August 17, 2018
CapitalPress.com
13
Pre-vegetated mats, logs control erosion, restore wetlands
By DIANNA TROYER
For the Capital Press
Wetland plants growing
in logs and mats made from
coir, the fiber from the outer
husk of coconuts, have been
the key to growth at North
Fork Native Plants, a nursery
in eastern Idaho specializing
in providing plants for resto-
ration and reclamation proj-
ects.
“I had seen at a conference
how the Germans were suc-
cessfully using pre-vegetated
coir to re-vegetate challeng-
ing wetland sites in Europe,
and the seed was planted,”
said Jeff Klausmann, who
founded North Fork Native
Plants in 2003.
The 20-acre nursery,
stretching along the banks of
the Henry’s Fork of the Snake
River near Rexburg, has be-
come the leading producer of
pre-vegetated coir logs and
mats in the western U.S.
North Fork Native Plants
The nursery grows specific aquatic plants for projects.
The logs and mats have
been used on projects in the
Intermountain West to restore
stream banks and shorelines
to help prevent erosion and
invasion of weeds.
“I like to say that we’re
in the business of farming
wildlife,” said Klausmann, a
wildlife biologist. “One of the
most rewarding parts of my
job is working with producers
who see the value in growing
wildlife alongside their cash
crops.”
In addition to farmers,
other partners have included
wildlife agencies, utilities,
Holden Wholesale establishes trees in 2 Gallon containers
because more roots make bigger, stronger trees. Mycorrhizal
inoculation makes our trees more resistant to root rot and
increases nutrient uptake by 50%, promoting a faster growing
and healthier plant.
• Tissue Culture • Mound Layered
Varieties in
production are
Eta, Felix,
Gamma, Jefferson,
McDonald, Theta,
holdenwholesale@frontier.com
Tonda di Giffoni,
10374 Hazelgreen Road NE • Silverton, OR 97381
Wepster,
Yamhill,
and York.
(503) 873-5940 • FAX (503) 873-8726
N18-1/106
businesses,
and transpor-
tation depart-
ments.
The nurs-
ery’s 12 lined
ponds cover
Ann Lefler
a surface area
exceeding
eight acres,
providing the capacity to
produce more than 5,000
pre-vegetated coir mats and
logs annually.
“In a typical growing
season, we produce near-
ly 4,000 pre-vegetated coir
mats,” said Ann Lefler, op-
erations and sales manager.
The nursery’s other prod-
ucts include bare-root and
containerized wetland and
other native plants, as well
as custom growing services.
“We ship our products
to the wholesale market
throughout the West,” Le-
fler said. “We also contract
grow to meet the specific
needs of a project.”
The nursery grows a
variety of native plants in-
cluding herbaceous wet-
land plants, willows, shrubs
and trees. The plants are
raised in four separate cli-
mate-controlled greenhous-
es that provide a production
area of more than 12,000
square feet.
“On average, we produce
more than 300,000 con-
tainerized wetland plants
in various sizes each year,”
Lefler said.
The nursery also has
a room for handling, pro-
cessing and cleaning all de-
livered seed.
“We follow stringent
handling protocols and la-
bel and track each seed lot
from initial receipt, through
any cleaning and strati-
fication processes before
sowing out in our green-
houses,” Lefler said. “Our
commercial grade cold
storage units provide op-
timal temperature control
for both seed storage and
stratification.”
Klausmann said, “We’re
in the business of providing
native plants to restore wet-
lands and streams across the
West, ultimately creating
habitat for wildlife for the
future.”
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