Celebrating Jim Brackman: Our Award-Winning Conifer Champion

Celebrating Jim Brackman: Our Award-Winning Conifer Champion

We’re thrilled to announce that Jim Brackman has won the 2024 Marvin and Emelie Snyder Award of Merit for his outstanding support of the American Conifer Society (ACS). Jim's dedication and hard work have truly earned him this honor.

Seeds: The Unsung Heroes of New Conifers

We all love conifers, right? And we've heard a lot about cool stuff like conifer brooms, branch sports, and grafting. But did you know that growing new conifers from seeds is just as important? Yup, those tiny seeds can bring us some really awesome new trees!

You can collect seeds from open pollinated cones or even from witch’s brooms. These seeds can grow into unique and beautiful conifers. Some super cool examples include Edsel Wood’s hemlocks, Dr. Sidney Waxman’s dwarf white pines, and Randy Dykstra’s larches. These trees are still loved and sold many years after they were first introduced!

To celebrate this, the ACS created the Conifer Seed Exchange. Members can buy seed packets for a small fee. Even at just $1.50 per packet, this program has raised over $6000 since 2000. Pretty awesome, right? Thanks to the Seed Exchange, we’ve seen new cultivars like Andy Duvall’s Pinus strobus ‘Squiggles’ and ‘Wiggles’.

Jim’s Journey with Conifers

Jim’s love for growing conifers started when he was a teenager. Now, he works at Weyerhaeuser, a big reforestation nursery, where he grows millions of conifer seedlings every year! Jim is also part of the Western Region of the International Plant Propagators’ Society, making him a seed expert.

Jim’s Contributions to ACS

Jim has been the Chair of the ACS Seed Exchange for over 11 years. He spends a lot of his own time and energy making sure the Seed Exchange runs smoothly. Here’s what Jim does every year:

1. Collects conifer seed cones.
2. Extracts, dries, cleans, and stratifies the seeds.
3. Verifies which seeds are viable.
4. Packages and labels the seeds.
5. Creates an availability list for members to order from.

Sometimes, Jim even travels from Washington to Oregon to get cones from generous donors. It’s a lot of work, but Jim does it because he loves it and wants to support the ACS and its members.

Celebrating Jim’s Achievement

Jim’s long-term commitment to the ACS is truly outstanding. We’re so proud to celebrate Jim Brackman as the winner of the 2024 Marvin and Emelie Snyder Award of Merit. His dedication and passion for conifers inspire us all.

Thanks for reading, and let’s give a big cheer for Jim Brackman! 🎉

Jim Brackman