Seed Grower Among the Trees

Akène, culture forestière is an artisanal seed grower that specializes in seeds of wild and native plants.

In the fall of 2020, we acquired an old woodlot in the Laurentians to develop a project that could demonstrate the economic viability and ecological benefits of forest-based cultivation.

Beyond silvicultural production for timber harvesting, our forests can be the source of great abundance thanks to the development of all forest resources, known as "non-timber forest products" or NTFPs. The booming NTFP sector includes products like mushrooms, wild plants (medicinal and edible), maple syrup, berries, and northern nuts.

As a forest farm, experimental laboratory, and conservation site, our forest is home to a growing variety of edible, medicinal, ornamental, and auxiliary wild plants, as well as to many non-timber forest products found under the canopy or at the edge of the Laurentian forest.

At the same time, our research and reflections have led us to take a closer look at the crucial role of native plants [Lien] in our ecosystems, while noting the decline in their presence (or even their absence) in our living environments and forests. For several decades, urban sprawl, land management practices, and forestry practices have continued to threaten and fragment their habitat.

As more conventional forest management geared towards timber harvesting can directly affect biodiversity by impacting the structure, composition, and distribution of forest stands, we wanted to rethink the productivity of forest environments and contribute to the regeneration of their biodiversity.

Moreover, as Douglas W. Tallamy explains in his book "Bringing Nature Home" [Lien], anyone with access to a plot of land or a backyard can make a significant contribution to maintaining biodiversity by growing native plants.

With this in mind, we have decided to focus our activities on the production and sale of seeds of wild and native plants.

Our offer will also meet the growing demand for wild plants, a popularity that nonetheless exerts strong pressure on these plant resources and their environments, with some even reaching the unfortunate status of threatened or vulnerable species. Our efforts in cultivation, propagation, and seed production also serve a conservation purpose by offering more people the opportunity to reproduce, grow, and enjoy these plants while reducing the pressure from wild harvesting. 

As we're still in our infancy, for the time being, we're offering a nice selection of native plant seeds that we use and are particularly fond of. This selection will expand over the years, based on your comments and the growth of the plant varieties we cultivate. Some species, including many understory plants, will require several years before we can offer them.