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How the use of our planet impacts our native trees

With climate change, urban cooling is a growing need. Governments are spending more on tree planting in public places but need to consider what species will thrive as global temperatures rise and whether adequate water is available to sustain plantings, points often omitted at the planning stage.

Native plant distributions

APS members should know where native plants are! Tony Maxwell introduces a major project he is working on to assemble data on the occurrences of species from reputable and publicly available sources.

Preserving the land – Rob and Rosemary Webb

When Rob Webb spoke, it was obvious that he would never contemplate growing cotton. He wanted to preserve the land that his family had farmed for four generations since 1874. He did not wish to make the mistakes of the past.

Innovative farming techniques – Bruce and Roz Maynard

Bruce Maynard’s ‘road to Damascus’ as a conservationist began when he was a young man. Bruce realised that farmers investing in fertilisers, herbicides, pesticides and irrigation while deep-ploughing their land to grow a high yielding crop was not sustainable.

Farmers conserving native plants

About 45 APS members joined this 4-day trip which included visiting 6 private properties around the Orange, Dubbo, and the Narromine area. A visit was also made to the Burrendong Botanic Garden and Arboretum

Great Southern Forest update

The Great Southern Forest proposal is a widely researched, solutions-based initiative for the carbon and biodiversity dense SE NSW native forests. It offers nature-based solutions to critical national and
global problems and with great benefit for climate stabilisation, environmental and economic success,…

Development of sports fields at Westleigh Park

Here is a submission prepared by our North Shore Group on the development of the sports field at Westleigh Park. The site has high quality containing threatened communities (Sydney Turpentine Ironbark Forest and Duffys Forest) and rare plants (Melaleuca deanei, Tetratheca glandulosa, Epacris purpurascens and Darwinia biflora). There is also an area of critically endangered Bluegum High Forest (Dog Pound Creek) adjacent to the site. 

Fighting Plagues and Predators report

The Fighting Plagues and Predators report was developed by CSIRO and the Centre for Invasive Species Solutions. It provides a consolidated look at the state of Australia’s invasive species problem and a path towards a pest and weed-free future.

Is this where we are headed?

The Joseph Banks Society in the UK is a small, volunteer-led charity which publishes an occasional newsletter.

Australian Flora Foundation newsletter July 2021

The Australian Flora Foundation newsletter Research Matters, No. 34, July 2021 is now available. In 2021, the foundation celebrates its 40th year of operations since 1981, funding scientific research into the biology and cultivation of the Australian flora.

Planting trees for regenerative farming

NSW is 80% agricultural land and so understanding how that land is being managed for health and supporting regenerative farming are important. A few members, including Graham Fry, East Hills and member of Oatley Flora and Fauna (OFF) and Ralph Cartwright, Sutherland, contributed their weekend to plant trees for regenerative farmer, Vince Hefferman

Caring for her local reserve

Besides being an active member with APS Southern Tablelands group, Ash is also a Crown Land Manager of Alison Hone Reserve along with four other APS members. We are also members of Goulburn Field Naturalists Society and when this group was approached to take over, we agreed rather than let the area fall into disrepair.

Revegetation of degraded properties out west

Andrew Knop and his wife Jennifer have regenerated their two properties at Dubbo and Narromine. When purchased, their properties were degraded due to livestock grazing and feral animals

Growing endemic plants for Goulburn Wetlands

For many years, Jen Ashwell and Tim Hayes have supported the planting of endemic species in the Goulburn area. Over the last 10 years, Jen has been growing endemic plants for the Goulburn Wetlands.

Conservation Officer’s report – Dan Clarke

I volunteered to be the primary editor to expand the plant profile database on the APS NSW website. These profiles are the most visited pages on our website! This year, various authors, primarily Jeff Howes, Heather Miles and Rhonda Daniels drafted approximately 200 native plant profiles, with a focus on how to grow the plants in the garden…

A mass attraction – Actinotus forsythii (pink flannel flower)

A year after devastating fires that razed the bush, Pink flannel flowers, Actinotus forsythii, have been found growing en masse, in a flora bonanza attracting much interest. They are not rare, but the mass flowering is triggered by a smoke-derived chemical.

Friends of Grasslands 2021 Grassy Ecosystem Grants

Friends of Grasslands (FoG) is offering a small number of grants of up to $1500 each in 2021 to support projects that promote understanding, conservation and management of native grassy ecosystems. Any individual or organisation can apply by 30 April 2021.

Australian Flora Foundation newsletter January 2021

The Australian Flora Foundation newsletter Research Matters, No. 33, January 2021 is now available. In 2021, the foundation celebrates its 40th year of operations since 1981, funding scientific research into the biology and cultivation of the Australian flora.

River-flat eucalypt forest on coastal floodplains – threatened ecological community

‘River-flat eucalypt forest on coastal floodplains of southern New South Wales and eastern Victoria’ has been listed as a threatened ecological communities under the federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. This forest is habitat for many threatened and fire-affected species, including Platypus, Swift Parrot, Greater Glider, Koala and the Camden White Gum.

City and country planting trees together

Graham Fry, the President of East Hills Group is also a member of the Oatley Flora and Fauna (OFF) group. At their February 2020 monthly meeting the guest speaker was Vince Hefferman. Vince owns a sheep property in the Gunning area in the southern tablelands. Some years ago he realised that the way the property was managed was not sustainable and that there had to be a better way.