What's New July 2024

BCLN E-news

Hello to all of our Landcare Members, Partners, Sponsors, and Friends throughout the Bass Coast Landcare Network, and welcome to the July 2024 edition of the BCLN E-news.

Good to finally see a bit of rain in what has so far been quite a dry winter. The first Tree planting days have been well attended, with many more to come. See the link in our first story below for all of the details and book yourself into one of the upcoming sessions to be a part of the action. Thanks to all who have participated so far, we hope to catch up with you at the remaining planting days. You can all be a part of  helping to restore landscape function to local farms, increase biodiversity and increase the benefits that come to us all from restoring healthy landscapes. 

This month's E-news contains other interesting events, general news, grants, webinar recordings and more. Grab a beverage, sit back and relax, we hope you enjoy the read. 

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UPCOMING EVENTS

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Tree planting season well underway- Winter/spring 2024

The 2024 planting season is well underway with 8 plantings already completed and close to 20,000 indigenous plants already in the ground.  Planting indigenous trees, shrubs and groundcovers not only benefits our land and wildlife, but also you. Community Tree planting days are a chance to get out and see parts of our landscape you may not have seen before, spend time with neighbors, family and friends or meet new friends, increase your fitness, and of course enjoy some great food afterwards. We look forward to seeing you all at the many planting days on offer this season. 

For further information on Community planting days, click here.

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Rescheduled Event: Regenerative Landcare with Stephanie Hildmann - 14th September 2024

After postponing this event to due illness last month, Kongwak Hills Landcare Group can now announce that they have re-booked Stefanie and can't wait to bring all things soil to you in September!​

DATE: Saturday 14th September 2024, 10am - 2pm.
LOCATION: ​Outtrim Public Hall, 1051 Outtrim-Leongatha Rd, Outtrim Victoria 3951.

Click here for all the event details and to book your place.

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River Garden Events - Creating a food forest - Saturday 14th September 2024

What is a food forest? Find out at the next session of the Garden Gems Workshops at the River Garden on Saturday 14th of September from 10am-12pm. Learn how to grow a multilayered garden that works for you. Discover the benefits of efficient design, choice of plants and layout options. This workshop is proudly presented as a part of the Garden Gems project; a partnership between Bass Coast Shire Council, Bass Coast Adult Learning and community gardens across the region.
Click here to book your place.

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Landcare Week- Monday 5th to Sunday 11th August

Landcare Week is an annual celebration of Landcare held during the first week of August to acknowledge Australians who are actively restoring, enhancing and protecting the natural environment in their community. Landcare volunteers and groups work all year to care for the environment in their community, and Landcare Week is an opportunity for groups to promote their projects and thank their volunteers. Landcare Week is an opportunity to create awareness of Landcare to inspire people to get involved and volunteer, or for community organisations to offer financial or in-kind support to their local group. Resources and tips are available to help Landcare groups to promote what they do and how, at the link below. 

For more information and to get involved click here.

GROUP, NETWORK AND GENERAL NEWS

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Kongwak Primary Workshop with Gio Fitzpatrick

Kongwak Primary School students were visited by award-winning naturalist and nest box designer Gio Fitzpatrick back in May, who led an educational workshop on nest boxes and what makes a sustainable forest within their “Sustainable Kongwak” class. Gio’s wealth of knowledge in this area is perfectly paired with the “Suswak” class’s current project, where teacher Damian Howard has been successful in securing funding for 50 nest boxes, that he and the KPS students are busily building together in their Friday class. 

To read more about this great project click here.

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Tiny towns grant success for the River Garden

We are excited to announce that BCLN has been lucky to secure $39,700 from the Victorian Government Tiny Towns fund, created to support community driven projects in townships under 5,000 people. This funding will allow us to fulfill part of the community vision for the River garden, by constructing a dynamic multipurpose education shelter. This communal hub will become a meeting and gathering place, with undercover areas allowing year round functionality for workshops, school groups, playgroups, activities and more. The funding also allows for more of our River Garden Blitz community sessions to come in 2025, providing for speakers and materials for community planting as well. Planning is underway with development expected to begin later this year. Watch this space, or rather the River Garden space!

For all things River Garden, click here to go to the River Garden Web page by clicking here.

