Seedling production

The seedlings at the Copaíba Forestry Nursery are produced from seeds collected in forest fragments in the region. More than 400 thousand seedlings of trees native to the Atlantic Forest are produced here annually, which supply the ecological restoration projects of Copaíba itself and also of partners.

To date, VFC has produced more than 4 million seedlings of more than 130 species of trees native to the Atlantic Forest.

CHECK THE AVAILABLE SEEDS

the nursery

Since 2001, Viveiro Florestal Copaíba (VFC) has been supplying Atlantic Forest restoration initiatives by the organization itself and by landowners in the municipalities located in the hydrographic basins of the Peixe and Camanducaia rivers. Located in the city of Socorro (SP), attached to the headquarters and RPPN of Copaíba.

Currently, VFC has the capacity to produce 500,000 seedlings a year, cared for by a team of six women and one man. It produces more than 130 species of trees native to the Atlantic Forest, all from seeds collected in the native forests of the region.

Main benefits

Great variety of native tree species from the regional Atlantic Forest (fruit, noble, medicinal, honey, fauna attractions, species that help in the conservation of springs, among others)
Seedlings always available to meet the needs of partners
Provision of “donations” for some of Copaíba's ecological restoration programs
Deep connection of the team with each plant, from the collection and processing of seeds, to the development of the seedlings to be released for planting
Orientation of landowners on the species and the ecological restoration of the areas;
Society's awareness of the importance of conserving native flora.

what we offer

sale from small amounts up to thousands of seedlings for the general public, with collection at the nursery or at strategic points in the city of Socorro (SP) by appointment
Personalized service with species indication to meet the needs and potentials of the area (whether SAF, spring recovery, soil fertility recovery, honey species to help with honey production, for wildlife conservation)
calculation of environmental compensation, according to the seedlings acquired
Through ecological restoration projects, we promote donations of seedlings to areas of registered and selected owners
In the program Gift Tree You can offer or open a campaign to collect native trees from the Atlantic Forest (for birthday, Christmas, graduation, whenever you want!)

Species produced

Among the species produced are the noble ones, such as pau-marfim, guatambu, peroba-rosa and jequitibá; fruit trees, such as pitanga, araçá, uvaia, baúna, gabiroba; the melliferous ones, which include pata-de-vaca, angico-branco, sandpaper, capixingui; ornamental ones, such as mulungu, guaiçara, yellow ipê; and medicinal, such as jatobá, carobinha, espinheira-santa.

On our website you will find photos and descriptions of many species of native trees produced.

KNOW ALL SPECIES

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Seedling production process

1st stage: Demarcation of georeferenced Mother Trees for seed collection

All trees that supply fruits and seeds for the production of seedlings at Viveiro Florestal Copaíba are registered and demarcated with GPS. To date, we have more than 4,000 mother trees registered in our database to guide seed collection.

2nd stage: Seed Collection

All seeds are collected in fragments of native forest belonging to partner owners, located in the Peixe and Camanducaia river basins, with a view to maintaining regional biodiversity. Several criteria are followed to maintain both the integrity of the trees and their natural dispersion. All the fruits of a parent tree are never collected, allowing natural dispersion to occur, either by wind or by animals. Once collected, the seeds are taken to the nursery.

3rd stage: Seed Processing

In the nursery, each species collected, fruit or seed, receives a different treatment. Several techniques are used to treat the seeds and make them ready for sowing.

Some harder seeds (with rigid tegument) are scarified, that is, we break the membrane that surrounds the seed so that water can penetrate more easily – what we call “breaking dormancy” of the seeds. Scarification in our Nursery is usually mechanical, done by cutting or scraping the seed membrane. Some seeds, especially those of fleshy fruits, need to be washed to remove all the pulp that surrounds them. There are other treatments that are done on the seeds. The various forms will depend on the type of fruit and seed we are working with.

4th stage: Seeding

After being prepared, the seeds are sown in sand beds or directly in the tubes – direct sowing, if the germination rate is high and homogeneous.

5th stage: Seed Germination

The seeds stay in the seedbed until they germinate. Some species take a few days to hatch, others may take months. Direct sowing seeds germinate in the tube itself and develop there until they are ready to be planted in a definitive place.

6th stage: Raise

After seed germination, the seedlings begin to grow in the seedbed and need to be transferred to an environment with nutrients – in this case, the tube with already fertilized substrate. The transplanting of the seedling from the sowing to the tube is called pricking out.

7th stage: Seedling growth

After pricking out, the seedlings remain in the tube until they grow and are ready for planting. At this time, the seedlings are cared for and fertilized in the shade house until they reach approximately 20 cm. The shade house is an environment with 50% shading coverage for the plants. The seedlings, as they grow, will need more space in the trays and, therefore, the time comes to occupy only 50% of the cells of the trays with the seedlings – this process we call thinning.

8th stage: Rustification of seedlings

The final stage of the seedling production process is hardening. “Rustifying” the seedlings is putting them in more similar conditions to what they will find in the field when they are planted. For this, the seedlings are removed from the shade house and placed in full sun, with less irrigation.

9th stage: Seedling Shipment

At approximately 30 cm tall and with a thicker stem, the seedlings are ready to be planted. It is in the rocambole that the seedlings are supplied in our nursery. Each rocambole contains 50 seedlings, usually mixed together to facilitate the logistics of seedling distribution in the field. The seedlings are separated in the nursery according to the characteristics of the planting area.

contents

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