Angair schedules regular working bees from near Anglesea to Aireys Inlet to protect and restore Nature Reserves, the Coastal Reserve and the Great Otway National Park. Working bees are held Monday mornings 9.30 am to 11 am, three times per month followed by a chat and morning tea back at the Angair Natural History Centre. All tools are provided. Refer to the activities calendar for dates and locations.
Come and help us make a real difference to the biodiversity and quality of our local nature reserves. Get a sense of satisfaction by working with a team to improve our nature reserve, and have lots of fun with like minded members.
For upcoming activities, check out the Angair events calendar.
Click here for an archive of the Weeds of the Month listed in our monthly newsletters.
Projects:
Unwanted orchid – urgent action required
Thanks to those people who have alerted us to the presence of the South African Weed Orchid Disa bracteata in the Anglesea district.
We have had reports from Portreath Road and Bones Road in the Surf Coast area, Kennett River, and our original monitoring site on Fraser Avenue. The two large infestations at Portreath Rd, and the firebreak at Kennett River (approx. 1000 plants) have occurred in recently slashed areas – one has to wonder if the machinery used had been hygienically cleaned before works were carried out.
If you should notice the orchids growing, please dig up and incinerate the entire plants. They grow to about 30 cm in height. The tubers are quite large and easy to dig up with a small trowel.
If it is a large infestation please let us know and we may be able to take appropriate action. It is a very strong species, self-pollinating, and produces millions of tiny seeds.
Angair has recently obtained a grant of $9,075 from Coastcare Victoria Community grants, to revegetate part of Soapy Rocks west of the walking track. Year 9 students from St Bernard’s Catholic College Essendon, who have the Santa Monica Campus at Big Hill, are collaborating with Angair on the project. Environmental weeds will be removed, and 1500 indigenous plants will be planted in winter/spring.
Edna Bowman Flora Reserve
In October last year, a number of Angair members met a Bushcare consultant, Tim D’Ombrain, from Biodiversity Services Pty Ltd, Ballarat, onsite at Edna Bowman Reserve. We discussed the grassy weed infestation that was severely affecting the rich herbaceous ground cover, including many orchids and lilies. We have obtained funding through the Department of Sustainability and Environments Community for Nature program. Tim has now completed a Weed Management Strategy report (25 pages) and a Biodiversity Assessment report (8 pages plus appendices). His major finding was that the weed infestation was caused by an increase in nutrients from water, carrying sediments and nutrients, flooding the reserve along the south east boundary. He recommends building a small brick wall above the spoon drain to prevent future flooding of the reserve during major rain events. I have now asked Tim to produce a Weed Action Plan for the next couple of years. If you would like to read these reports I am happy to email them to members. My email address is crayner3@gmail.com
Kuarka Dorla
Over the holiday period, the Surf Coast Shire has extensively cleared an area of Kuarka Dorla, between River Reserve Road and Weir Street. This clearance is a fire protection measure, as the reserve is adjacent to the Aged Care Facility and residential homes. We are concerned that the cleared areas will now become havens for herbaceous weeds.