from the seed head. Seed collected while still green will have lower germination. Seed matures at the end of September through mid to late October depending on latitude, with more northern latitudes maturing first. Microstegium has a mixed mating system, which means that it produces seed by both selfing and outcrossing. Outcrossed or chasmogomous seed is the seed that you see produced at the end of tillers and those are the seeds we are interested in obtaining. We are focused on among population variation, not within population, so to collect seed you can simply collect seed from anywhere within an approximately 20m diameter area. The simplest method is to arbitrarily walk around in a given area, grab the ends of tillers in large bunches, and shake the seed heads into a paper grocery bag. We need about at least 50ml or ΒΌ cup of seed from each population for it to be useful. That amount can be collected from with a dense invasion in about 5-10 minutes. Collecting more seed could be very helpful. We need the approximate lat/long coordinates of the collection location. If you happen to be in the field a lot and can collect seed from multiple populations, they need to be separated by 2-5 km. A short description of the site would also be useful. Please send seed in a padded envelope to: S. Luke Flory Agronomy Dept, IFAS McCarty B 3127 Gainesville, FL, 32611 Cell: 352-231-2376 Email: fl...@ufl.edu * For international shipments contact me via email prior to shipping! I will need to provide a permit and special shipping label. There are specific packing instructions. If you can ship FedEx I can provide you with an account number for billing. Thanks!
