Category: Working bee

Working Bee – 10.03.2021

It was a productive day. After working on a small amount of palm grass before first fall, I decided to finally help out the gardia growing between the first and second falls. Gardia has been growing well but it is still having to compete with a lot of fishbone fern and some ginger lilly.

Here it is before trying to thin out the fishbone fern…

You can see in the image that the gardia (the tall grass seen in the center of the image), is getting above the fishbone fern but it is not very numerous. As I started weeding the fishbone fern I found a lot more gardia that was just too small to get to the light and hence were not looking very healthy.

After spending half an hour or so removing fishbone fern, the gardia now has a lot more space to expand and young shoots should now be able to grow above the fern. The image below shows the spot after weeding. I tried to use some judgement as to how much I should remove. I would not want to allow erosion to take place. Fast flowing water can cover the area if there is heavy rain.

A hairy clarodendrum I walk past when going to site A is being attached by these guys…

It was a straight forward lantana and privet removal after this point. No photos to show because I was too tired afterwards. I starting an area requiring maintenance but then expanded on that to clear a good section under ‘Site A’.

One concern is a lot of plants showing a brown discolouration. I am hoping it has to do with the extra light coming through after a large gum was removed in a nearby residence but that does not seem to match. I noticed it on some bleeding hearts and most notably, on the giant tree fern along the creek after second falls. Hopefully it is not a big deal but it is a concern at present. Might need to ask the experts at lakemac landcare.

 

Working Bee – 06.03.2021

Last week’s successful attack on lantana motivated me to do the same thing again this time. However, as is often the way, walking to the desired location is full of distractions that were too hard to ignore.

Just off the road, at the entrance of the reserve, buffalo grass dominates the area. Scurvy weed seems to give it a run for its money but it has a long way to go before it could ever take this nasty grass on. Here is an example of what I am referring to…

So before descending to the gully after first falls, I did some minor maintenance. I pushed back the grass and removed the mist flower that was bothering any of the blue flax lilly or scurvy weed. Unfortunately, some spots are quite risky to reach. They will have to wait until I determine a safer way to continue.

This was before doing some weeding. See if you can spot the blue flax lilly.

One positive I noticed on the way to my selected target was a section of scurvy weed doing battle with wandering jew and swedish ivy. I gave it a helping hand by clearing a square metre or so around it. Hopefully it takes the opportunity to expand.

On the left, the undesirable swedish ivy. On the right, the almighty scurvy weed (and probably some wandering willy as well unfortunately).

Higher up is dominated by wandering willy. I intend to see how a rake goes with it.

I moved along the west bank between the first and second falls. Anywhere I saw a native being crowded out, I cleared around it. It still all looks very messy but I have to accept, it is a gradual process.

Still, looking back, upto the first falls, it is a pretty sight, even with all the weeds still dominating the area.

Another win…I believe it is a birdnest fern just above second falls.

After taking this photo I found another half a dozen on the other side. Looking good!

Finally, I got to the site I intended on in the first place. After a good couple of hours, I had cleared another good section of lantana that was crowding out various natives (Sandpaper fig in particular).

One other native I am seeing more of is the wombat berry vine. After asking for an id, I have discovered the narrow leaved vine in this picture is Geitonoplesium Cymosum, otherwise known as scrambling lilly. Good to see more natives springing up.

Next week I intend on doing the same. Attacking the lantana under site A (behind No.14 Grn Val Rd). Anywhere I find some natives gets priority and it does seem there are many natives struggling to stay alive.

 

Working Bee – 27.02.2021

Dick’s Creek had a visit from the green team from the lake macquarie landcare resource center during the week. Many hands make light work and that was definitely the case on the day. Some good progress was made on the day despite delays due to rain. While there on the day I noticed some sections done previously had sprung back. Namely lantana and privet as usual. I have been quite  taken back by the speed that everything is growing at present. Rain is great for all the plants, weeds included unfortunately.

Yesterday, I had a chance to get some guards around the Cheese saplings I planted a month or so ago.

Everything is looking super green at present. Maiden hair along the cliff face next to the first falls has never been so abundant.

