Restoration Techniques: Nursery Establishment and Management for TerraFund Projects

This article introduces the Nursery Establishment and Management Guide and explains how to use it to produce healthy, field-ready seedlings for restoration activities.

What this guidance covers

Strong nursery practices are the foundation of successful restoration. The quality of seedlings directly affects survival rates, planting success, and long-term restoration outcomes.

This guidance provides practical, field-based direction for establishing and managing nurseries across the full production cycle. It covers:

• Selecting and preparing appropriate nursery sites
• Organizing nursery layout and operations
• Managing seeds and germination effectively
• Applying good nursery practices (watering, shading, spacing, root care)
• Preventing pests, diseases, and common errors
• Preparing seedlings for planting through hardening and grading

The guide is designed to help Restoration Champions produce vigorous, high-quality seedlings that can survive and grow once planted.

What this means in practice

Using this guide effectively will help ensure that:

• Seedlings are healthy, strong, and suitable for planting
• Losses during nursery production and after planting are minimized 
• Planting activities are supported by a reliable and timely supply of seedlings 
• Restoration result in higher survival and long-term impact 

Access the full guide

Download the Nursery Establishment and Management Guide (attached in PDF format below) for detailed, step-by-step instructions and practical techniques across the full nursery cycle. 

Share your feedback and questions

Once you have downloaded and reviewed the full guide, please share any questions, comments, or concerns you might have about this module in our feedback form here!

Byline

Content Lead  

Jackson Ndera, Portfolio Manager, Restoration Finance, Rwanda 

Course Director 

Thacien Munyamahame, Capacity & Community Learning Manager, Restoration Finance, Rwanda 

Isabel Harrington, Capacity & Innovation Manager, Restoration Finance, USA

Reviewers 

Moses Kniti, Portfolio Manager, Restoration Finance, Kenya

Amanda Obuobi Amoako, Portfolio Manager, Restoration Finance, Ghana

Yigremachew Lemma, Senior Technical Advisor, Restore Local and Ethiopia Lead, Ethiopia 

Claire Shapiro, Product Specialist II, TerraMatch, USA