South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com

Volunteers needed to collect seeds at wildlife refuge

By Mike Rothman

Forum Publishing Group

1:19 PM EDT, October 16, 2007

WEST BOYNTON

The Arthur R. Marshall Foundation is seeking volunteers for its seventh annual Cypress Harvest & Student Photography Project 9 a.m. to noon Oct. 27.

The harvest event is set to take place at the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge, 10216 Lee Road, where volunteers will get a chance to collect seeds from cypress trees that later will be used to restore the Everglades.

"We collect the seeds and give them to David Bates, who owns a local nursery, and then he germinates them for us," said Susanna Laurenti, the foundation's director of communications & outreach.

Laurenti said Bates gets the seeds to sprout and gives them back to the refuge to be planted on the site.

This year's event also will include a backdrop for aspiring photographers to come out and take pictures.

"They can take pictures of action shots of volunteers collecting seeds or some really beautiful nature shots of the wildlife," Laurenti said.

A selection of the photographs taken will be framed to go on display at various parts of the refuge and throughout the county.