The season for collecting rare plant seeds has begun in Turkmenistan. Fruiting of Atabayev's bladderwort, capers, and camel thorn has already been noted, according to the newspaper "Neutral Turkmenistan."

Environmentalists are collecting seeds and planting them at the Kopetdag State Nature Reserve, which houses the country's only living collection of juniper trees of various ages.

Nurseries for growing seedlings are set up in conditions as close to natural as possible.

For the third year, a two-hectare open-ground nursery, located at one of the reserve's wildlife refuges, has been under development. In addition to juniper and pistachio, a number of rare plants are grown there.

Difficult-to-germinate plants, such as nut-bearing plants and juniper, take a long time to germinate and may take up to three years to germinate. Therefore, several seeds are placed in one container.

This year, 150 kilograms of pistachio seeds were planted in a thousand containers, yielding a few sprouts. The juniper seedlings are kept in the nursery for only a year, after which, in late autumn, they are returned to their native habitat. Environmentalists try to plant them close to inspection trails to observe the young juniper's growth.

The plant quickly adapts to natural conditions; while it is very small, it does not need acclimatization.