Notice of release of Nueces germplasm Sand Dropseed: a selected class of natural germplasm

Abstract

A selected germplasm release of sand dropseed ( Sporobolus cryptandrus (Torr.) A. Gray [Poaceae]) was cooperatively released in 2015 by the South Texas Natives project and the USDA NRCS E “Kika” de la Garza Plant Materials Center in Kingsville, Texas. This release is intended for use in range and wildlife plantings, right-of-way reseeding, and critical site seedings. Nueces Germplasm comprises 5 populations of sand dropseed collected from native plants in the Rio Grande Plains, Coastal Sand Plains, and Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes ecoregions of southern Texas. Selections were made from 26 accessions of sand dropseed based on plant performance data collected over 2 y at 3 evaluation sites representative of the intended area of use of the germplasm across South Texas. Following selection, outplants were grown from the original seed stock of each of the 5 accessions, were increased in isolation, and then blended for release in order to preserve genetic integrity of each source population. Nueces Germplasm represents the first selected, ecotypic seed source of sand dropseed for use in South Texas.