Cross property planning project update - July 2013
- Invasive species management plans completed for Humula and Kyeamba cross property planning groups
- Dung beetle and biological weed control workshops
- What we know now about conservation and biodiversity on our properties?
- Kyeamba cross property planning group - creating linkages across their landscape
- Junee Newsletter coming in July
Invasive species management plans completed for Humula and Kyeamba cross property planning groups
Throughout late summer and autumn, the ‘Cross Property Planning Project’ has contracted Alison Elvin from Natural Capital to work with individual landholders in the Humula and Kyeamba Cross Property Planning groups to develop whole of property integrated weed management plans.
The plans are designed to identify threats to biodiversity and production on properties; the location of the major infestations of identified weeds; and included a 5-10 year management and monitoring strategy based on a combination of cultural, mechanical and chemical controls.
This work is now complete with twelve individual invasive species management plans developed in consultation with the landholders. Landholders were also provided with a $4,000 grant to assist with on-ground management of their invasive weed species.
Sarah Palmer (r) and Alison Elvin examining a patch of Weeping grass in a St John’s wort infested paddock near Ladysmith.
Dung beetle and biological weed control workshops
Dung beetles are hard at work on your property burying dung pads. In doing so they are busy aerating your soil, deepening your topsoil, helping store carbon, burying nutrients in your plant’s root zone, and reducing flies and parasite breeding colonies. Other insects are also possibly hard at work on your properties too eating their way through your weeds.
Two workshops on dung beetles and the use of biological control for the management of weeds are being held at Ladysmith on the 30th July and Humula on the 31st July.
The workshops are being presented by John Feehan who is a recognised authority on Dung Beetles both in Australia and internationally and Barry Sampson who has over thirty years of experience with the biological control of weeds. His business, Weedbiocontrol, provides biological control agents for locally invasive weeds such as Paterson’s curse, Bridal Creeper, Horehound, St John’s wort, Blackberry, Thistles, Dock, Blue Heliotrope and aquatic weeds.
The days run from 9 until 3.30 pm and include a field visit in the afternoon to release some biological control agents. The workshops are free and include lunch. If you are interested in attending please RSVP to Jacinta Christie 0431 953 778 or jchristie@murrumbidgeelandcare.asn.au
What we know now about conservation and biodiversity on our properties?
The cross property project aims to enhance the condition and connectivity of native vegetation across the Humula, Kyeamba and Illabo/Bethungra/Junee areas. To achieve this goal the project is working with landholders to develop their skills, knowledge and understanding of conservation and biodiversity on their own properties and across their landscape through workshops, meetings and the provision of funding for on-ground work for tree planting, protection of existing remnant vegetation and managing threats to biodiversity through weed and feral animal management.
To assist with this goal, a survey of landholders has commenced across the three cross-property planning groups at Humula, Kyeamba and Bethungra/Illabo/Junee. The survey is designed to provide a greater understanding of landholders’ current expectations, goals, practices and knowledge in relation to the management of their native vegetation. This survey work will continue throughout July and August.
Kyeamba cross property planning group - creating linkages across their landscape
Landholders Sarah and Steve Palmer from ‘Kyeamba Downs’ at Book Book have been enthusiastic participants of the Kyeamba Valley Landcare group and the Kyeamba cross-property group since its creation in 2009 through the Communities in Landscapes (CiL) Project. Through the CiL project (and other grants and projects) they have planted thousands of trees, creating wildlife corridors and providing habitat and erosion control along their gullies and creek banks.
In 2013/14 they plan to continue this work with the assistance of funding through the cross-property project to create further linkages across their landscape.
Lyn and François Retief have also been committed members of the Kyeamba Valley Landcare Group and the cross-property group. They have planted hundreds of native species in wildlife corridors across their property in an effort to link existing plantings and enhance habitat (eg for Squirrel Gliders who cannot glide further than 50 metres at one time) and now are considering the potential biodiversity benefits of restricting stock access and planting native species around their dam with funding assistance through the project.
Sarah and Steve Palmer ‘Kyeamba Downs’, Book Book alongside one of their revegetation sites.
Jacinta Christie, Murrumbidgee Landcare and Lyn Retief ‘Winbirra’, Ladysmith examining one of Retiefs’ wildlife corridors on their property.
Junee Newsletter coming in July
The first edition of the Junee Area Landcare Network newsletter will be available in July. The newsletter will contain a variety of interesting and informative articles on connectivity, critical threats to native vegetation and their management, an update on the cross property planning project, a landholder case study and a comprehensive look beyond the use of chemicals in the fight against Paterson’s curse in the region.
