Revitalize Endangered Species

According to the 2006 IUCN Red List, there are over 7,000 species of tree that are threatened or endangered, 23 species are extinct in the wild and 79 species are gone forever.

One difficulty in revitalizing an endangered tree is a limited seed source. Seeds must be collected from the few trees that remain and used to grow seedlings in a controlled environment until they are strong enough to be planted in the wild. These young trees (depending on the species) can take up to 30 years before they begin to contribute to the seed source. The RPM (Root Production Method)® can speed that process exponentially. Most species on which the RPM (Root Production Method)® has been tested have begun to produce seeds within the first three years.

The following table shows the difference in the number of trees produced using the RPM (Root Production Method)® versus traditional methods. Several assumptions are made 1) there are 10 original trees to be used as seed source 2) one seed from every seed producing tree is collected, processed (only for the RPM (Root Production Method)®), germinated, grown and planted every year 3) traditionally grown trees require 30 years for seed production 4) RPM (Root Production Method)® grown trees require 1 to 3 years for seed production and 5) there is 100% survival of all trees once planted.

Number of Original Trees	Number of Years the Planting Process is to be Repeated	Total Number of Trees at the End of the Time Period Using the RPM Process	Total Number of Trees at the End of the Time Period Using Traditional Methods
10	5	62	50
10	10	445	100
10	15	3,150	150
10	20	22,328	200
10	25	158,287	250
10	30	1,122,108	300

By causing trees to produce seeds in 1 to 3 years instead of 30, the RPM (Root Production Method)® increases the seed source every year exponentially. With minimal effort, as the RPM (Root Production Method)® process is very simple, any endangered tree species could be revitalized.

A Native American Proverb

WE DO NOT INHERIT THE ENVIRONMENT FROM OUR ANCESTORS; WE BORROW IT FROM OUR CHILDREN.
A Native American proverb.

So, why do we insist on leaving our children with nothing? A report from 2005, based on a study by 1,360 experts in 95 nations, stated that "humans are damaging the planet at an unprecedented rate and raising risks of abrupt collapses in nature that could spur disease, deforestation or "dead zones" in the seas." How many reports need to be published before people realize that this planet is in a downward spiral?

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated the Gulf Coast. With greatly diminished wetlands, the storm surges ran inland for miles almost unchecked. The logical response to this disaster is to begin reclaiming coastal areas for planting trees and restoring wetlands. Or is it? The Corps has proposed reducing and even eliminating permitting requirements for filling wetlands in the Gulf Coast to aide in rebuilding efforts. The need for so much rebuilding was exacerbated by the diminished wetlands and now they want to make it easier to fill in what is left.

I think we have already borrowed more from our children than we can ever pay back. It's time to do something different.

About Earthmark

EarthMark International, Inc, EMI, is a broker of a unique technology that has proven to accelerate growth and early fruiting of most plants. EMI owns the exclusive rights within the USDA low temperature zones of 8 - 11 to grow plants using a proven accelerated growth process called, RPM (Root Production Method)®.

Over the past 20+ years, the RPM (Root Production Method)® process has had impressive results in accelerating the growth rate and improving survival of many species of trees. This process is owned by Forrest Keeling Nursery of Elsberry Missouri, and is licensed to EarthMark International. Most trees have produced 3 to 5 feet of growth in the first growing season. In addition acorns have been produced three percent of the time within the first year and one hundred percent of the time within the third year. An open-grown oak tree typically produces acorns when it is 20 to 30 years old. This is an all-natural process, which, without chemical enhancements or genetic alterations, increases overall hardiness and accelerates the growth of processed trees.

The core of an RPM (Root Production Method)® tree's success is in its roots. These trees are grown in successively larger pots until ready for sale and planting on site. Bare root seedlings are typically planted in the ground at a nursery and allowed to grow for 1 to 3 seasons before being dug up and potted for sale. Digging up the bare root seedling cuts or tears the roots causing a period of transplant shock, which RPM (Root Production Method)® trees do not experience. The RPM (Root Production Method)® process also causes massive production of feeder roots, which allow the tree to "believe" that it is 15 to 20 years old after one growing season. This accelerates the tree's growth, causes early nut/fruit production, gives the tree a more solid foundation once planted and provides a greatly increased ability to obtain oxygen, water and food during harsh conditions (flood or drought) during the trees early stages.

Bare root seedling (left) at approximately 715 days.

RPM (Root Production Method)® tree and root system ready for planting (right) at approximately 210 days.

How You Can Help

Wetlands are among the most productive habitats on earth providing shelter and nursery areas for commercially and recreationally important animals like fish and shellfish, as well as wintering grounds for migrating birds. Louisiana contains 40 percent of the coastal wetlands in the lower 48 States and for the last 50 years has lost an average of 34 square miles a year. The 2005 hurricane season greatly intensified this loss. The change from land to water in all of coastal Louisiana from 2004 to 2005 was 118.2 square miles, almost 25% of the land loss projected to occur over a period of 50 years (2000 - 2050) by the Louisiana Coastal Area Ecosystem Restoration Study.

EarthMark Int. is working with academic universities to replant marsh and wetland areas from the Louisiana Gulf Coast to the Florida Everglades. For $15.00, a tree (cypress, water oak, button brush, etc.) can be produced in a nursery, shipped to a project location and planted in a restoration project. You can help. Whether your donation is enough for a tree or a whole forest, you can do your part to protect and reclaim this vital piece of our environment.

Every cent of every donation goes directly to producing a tree.

If you would like, you can donate now.

Cypress seedlings in an EarthMark nursery greenhouse.

Cypress trees in pots at an EarthMark nursery.