Southeastern

Grasslands

Conservation Center

Positioned on the southwest corner of Austin Peay State University's campus is an 18,000 ft2 former Honda dealership that may serve as SGI's headquarters. If SGI is able to raise the necessary funding, the facility will house staff, research facilities (including herbarium), a museum dedicated to Southeastern grasslands, a seed bank and seed lab, research greenhouse, and botanical gardens. The Center will be the first of its kind in the Southeast.

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Seedbank

SGI's seedbank will preserve seeds of grassland species. Staff will work with Roundstone to develop seed mixes to be used in regional conservation projects.

Herbarium

SGI will feature the Mid-South's largest herbarium dedicated to documenting the flora of Southeastern grasslands.

The herbarium will feature specimens such as this wavy-leaf coneflower that serve as a permanent record for grassland biodiversity.

botanical garden

Currently, the botanical garden is home to 320 native Southeastern grassland species. The goal is to increase this number to 1,000 species in the next five years.

In 2014, the APSU Herbarium and Zoological Museum were awarded a combined $309,000 grant from the National Science Foundation.

In September 2016, the APSU Herbarium was awarded a $389,000 grant from the National Science Foundation.