What's New in May 2022 BCLN E-news Hello to all of our Landcare Members, Partners, Sponsors, and Friends throughout the Bass Coast Landcare Network and welcome to the May edition of the BCLN Enews. We have some great events coming up for you including some early Community Tree planting for this coming season. Even though we haven't quite got stuck into the planting season just yet, that doesn't mean Bass Coast has been short on action. We have had some great events and happenings this month, from educational walks, EVC's training, bio-control releases, weed control, food forests and more. There have been lots of positive things happening right across Bass Coast that you can read all about in this edition. We hope you enjoy this month's edition of the Enews! For all the latest updates, follow us on Facebook and Instagram... just click the links above! UPCOMING EVENTS Powlett Caravan Park/Kilcunda Station Planting Day - June 4th Come along to this fun little double planting! We will be planting 2 sites with a short bike ride along the rail trail in between (don't forget your bike) Morning tea break will be at the Kilcunda Café as well as BBQ lunch. This planting will run from 9am-2pm (roughly), meet at 220 Mouth of Powlett Rd, Dalyston, and BYO water, gumboots, wet weather gear and bike! RSVP to
[email protected] CERES Fair Wood and Mobile Salvage Sawmilling Field Day - June 15th You are invited to join us for this exciting visit to CERES Fair Wood, including a mobile salvage sawmilling demonstration in action. Located in Preston, CERES Fair Wood is a social enterprise acting as an honest broker between Australian farm foresters, small local sawmillers and environmentally conscious wood users. The high-quality timbers on offer have their own story and are locally sourced to the highest standards of ethics and transparency. Its growing core market includes environmentally conscious home DIYers, furniture makers, architects and builders. We will be taken on a tour of the workshop and introduced to a varied product range that includes cladding, decking, lining, flooring, landscaping materials, joinery timber and firewood. Click here for further information and to book Regenerative Agriculture for Small Properties Workshop - June 18th If you have a small property and want to transition to a regenerative agricultural management regime, or need more guidance on how to start your regenerative agricultural journey, come and join us for this exciting workshop where you will find out more about planning for your small property and identifying property constraints using Permaculture principles. Discussion includes understanding your soils, securing your water needs, composting and zero waste, and animals on small properties (some do’s and don’ts). Gerhard Grasser from AgriSolutions will be our guest speaker for the day. Click here for further information and to register. GROUP AND NETWORK NEWS New Membership Portal - Training Session In late April, Kathleen from the West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority came to Bass to train some of our group representatives in using the WGCMA's new Landcare Membership Portal, which around half of our groups have already decided to adopt. The portal will streamline memberships, allowing group executives to manage group memberships, collect annual fees automatically and generate automatic reminders for annual renewal. It also allows Landcare members to sign-up, pay annual fees, and change details easily online. Other features of the portal include the ability to accept credit cards, manual cheque and cash payments, and for treasurers to see in real-time the number of financial members they have. Participating groups will be slowly moving over to the new system. If your group is participating, you will be given plenty of notice and instructions on how to proceed. Pictured are Peter Lyon of Anderson Inlet, Cindy Devonport and Glenys Ralph of French Island, Ray Kirk, Anna Spiden, Libby and John Cumming of 3 Creeks, and Rob Parsons of Bass Valley at the training session. If your group is interested in participating, please email
[email protected] Click here to read more info about the membership portal! Outtrim Cemetery Nature Conservation Reserve Walk Gippsland Threatened Species Action Group (GTSAG) recently held a very pleasant and informative walk at the Outtrim Cemetery Nature Conservation Reserve with members of the Korumburra Landcare Group and volunteers from the Outtrim Reserve Committee. The Reserve is approximately 2.8 ha within the whole of the 5.08 ha reserve managed by Parks Victoria at Outtrim. The northwest corner of the Reserve contains the cemetery. The grass area to the north-east of the reserve is slashed regularly resulting in a diverse flora of grasses, sedges, lilies, and orchids. The southern 3 hectares is zoned as a nature conservation reserve and contains one of the most intact remnants of the Ecological Vegetation