STEP has two major programs: SEEDIMAGES.COM and the Certificate Program in Seed Technology were established at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, CO in 2002 to support students, the seed industry and regulatory agencies.

1. SEEDIMAGES. COM is a unique website of seed photos established by STEP to help the seed analyst and anyone in the seed industry identify unknown or questionable seeds. It has undergone many changes and improvements during its 12 year history. Many new photos with seed descriptions have been added as well as a finely tuned search engine.

SEEDIMAGES.COM now contains over 1700 full color photos of native, crop and weed seeds along with written descriptions of the species. Some of the features of the Website are: 1. Magnification of 100X for ease of identification. 2. The site has a user friendly search mechanism for many different seed characteristics including size, shape, color and texture. 3. Identification is by scientific and common names. 4. Species included are agricultural grain, forage, vegetable, tree, shrub, herb, flower and state & federal noxious weeds.

One of the most useful options in SEEDIMAGES.COM database is the Seed Comparison Tool that allows one to identify seeds that look similar by showing two different seeds side-by-side on the same screen. A video demonstration of how the database works can be seen by going to SEEDIMAGES.COM and clicking on the “Seed Database Demo” link. SEEDIMAGES.COM is a virtual seed herbarium and a valuable resource for seed technologists, conditioners, company managers, educators and related research institutions.

2. The Certificate Program in Seed Technology at CSU trains seed analysts to work in State or Commercial Laboratories. The Certificate is an invaluable tool for anyone who wants a career in seed technology or for current seed analysts working to become a Registered Seed Technologist or a Certified Seed Analyst (RST or CSA). The Certificate Program is designed to help fill a well documented need for new analysts within the industry.

There is also a Scholarship Program for students needing financial assistance. Nearly half of the cost of the courses will be covered in this program. Anyone interested should contact Dr. Jack Fenwick at 970-491-6907 or email him at j.fenwick@colostate.edu.

Although CSU has been offering courses in seed technology since 1998, it has expanded the training to a Certificate Program which includes 8 online courses and laboratory training. The program offers the courses through CSU and Virginia Polytechnic. The laboratory training may be taken at CSU or a wide range of state and private seed testing labs throughout the U.S.A. The courses are:

1.      Seed Anatomy and Identification          

2.      Seed Development and Metabolism                        

3.      Seed Germination and Viability    

4.      Seed Purity Analysis

5.      Seed Separation and Conditioning

6.      Seed Storage and Deterioration

7.      Large Seeded Legume Seed Production

8.      Vegetable Seed Production

You can find information on all the programs at http://step.colostate.edu. For further information contact Karen Allison at Karen.Allison@colostate.edu. Phone number (970) 491-6295.