WAC 16-319-061   Forest reproductive material -- Conditioning standards.  (1) Applicant shall maintain a continuous record for each lot and batch of reproductive material at each plant or warehouse, showing lot and batch number or code, species, seed zone, breeding zone or code, elevation increment, date received and units of reproductive material. Reproductive material stored at plant or warehouse prior to conditioning shall be assembled by lot or batch and so arranged as to be reasonably accessible for audit. The auditor will advise producer before making changes in the certification class of cones or seed offered by the producer.

     (2) Labels shall be maintained on containers until reproductive material is conditioned. During conditioning, labels shall be removed and immediately deposited in a container marked with the lot or batch designation or code. Upon completely emptying the containers for each lot or batch of audit or source identified classes, the package of labels from it shall be closed and set aside for examination by the certifying agency auditor. All labels for tested and selected classes shall be attached to or placed inside of the seed containers by the producer for examination by the certifying agency auditor. These labels shall remain with the seed until the lot is depleted.

     (3) All reproductive material shall be handled in a manner to prevent lot mixture and maintain lot identity. All machinery, containers, and equipment shall be thoroughly cleaned before conditioning another lot or batch.

     (4) Specific requirement: Certifying agency may refuse to certify reproductive material failing to meet the following maximum standards: Other distinguishable species or cultivars: Seed one-half of one percent by weight; trees, cuttings, scions, etc. one percent by number; pollen one percent by number.

     (5) Labeling and sealing of tested, selected, or source identified reproductive material shall be done by the certifying agency.

     (a) Labeling of audit class reproductive material shall be done by the applicant with the label being affixed to the container: Provided, That for small sales (any quantity of reproductive material less than a full container of a size normally used by the applicant) the label may be affixed to the invoice or sales slip.

     (6) For each lot of tested or selected reproductive material, a certificate of genetic identity shall be prepared and affirmed by the producer upon demand and, if verified by the certifying agency, shall be signed and placed in or attached to each container before other labels or seals are affixed. The certificate of genetic identity shall include the following information:

     (a) For both tested and selected reproductive material, the lot number, breeding zone or code and information on:

     (i) The donor or parents which produced the reproductive material, including their selection generation, type of selection made, selected character(s), seed zone(s) and elevation increment(s) in which selection was made, and selection procedure.

     (ii) For each prior selection generation, the same information.

     (iii) For sexual reproductive material, whether pollination was controlled or not: If controlled, the pollen situation; if controlled, the pollen or pollen mix used, including identification of pollen parent(s), also the number of maternal parents, and, if applicable, the crossing design used.

     (b) For tested reproductive material only.

     (i) A progeny, clonal, or other applicable test plan shall normally be submitted to the certifying agency for review and acceptance before installation. Acceptance of the test plan may be made after installation providing requirements in WAC 16-319-051(1) and 16-319-061 (6)(b)(ii) are met. Applicant may request assistance from the certifying agency in the development of a plan.

     (ii) The plan shall include in the test both randomization and replication for the material to be tested and the identity and background of the check material to be used.

     (iii) Complete randomization and balanced randomized blocks are recommended. The actual design of the established test shall be recorded in detail.

     (iv) Trees to be planted for tests shall be grown together in soil as uniform as possible, or, if they are grown in different soils, shall be so distributed that like proportions of all clones or progenies are produced in each distinct class of soil.

     (v) Test measurements are to be presented in numerical form. Each character to be evaluated is to be measured separately. The genetic superiority as compared with the check shall be clearly demonstrated for at least one of the characters being tested. Characters of economic importance in forestry identified in the test shall be clearly reported if they are significantly inferior at the ninety-five percent level to those of the check material.

     (vi) The results of the test measurements and data shall be readily available to the certifying agency and prospective user or purchaser.

     (7) A document, acceptable to the certifying agency for informing the purchaser of species and certification information of each item, and, for auditing purposes, shall be issued by the producer for each sale of tested, selected, source identified, and audit class reproductive material. Such document may be a certificate of provenance for tested, selected, or source identified reproductive material, or an invoice, shipping order, or sales slip for audit class reproductive material. The certifying agency may authorize use of said certificate of provenance for portions of reproductive material from labeled and sealed containers in lieu of labels and seals when relabeling and resealing by the certifying agency is impractical.

     (8) If a lot is composed of reproductive material from more than one seed zone, elevation increment or code in excess of seven percent if of contiguous seed zones, elevation increments, or codes or if in excess of two percent of other than contiguous seed zones, elevation increments, or codes, the certification label shall show all seed zones, elevation increments, or codes either with or without the percentage of each.

     (9) The allowance for accidental mixing of noncertifiable reproductive material with audit class, or noncertifiable or audit class reproductive material with source identified classes is two percent. When in excess of two percent, the lot shall drop to the lowest class represented. No mixing of lower classes with selected or tested classes is permissible.



[Statutory Authority: Chapter 15.49 RCW. 87-12-006 (Order 1930), § 16-319-061, filed 5/22/87; 84-13-079 (Order 1834), § 16-319-061, filed 6/21/84; 80-10-001 (Order 1704), § 16-319-061, filed 7/24/80; Order 1506, § 16-319-061, filed 4/11/77; Order 1369, § 16-319-061, filed 6/12/74; Order 1247, § 16-319-061, filed 4/13/72, effective 5/14/72; Order 1151, § 16-319-061, filed 4/16/70.]