From little things big things grow
From little things big things grow
Landcare nursery producing plants for restoration projects
Taking Action -
LLCI033-032
The issue
Kyogle Landcare has been undertaking restoration projects in and around Kyogle for more than 20 years. However, access to locally suitable species, in particular plant stock grown from locally sourced seed, has been a long term challenge. Additionally, trees have also consumed a considerable portion of restoration project budgets.
The solution
In an effort to get the desired species range at the best price Kyogle Landcare established their own nursery in the heart of the town on a parcel of land made available by Kyogle Council. With the earliest sites of their restoration efforts now offering seed bearing trees, the group has been able to propagate and plant trees from their own seed at a fraction of the cost of commercially available stock and extend their restoration efforts along Fawcett’s Creek free from funding dependence.
The impact
With access to propagation training and links to some professional nursery mentors supported by BRRVLN, the team have been continuously honing their germination skills of different species and expanding their range. Over the last year Kyogle Landcare has been approached to partner with other Landcare groups to supply trees for projects including a production goal of more than 8000 trees for the Bush Connect project in the Roseberry Creek area. Roseberry landholders have mobilized to collect seed from their own property with the volunteer nursery team growing it on to be planted back on the same site.
Learnings
In March 2017 Cyclone Debbie caused substantial devastation across all the creek systems of the upper Richmond river. While the nursery too was inundated, bringing 1.6 m of water above ground level through the nursery, it was with much relief that the nursery team returned to see the majority of the stock had survived the drenching. After washing off the mud the nursery team reached out to landholders whose creek banks were hard hit by ‘Debbie’ and provided trees for free to support the recovery effort. As tough as it was, it's rather remarkable to discover what the plants and the team can endure.
Key facts
- Thousands of plants produced every year by Kyogle Landcare volunteers
- Making local provenance stock available
- Partnerships with other Landcare groups across the Kyogle LGA
- A devoted team of volunteers enjoying propagation and the occasional cup of tea