If we could avoid the one-upsmanship and bureaucratic nonsense associated with the National Collections scheme in the UK, I think this is a good idea. Keep it simple, though. I probably don't have enough Calochortus species to quality as a collection holder; I'm short on the high-=altitude ones and don't have a single Mexican species (I would love to grow them but have never seen seed of anything except C. barbatus). I do probably have the most complete collection of Fritillaria species in North America, but again, I am missing the species of the Far East. My collection is also strong, though by no means complete, in the Hyacinthaceae. I have all the Sternbergia except S. colchiciflora, but John Lonsdale I believe has that one. I'd be glad to discuss this initiative more with enthusiasts. Jane McGary At 11:20 PM 9/12/2011, you wrote: >Tom wrote: > > >> Why not establish an informal network of US-based 'International >Collections'? > >I really, really, really like Tom's idea. > >To build on it a little bit, here's what I picture: > >--A collection holder would be recognized by us (the PBS) as someone with >expertise and enthusiasm about a particular genus, plus a good collection of >it. As Tom mentioned, we could have more than one collection holder for a >genus, and in fact that would be better because we'd be less at risk of >losing rare species to a single disaster. > >To give a couple of examples, I think Bob Werra would qualify for Moraea, >and Jane McG. for Calochortus (and for a lot of other things). > >--We would identify collection holders on the wiki. > >--Collection holders would be informal information sources on the genus. If >you have a question about how to grow it, they'd be a good resource to ask. > >--Collection holders would also attempt to spread the genus by sharing seeds >and excess corms. > >--Finally, collection holders would be expected to make plans to preserve >their collections after they're no longer around. This could be facilitated >through the PBS. For example, if I get hit by a bus, my wife has >instructions to call Mary Sue and invite the PBS over to take charge of my >bulbs. > >Most of those are things we'd all do anyway, so what's the incentive to be a >collection holder? Status, for one thing. But also, we all ought to also >make sure that a collection holder gets first crack at a rare species when >seed of it becomes available, on the assumption that they'll have the best >chance of propagating it successfully and sharing it with others. > >What do you think? > >Mike > >_______________________________________________ >pbs mailing list >pbs@lists.ibiblio.org >http://pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php >http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/ > >--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- >Text inserted by Panda GP 2011: > > This message has NOT been classified as spam. If it is unsolicited > mail (spam), click on the following link to reclassify it: > http://localhost/Panda/… >---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------