Former employees and special guests celebrated the 60th anniversary of the ministry’s Tree Seed Centre, during National Forest Week.

To commemorate the anniversary, Doug Donaldson, Minister of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development, planted a whitebark pine seedling. Whitebark pine, found at high elevations in southern B.C., is considered an endangered species. The planting of a whitebark pine seedling symbolizes the government’s recovery efforts for this tree.

Started in Duncan in 1958, the Tree Seed Centre moved to its South Surrey location in 1986. The Tree Seed Centre supplies a continuous supply of seed to reforest B.C.’s public forests after harvesting or natural disturbances, such as the mountain pine beetle or wildfire.

The Tree Seed Centre extracts seeds from cones, tests them to ensure germination, then distributes seeds from 15 different tree species to nurseries around the province. In 2017, seed was supplied to grow 270 million seedlings. This year, seed will be extracted from more than 25,000 sacks of cones and seed will again be supplied to grow in excess of 270 million seedlings.

The Tree Seed Centre has about 73,000 kilograms of seed on hand, with an estimated value of $80 million. The centre also maintains a genetic bank consisting of 10,000 samples of seed from 42 tree species.

Learn More:

Tree Seed Centre: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/industry/forestry/managing-our-forest-resources/tree-seed/tree-seed-centre

Whitebark pine recovery projects: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/environment/plants-animals-ecosystems/species-ecosystems-at-risk/implementation/conservation-projects-partnerships/whitebark-pine-restoration?keyword=whitebark&keyword=pine

National Forest Week: https://www.bcnfw.ca/