Class, Damp Heathy Woodland, dominated by Bog Gum (Eucalyptus kitsoniana) , on public land in South Gippsland. Another large remnant patch of Bog Gum is at Mt Nicoll near Fish Creek. Bog Gum is listed by the Victorian Government as ‘Critically Endangered’ and is now mainly confined to roadsides. Most of the Damp Heathy Woodland vegetation community in South Gippsland has been cleared for agriculture and only scattered remnants are now found, mainly along roadsides. GTSAG is currently seeking funding to undertake weed control - mainly Sweet Pittosporum, Watsonia, and Blackberry. Strategic revegetation over a 3-year period will be undertaken to prevent ongoing re-infestation of weeds into the future and new planting of the appropriate EVC species will be planted to retard weed re-growth, provide greater biodiversity and enhance resilience of the remnant native vegetation. Click here to learn more about the Gippsland Threatened Species Action Group Enrichment of Endangered Plant Communities on Regional Roads Endangered plant communities within Regional Roads Victoria (RRV) roadsides will get a helping hand over the next year. BCLN was successful in securing funding through a Gippsland Transport Environmental Projects (GTEP) – Pilot Program, which will be used to control weeds and increase connectivity and cover through planting. The endangered EVCs include Plains Grassy Woodland, Swampy Riparian Woodland, Swamp Scrub, and Natural Damp Grassland. See the map above for details. Click here to learn more about BCLN's Works Crew Ecological Vegetation Class Training Day The BCLN staff participated in a training field day in late April, concentrating on Bass Coast Ecological Vegetation Classes (EVCs) and indigenous species identification. The day involved presentations from Botanist, Alison Oates and Dave Sutton from the Gippsland Threatened Species Action Group. Staff visited 2 local properties in the Bass Hills, comparing revegetation sites of different ages and assessing the survival of indigenous species and the structure of different growth forms within an EVC. All in all, it was a very informative day and great to have the team together for a day out in the field! Click here to download the Indigenous Plants of Bass Coast brochure, where you can learn about local EVCs Sea Spurge Biocontrol Released A foliar blight fungus which specifically attacks sea spurge was released in April at 15 locations along Bass Coast shorelines. Three releases took place along the northern shores of Phillip island With the Cowes and Ventnor Coast Action groups. It was released at a further 12 locations from Punch Bowl road through to Inverloch with Parks Victoria and South Gippsland Conservation Society. This fungus provides a much needed helping hand to sea spurge control efforts undertaken by many groups and organisations restoring shoreline habitat. Pictured is Marilyn Shaw, joint coordinator of Cowes Coastcare group applying the fungus Click here to learn about weed control in Bass Coast Inspiring Revegetation Tour for Korumburra Group Members Korumburra Landcare Group members recently had the honour of taking an inspiring walk through the revegetated gullies on Libby and Martin Haynes property, which they have slowly revegetated with an estimated 40,000 plants over 40 years. Libby and Martin have had botanical and bird experts survey their property for different species, which is home to the Giant Gippsland Earthworm. Two attendees were lucky enough to hear the worms underground in two different locations, which is a very special experience! In 1992, they became a Land for Wildlife property, which clearly spurred them on for more plantings. Libby and Martin, are an inspiration to other landholders new and seasoned. They have learned from their revegetation mistakes, they have not tried to go too big too fast, it was always going to be a lifelong project and labour of love. Some key tips from the day were to fence off your vegetated areas from cattle, protect young plants from grazing wallabies, and to keep eucalypts and blackwoods away from your fence lines, as these trees are likely to drop branches. Big thanks to Martin and Libby for hosting this inspiring walk! Click here to learn more about the Korumburra Landcare Group Willows Targeted in Toora The BCLN Works Crew has recently been working along the beautiful Agnes River in Toora, targeting upward of 900 woody weeds, predominantly willow trees, along a 3km stretch of the river working towards Agnes Falls. In partnership with the West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority, previous excavation of willows in the river system has been undertaken with the BCLN Works Crew following up on outliers, making their way through steep terrain and thick vegetation down to the amazing tree ferns and fresh flowing river below. Click here to learn more about the way Willows negatively impact our waterways BCLN Staff Team-Building and Training Trip Last