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Korumburra Landcare Group's 25th Anniversary Celebration Planting at Carolyn and Davin Field's Property

Long term Korumburra Landcare Group members Carolyn & Davin Field, hosted a special celebration of the 25th Anniversary of their 1999 planting. So many amazing volunteers worked together to get 1600 plants in the ground early in June! So good to see some of the regulars, some new faces, and some families with young children who contributed to the planting whilst having great time amongst it all. Thank you all for your contribution! It was a fantastically well organized day thanks to Cas and Dav's planning and hard work. Planting alongside the 25 year old revegetated area was inspiring for everyone involved. For something a bit different, a section of jute matting was installed to begin the establishment of a meadowland with densely planted groups of Poa, Carex, Dianella and Themeda.And then what a fabulous morning tea to cap it all off! Many thanks to Cas and Dav and all the volunteers for a wonderful Community Planting Day.

Keep up to date with all Korumburra Landcare Group events by clicking here.

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Gippsland Threatened Species Action Group

Gippsland Threatened Species Action Group have a new website. Find out more about local threatened species and focus areas for threatened species conservation in the Bass Coast and Southern Gippsland. You can also report a sighting if you have observed a threatened species on their new website by clicking the link below. Image: Dave Newman - Powerful Owl

Check out the Gippsland Threatened Species Action Group's new website by clicking here. 

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Success for local schools in the Junior Landcare Grants!

This year Woolworths partnered with Junior Landcare to offer grants of $1000 and three of our local Schools and Early learning centres were successful! Congratulations to Bass Valley Uniting Early learning for their ‘Growing good to eat’ project involving the children in planting, watering and taking care of the vegetables and plants in their garden. St. Joseph’s School in Wonthaggi were successful in their ‘Spring Edible Garden’ project where students will grow and enjoy their produce in their lunchtime gardening club. St. Joseph’s School in Korumburra also were successful with their ‘Companion plants in the veggie patch’ project to learn and care for the garden area using beneficial and companion plants. So great to see the next generation learning useful skills of producing healthy food!

Click here for our Education page on the range of programs available through Bass Coast Landcare Network.

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On Country Networking Day - Powlett River 

The Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation and their community partners enjoyed an On Country Networking Day at Powlett River recently. Discussions were held about projects happening to protect the river as it runs from Korumburra down to the sea at Kilcunda, as well as demonstrations of water testing, and talks about the estuary and how it is currently managed. Ideas were shared about possibilities for future work to understand, restore, and care for this precious cultural landscape.

Check out all the Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation's latest news by clicking here.

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Have your say about Plantation Forestry in Gippsland

How do Gippsland communities understand plantation forestry? FedUni, in partnership with McGill University and HVP is undertaking research into the community sentiment around expansion of plantation forestry in Gippsland. The survey looks at factors that influence perceptions of plantation forestry and perceived benefits and disadvantages of plantation forestry.

Have your say by clicking here.

GRANTS, TRAINING, INFORMATION, RESOURCES AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR LANDHOLDERS

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Community Grants for South Gippsland Shire Region

South Gippsland Shire Council has just opened a new round of Community Grants for the region. This funding is between $1000-$10,000 and the round is open from 1/07/2024 – 31/08/2024. The purpose of this funding is to provide grants for Minor and Major projects and equipment, Planning and Development reports and Festivals and Events. Applicants must be a community organization or group managed by a volunteer committee of management.

Click here for guidelines and to apply.

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Community Grants for Bass Coast Shire Region

Bass Coast Shire has quick response grants of up to $2000 now open up until Friday 26th of July. Round 2 of their Community grants is also open up until Friday 9th of August, for general Community grants between $2000-$5000, Festivals Celebrations and Events grants of between $2000 to $5000, Minor Capital Works Grants of up to $5000, Climate action grants of up to $5000 and Major Project funding of up to $10,000.

Click here for the guidelines and to apply. 
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Gippslandscapes podcast new episode - The secret language of estuaries

In the latest episode of Gipplandscapes, West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority Waterways Officer, Callum Edwards, sits at the windy shore of Powlett River/Kugerungmome on Bunurong Country with Sally and chats about all things estuaries – what they are, the language around them and how we manage them.

Click here to listen to episode #72.

PROJECT UPDATES

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Rabbits out, Indigenous plants in at the new Cowes Recreation Reserve!

