<p dir="ltr">The Dorothy and Ray Garman Preserve is a 35.4 hectare tract of hydro-mesophytic forest that includes ephemeral pools and scrub-shrub wetlands with <i>Cephalanthus occidentalis</i> as the dominant species component, a previously farmed agricultural field (now planted with native trees), and areas within that field which have reverted into wetlands. Garman is located within the Cedar Creek Conservation Area of Allen County, a region of important biodiversity in northeast Indiana. To document the structure and composition of the plant communities at this property, I utilized random and systematic plot samping, as well as a meandering floristic survey. The focus of my efforts was to explore the forested portion of the property and its immediate margins. I counted 150 species, representing 53 genera and 50 families. Using the Floristic Quality Assessment (FQA) method, eleven species had coefficient of conservatism values of 8-10, ten of which were herbaceous and one arboreal species (<i>Populus heterophylla</i>). This indicates that Garman is a relatively high-quality site with some quality remnant components. The site has an FQA value of 46.4, and the mean coefficient of conservatism was 3.8. Furthermore, 95.3 percent of the total species documented were native, a relatively high mark for a fragment within a larger suburban area. Species potentially indicative of bog habitats such as <i>Sphagnum fimbriatum </i>(a non-vascular species of interest), <i>Ilex verticillata</i>, and <i>Viola nephrophylla</i>, as well as historical occurrences of other peatland communities in the area, indicate that Garman may have historically been a true bog that has since senesced into buttonbush wetland type due to anthropogenic impact. Overall, the vascular plant flora of Garman demonstrates that this site is of unique importance to the broader Cedar Creek Conservation Area, since it contains several plant species not present at other sites within this region, as well as intact natural plant communities.</p>

The diploma thesis identifies the motivation of the land trusts in the Czech Republic and analyses the institutional environment, in which they work. Furthermore, it defines the factors influencing the activity and efficiency of the private land conservation and explores its relationship with the biodiversity conservation provided by the public sector. The method used is an analytical narrative consisting of the combination of oral narration and socio-economic analytical methods. Interviews with selected land trusts managers were carried out and original case studies were created. As emerged from the analysis, land trusts are created in order to complete the state biodiversity conservation, upon which they are dependent mainly as far as money is concerned. The land trusts have most of the areas in a long-term tenancy. They do not have enough money to buy the areas. This is also proved by the shortage in business activities in comparison with foreign countries. The situation of private conservation abroad was examined as well and compared with the situation in this country. The main contribution of this diploma thesis is the fact that it creates the overview of private biodiversity conservation in the Czech Republic and abroad as one of the first thesis.