Growers Resource page

  1. Home
  2. /
  3. Cape Cod Native Plants Growers’ Cooperative
  4. /
  5. Growers Resource page

Digging Deeper: Resources for Growers

Peat and Plastic Alternatives

Minimizing the use of both peat-free potting soils and plastic pots are key to our goal of bettering the horticultural practices that surround growing native plants.

Even if you are not a grower participating in our program, we still encourage everyone to move away from peat and plastic wherever possible.

To learn more about why peat should remain in the ground and not in our potting soils, and why plastic pots should be avoided whenever possible, please consult the following Green Growing Standards. To find alternatives to peat and plastic, look no further than our alternatives factsheets.

plants

Books

Below are our recommended readings relevant to the Growers’ Cooperative Program. From germination guides to nursery setups this is a great jumping off point if our video recordings have left you hungry for more information.

  • A Native Plant Propagation Guide and Nursery Model, free digital copy available from Indigenous Landcapes
  • The New England Wildflower Society Guide to Growing and Propagating Wildflowers of the United States and Canada, by William Cullina
  • Collecting, Processing and Germinating Seeds of Wildland Plants, by James & Cheryl Young

Germination Codes and Information

As said by many of our speakers, “Growing native plants is not hard, it’s just different.” One of the major differences when switching from our traditional agricultural crops to native plants is the concept of germination codes. Very few species of plants are ready to sprout right out of the seed packet, and this is because our native plants come equipped with dormancies which must be broken to let a seed know it is time to grow.

The program’s plant list, which can be found above, lists the germination codes for each species. If these letters and numbers are unfamiliar to you, we would recommend consulting the following informational webpages from our seed sources on achieving successful germination.

Beginning in the fall of 2025, we began offering workshops, talks, and panel discussions with experts in the native plant movement, to equip growers with as much practical information. We will continue to offer similar programs in the months and years ahead.

We’ve recorded them all, and make them available to you here to watch at your leisure:

Video Archive

Below are the recordings of the many workshops we have hosted through this program,
focused on propagation, growing techniques and timelines, genetic considerations, soil
mechanics, and more.