RENO – A University of Nevada, Reno research team completed a planting of Tiehm’s buckwheat seedlings at the Rhyolite Ridge Lithium-Boron Project site. It’s the latest phase in a research and environmental protection collaboration between ioneer USA Corporation, an emerging lithium-boron producer, and the University.
According to ioneer, environmental stewardship is at the core of its mission. To that end, it provided a year-long grant to UNR in summer 2019 to study the propagation, soil preferences, and pollination of Tiehm’s buckwheat (Eriogonum tiehmii), a plant endemic to Nevada.
Seed was collected last summer and seedlings were grown in the UNR greenhouse. In late April, the UNR research team planted and tagged approximately 900, 4-month old seedlings in different locations at the Project site. The locations were determined by the research team based on soils and accessibility for watering.
The mining company expanded its agreement in April of 2020 to fund UNR researchers in a five-year study that will include monitoring and population modeling. A member of the UNR research team will continue to visit the study site make observations and monitor progress. Watering will cease at the end of the growing season when the Tiehm’s buckwheat goes dormant.