Bass Coast Landcare Network’s Invasive Species Team recently completed a wallaby and rabbit-proof fence for the Bass Coast Shire Council at the Cowes Recreation Reserve. This project was undertaken specifically to increase the likelihood of plant survival and the decrease of plant predation by wallabies and rabbits after the site is planted out with natives. This fence is the biggest one constructed by Bass Coast Landcare Network so far for this purpose, including gates for access to the planting site and strong, galvanized wire with a skirt to prevent rabbits digging under the fence. Once planted and established, this section of bush will provide an important nature corridor and build plant diversity within the local area. The Phillip Island Landcare group will be working on different parts of this site in future years with their 3 year Ausnet funding in partnership with Council. They will be working to protect habitat on other parts of this site and construct demonstration patches of different revegetation techniques for us all to learn from. This is just the beginning of a great community space that we will see develop over years to come. 

Click here to check out more projects on Phillip Island.

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River Garden June Update

While there isn’t much growing action at the River Garden at this time of year, last weekend there was an amazing amount of cutting action at our Fruit tree pruning workshop. This session was part of the Garden Gems series of workshops we are hosting, funded by Bass Coast Shire council and organised by Bass Coast Adult Learning Centre. The ever-popular Rick Coleman of Southern Cross Permaculture institute was the trainer for the day, who after discussing the theory of pruning, empowered everyone into action, shaping and trimming our espalier and orchard trees. Nearly all of the espaliers have had their winter prune, thanks to everyone who attended for all of your hard work. The next session will be held on the 14th of September on Creating a food forest, and one more in November on Preserving and fermenting garden produce. Click the link below to book your place at these popular days.

At the end of July we are hosting grade 5 and 6 students from San Remo Primary at a National Tree day planting, to start the first phase of our Conservation zone and seed orchard plantings around the perimeter of the River Garden. Partnering with the West Gippsland Seed bank, we have selected some species of plants that are hard to collect seed from in the wild, ensuring ongoing seed supply of these plants into the future. This work is funded jointly by a Victorian Landcare grant and a Planet Ark Seedling bank grant. The Conservation zone will also act as a barrier to the road, attracting many more beneficial insects and small birds to help control our garden pests and aid in pollination of our plants.

For all things River Garden, please click here. 

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You can reduce the impact of your car - be part of our Capturing Carbon for a Biodiverse Bass Coast Program

If you feel passionate about the environment and want to contribute to action on climate change by reducing the impact of your car on our planet, why not consider becoming a part of our ‘Capturing Carbon for a biodiverse Bass Coast’ program? Head to our web page at the link below and simply click on your car's size to make a tax-deductible donation, so we can plant indigenous plants in biodiverse plantings across Bass coast on your behalf. These plantings will increase habitat and important wildlife corridor connections while capturing carbon from the atmosphere. All your friends and family will also see your complimentary car sticker showing your commitment to the Bass Coast environment and climate action.

donate today
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Landcare Public Fund making projects a reality – Donate to make a difference - Before the End of the Financial Year!

The Bass Coast Landcare Public Fund is a regional non-profit organisation focusing on conserving biodiversity throughout Bass Coast.​ We do this by supporting community groups to work in their local area to add value to their conservation efforts, encourage broader community ownership and participation and by working in partnership with other land managers. We work to help protect native plants and animals in Bass Coast’s most ecologically important landscapes. Your tax-deductible contribution, no matter how small, or by leaving a bequest in your will, helps to protect native plants and animals in Bass Coast’s most ecologically important landscapes. ​Click below to make your tax-deductible donation today. 

Image: David Hartney

SUpport us

What's your story?

We would love to hear from you and your Landcare group with stories and photos of what's been happening in your area and any suggestions of things that you would like to see in your E-news.

We look forward to meeting and catching up with you at upcoming events and activities around Bass Coast.

Until next edition, 

Happy reading, from the Bass Coast Landcare Network.

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We want to hear from you for the next E-news!

Please send us any of your stories, events or other information for the next edition of the E-news by the end of the first week of the month.

All we need is a photo and a couple of paragraphs to be sent to:  [email protected]

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The Bass Coast Landcare Network would like to acknowledge and pay our respects to the Traditional Land Owners within the Network area, The Bunurong and Boon Wurrung people. We also recognise the contribution of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and organisations in Land and Natural Resource Management.