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Native perennials grown in mixed plantings or polycultures can sequester carbon and nitrate, prevent soil erosion, increase water filtration, and provide wildlife and pollinator habitat.
University researchers are working to identify high-value antimicrobial compounds that have cosmetic applications from several dozen native Minnesotan plants in wild areas. The strategic inclusion of these plants into polycultures could increase the value of restoring native perennial plant systems for Minnesota growers, resulting in benefits for the environment and creating a local economy around natural compound production for the Minnesota cosmetics industry.