Join PlantRight this spring for its 9th Annual Spring Nursery Survey. UC Master Gardener county programs can offer volunteer and continuing education hours to UC Master Gardener volunteers who visit local nurseries to help PlantRight track the availability of invasive plants in California. Participation in the 2020 Spring Nursery Survey is easy, educational, and fun!
Volunteers will:
- Register as a volunteer for Northern California or Southern California
- View a training video online and pass a short quiz
- Download required survey materials (e.g. survey form & plant ID key)
- Sign up to survey a store in their county
- Visit the store and record information about any invasive plants sold there
- Submit information to PlantRight
The survey process takes about 2.5 hours to complete. UC Master Gardener volunteers can get started by RSVP'ing to participate on PlantRight's website. When it becomes available, volunteers will be notified and be able to view a training video. After completing the online training volunteers will take a short quiz and be able to claim nurseries to survey.
Nurseries will become available to claim on PlantRight.org:
- Southern California - Monday, March 9th at noon
- Northern California - Monday, April 6th at noon
In the training video, PlantRight staff will share an overview of common invasive garden plants in California, along with basic training for completing the survey. Everyone is welcome to view this training video, regardless of survey participation.
2017 Survey Highlights
PlantRight's 2017 Spring Nursery Survey was its most successful yet as far as the amount of data goes, thanks to the 172 volunteers who participated. Survey data from 332 nurseries in 45 counties showed that just 11% of nurseries sold the four remaining invasive plants our original list (created in 2006), compared to 30% of nurseries in 2012.
Between 2015 and 2017, the percent of nurseries selling periwinkle (Vinca major) dropped from 5.3% to 1.8%. In 2014, we used survey data to add Mexican feathergrass (Stipa/Nassella tenuissima) to our list, and since 2014, the percent of nurseries selling this plant has decreased from 39% to 22%.
Want to learn more? Check out our survey report and fact sheet at: plantright.org/spring-nursery-survey. Thank you for your invaluable role in shaping PlantRight's strategy and helping us collaborate with the nursery industry!
Questions? Contact
Alex Stubblefield
PlantRight Project Manager
Email: info@plantright.org
Phone: (916) 448-3900