Welcome to the NASC Grower Committee web section! Here you will find answers to most, if not all, of your questions concerning what the Grower Committee (GC) is doing to further the cause of the NASC, and what you can do to participate as a NASC grower.

The members of the GC are charged with growing out those Sarracenia which are contained in the NASC collection, maintaining accurate records of the plants they are growing for the NASC, and distributing these plants as requested by the Board of Directors. This is not a single collection of plants in one central location. Rather, the NASC collection is held by many NASC growers throughout the U.S. By maintaining individual types of collection plants in many places, it is hoped that the risk of catastrophic loss for whatever reason will be minimized.

Since the NASC is committed to preserving a living record of the diversity of these wondrous plants, a large percentage of the GC’s energy is focused on growing location-specific Sarracenia; that is, plants that have exact location information. Many species of Sarracenia are found throughout a large geographic range. For example, Sarracenia alata ranges from Alabama all the way to eastern Texas. There is no doubt that S. alata plants from Texas are genetically distinct from those in Alabama, or possibly even from plants just a short few miles apart; so the Grower Committee maintains plants from each location as distinct populations.

The Grower Committee is headed by the Administrator of Plant Materials, who directs the Regional Head Growers (RHGs). Each RHG coordinates the growers in their region. As the Grower Committee increases in membership, RHGs may begin to have Area Head Growers (AHGs) in their regions as well.

So how can you become involved in this rewarding volunteer opportunity? Start by joining the NASC, if you haven’t done so already! Once you've done that, read the Grower Information Packet. This contains information about the Grower Committee Policies and Procedures, a short Information Sheet for you to complete, and a Disclosure Agreement to sign. You may also want to review the Sample Growout Record to familiarize yourself with this critical document.

Experience in growing Sarracenia is a must to be a full-fledged NASC grower; but we also understand that you have to start somewhere! Many GC members are very giving of their time to help get you started, and may even share some 'starter Sarracenia' to work with.

We hope this answers your initial questions about the NASC Grower Committee. Please contact the Administrator of Plant Materials with any additional questions.