USDA Forest Service

Cooperation and technology transfer between the UT-TIP and the USDA Forest Service, Southern Region, Genetic Resources Program has been ongoing for over three decades. The centerpiece in the cooperation is the Watauga Northern Red Oak Seed Orchard, located on the Watauga Ranger District, Cherokee National Forests. The Watauga Orchard, managed since the late 1990s by UT-TIP for the Southern Region, is the largest oak seed orchard in the nation and is a platform for learning about oak reproductive biology and orchard management to guide development of additional oak orchards on other ranger districts. Additionally, seedlings from the Watauga Orchard are used to help determine optimal seedling size for planting in reforestation and restoration activities on southern national forests.