The Long Point World Biosphere Reserve Foundation has begun a project to help facilitate the restoration of original habitat within the area. Project C.A.R.E. (Carolinian Action Restoration and Education) has been created with the dual goal of education combined with the production of available plant stock for restoration purpose. One of the major barriers that most communities encounter when planning a restoration project is the availability (and affordability) of local plant stock. It is important to use local plant stock to keep the genetic diversity of the region healthy. Students learn the biology of growing plants in high school, and many have the facilities to grow the plants them selves. Project C.A.R.E. Saw this as an opportunity to use these facilities to grow plant stock form local seed sources to increase the availability for restoration purposes. This manual is divided into three parts, the history and significance of prairies, the science of growing plants, and the growing of the seeds. Each of these sections can be either used independently or as a unit. After the third unit, there are sheets containing specific information for a number of different prairie species native to this area. There are also useful resources and bibliography at the back of this manual. Skills evaluation sheets have been included to ease the use of this manual for teachers. An attempt has been made to tie the learning into the new curriculum as much as possible, and the information should be useful for both the academic or applied courses. Education is a fundamental aspect of this project, hopefully the manual will work towards an increased accessibility of this local knowledge base.

Enjoy!

Acknowledgements

This manual has been produced with the help of Wasyl Bakowski, Wendy Cridland, Kim Delaney, Leon DeWaele, Paid Gagnon, Mary Gartshore, Don Gordon, Brian Mayhew, Terry Reimer, Ron Thayer, Larry Van Londersele, and many others. The funding has been provided by the Shell Canada Environmental Fund. The production of this document has been implemented through a contract with the Long Point Region Conservation Authority.

Zoe Pfeiffer - Author