• Development of practical recommendations for the establishment and management of seed orchards based on the project results
• Explain scientific results in practical terms to European forest tree nurseries
• Establishment of a web site to provide the project results and recommendations

The preamble of the Council Directive 1999/105/EC of 22 december 1999 on the marketing of forest reproductive material stresses the need for seed and planting stock which are genetically and phenotypically suited to the site. Origins of native species and local provenances that are well-adapted are to be preferred. Furthermore, it is stated that " it is desirable to organise temporary experiments for the purpose of seeking improved alternatives to certain provisions set out in this Directive". In view of the achievements to be expected from the project, the results shall be made available to seed dealers, nurseries, forest research stations and other state authorities which have an immediate interest in the results of the planned research

1. Both experimental procedures and research results shall be explained to this sector of the Community public
2. The use of properly adapted reproductive material in commodity plantings is widely considered to be essential. "Local seed source has long been identified with "adaptedness". Therefore, information on both has to be presented in certificates of identity for reproductive material (according to annex VIII of said Directive). These items conventionally represent key information required for certification. However, the genetic basis adaptedness must be seen either in the posesssion of certain genetic information related to the origin of the seed or the provenance of the basic material where the seed was collected. It has to be made clear that the effects to be studied in the present project may shed light on the relative importance of genetic information and molecular aftereffects. The basic idea of the project is to present data on the following question: Under which environmantal conditions should forest tree seeds be produced in view of the environment of its future use?
3. Provenance experiments and early test have long been employed for estimating adaptedness of reproductive material. It shall be subjected to critical review, inasmuch as these experiments are informative and reliable
4. The results of the project should be integrated into the provenance recommendations issued by many European research stations
5. Eventually the location of seed orchards has to be reconsidered
6. The results of the project shall be made available to tree nurseries in a non-technical form in order to improve the acceptance in the EC. It shall be explained that the project results derived from research in Norway spruce have bearing on trees as such and, therefore, on all members of the EC

The web site address will be sent to nurseries and research institutes in all European countries by mail within one week after publication. Those nurseries and research institutes are requested to submit their respective email and web addresses to Partner 1. In order to establish a comprehensive nursery database.

This project page will launched on the Internet 60 days after project start. The page will contain one public and one internal sector. The public section will contain the following items:

1. Description of the project and main goals
2. Links to the Euforgen Picea abies network, partner homepages and eMail contacts
3. Links to commercial seed and plant producers
4. Download area

The main emphasis in web site design will be on explanation of scientific results in practical terms to European forest tree nurseries.

The public sector of the page will be updated up to four times, after the meetings and at the end of the project. The last update remains as the final version. The updates mainly concern preliminary results and new practical recommendations for the establishment and management of seed orchards.

The internal section will be password protected and consist of a “partner forum” to make exchange and discussion as easy and efficient as possible. Another feature will be a “pre-publication area” where the partners can publish project related material such as textfiles, charts etc. The database will be updated repeatedly as soon as new results are sent in to the webmaster