Endangered crop plants

    • To draw attention to the decreasing diversity of crops in Germany and to support measures for the conservation and sustainable use of this diversity, the Red List of German Endangered Native Crops was compiled. It is maintained by the BLE's Information and Coordination Centre for Biological Diversity (IBV). In order for a species or its variety or cultivar to be included on the Red List, it needs to meet the following four conditions simultaneously: native, endangered, significant (e.g. historically/culturally) and in terms of the legal status (no plant breeders’ right and no variety protection).

Endangered livestock breeds

    • Unfortunately, many of the indigenous livestock breeds are threatened with extinction today. The diversity of breeds in livestock farming has been replaced in the course of intensification by individual breeds that dominate today. For the endangered breeds, their increased reintroduction into farming is the most sustainable form of protection. The red list can be found on the BLE website.

Local seeds for wild plants

    • Since March 2020, any planting of alien species in the wild must be approved by the authorities. However, cultivation in agriculture, including flower strips and areas on agricultural land, is exempt from this regulation. The Federal Programme on Biological Diversity (BPBV) recommends the use of native wild plant regional seeds for all sowings, including on agricultural land and in settlement areas. Its document "Arbeitshilfe Blühmischungen" shows which mixtures and seed origins are prescribed, permissible and recommended on which land use type.

Native trees and shrubs

    • Please inform yourself on the corresponding pages of your federal state about the native woody plants of your region.