#waiting for the scarlet paintbrush with its host plant to come back in stock and then it's fucking go time

[eggtrolls]

okay so here's the plan. the nyc parks department requires that, for planting any species in what are considered "natural areas", you have to get permission from the "natural areas group" (makes sense) and there are other requirements, namely that the seed -- not just the plant, the seed -- is from within 100 miles of wherever you're planting. the park [Good Park] that I've been doing all my volunteer work in is a natural area. this is also why the Atlantic white cedar had to be sourced from Jersey as seeds, rather than saplings, to guarantee their provenance and I got hosed by the bastards at Sheffield's (untrue, they were great but they have high shipping rates and I'm salty about the terrible germination rate but tbh I think that was in part my fault).

BUT AND HOWEVER - there is a (shittier) park [Shittier Park] that's like 5 blocks away that is NOT a "natural area" and it has a fenced garden area which means it's open fucking season. meaning I can go to Prairie Moon Nursery and find plants native to my region and then cross-check them with the New York Floral Atlas and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service to see if they're listed as rare or endangered at a state level and then buy those seeds to start in my home and then transplant to [Shittier Park] in the protected area while they're still fragile.