[metagallery id=394]

Palm grass is looking a bit too healthy at various places along the creek. At placed, I need to consider erosion control. When the water flows fast, it takes anything that is loose down stream so sometimes it is just better to leave some weeds in place for this reason. Here is what I am describing…

Further along, I am pushing back the swedish Ivy as various ferns show up. Hopefully it is a case of slowly does it. Things are looking much better but it can all go backwards quickly if I don’t keep an eye on it.

A trail that I often used that leads from the second falls around to site A was enveloped by fishbone fern. Impressive. Annoying but still impressive. I cleared the trail. This video shows the area and also one of the areas done by the green team.

Also done by the the green team and I last Tuesday…

Continuing on from that section I cleared lantana and privet back down the creeks edge (which still needs some serious privet treatment).

Here is the summary of the day which I try to do for each working bee. It was a good day…

 

Working Bee – 10.01.2021

A great day to get some maintenance done today. Accompanied with my eight year old daughter, Ella, we pushed back the lantana which is unfortunately loving the recent rain as much as the natives.

Ella found a relatively mature bleeding heart tree today.

 

It had clearly had a hard time not too long ago as the main trunk was broken off but a side branch was thriving and the tree was bearing fruit. A great find by Ella.

Fighting Fishbone Fern – 3hrs – 09.11.2019

Spring is here and the weather has been perfect to get some bush regeneration sorted.
My object was clear, remove the remaining lantana on the East bank that overhangs 2nd fall. I was doing this a few days back when I decided a final effort of at least a few hours. The object was not met. I never actually got to 2nd fall. Walking down the creek I came across infestation after infestation. Stuff that I just could not walk past.

Firstly, this sucker…

Privet stump had to go

I had cut down this privet tree quite a while ago as other choices were limited and it was getting too large to ignore. However, as expected, it was doing its best to make a comeback. I couldn’t ignore it so I got in and finally dug it out. It was harder than usual due to the fact it had wedged itself between some bolders and rocks. Still, out it came so yay for that.

With my focus brought to privet, I decided I need to scope the size of the job to tack the privet between 1st and 2nd falls. I started walking along the East bank of the creek to look for any smaller privet I could pull out directly and determine how many larger privet trees needed to be dealt with. Privet is probably now the worst invasive tree in the creek as the other offenders have been beaten down. The most notable plant on the East bank though is Fishbone fern. Fishbone Fern is native to Australia but not to this region. It is clearly identified here as a weed by how strongly it dominates the area.


It is so numerous and prolific it has always been put off for another day. However, I stumbled onto a small outbreak of Bracken fern. I was most impressed that this Bracken Fern had somehow been able to take on the Fishbone fern. The Bracken Fern was still struggling though as it could barely be seen amongst the Fishbone so I got in and gave the Bracken Fern a bit of space and hopefully a bit more light.

Hopefully this will give it a chance to start spreading and push back the Fishbone fern somewhat.

As well as coming across a few new outbreaks of Bracken Fern, I was quite happy to see some Rasp Fern taking root further along the creek. Unfortuately it too was battling various weeds. I chopped down some privet as a temporary measure but it was need to be addressed.  Small Rasp fern can be seen in the images below. It appears to have only come through after a weed was pushed back some by the landcare green team. I am uncertain about the name of that weed but I remember it was identified as originating from the african continent.

I was also a bit disturbed to find some fully grown privet trees which dominated certain sections of the upper canopy. A ‘privet attack’ is very much so needed. It will need to be a more permanant solution as well. That’ll either be pulling them out of the ground or using herbicide of some sort.

I didn’t get to my objective but it was a productive bush bash with some positive results coming through.

Weekend weed bash – 17.03.2019 – 2 hrs

After getting the majority of Mist flower and Crofton weed out from the bottom of Dick’s creek fall a few weeks ago, the remaining has been niggling me to finish it off.  My kids kept me company while I addressed the section under the overhang.

Daniela took a photo of us tackling the crofton weed and mist flower

It was a short session but I achieved my objective only to notice I didn’t have to go far to find more crofton weed infestations a little further along the creek. Next week…

On the plus side, I had a chance to remove the ‘tree of heaven’ which can be seen in the photo above (behind the large gum on the left hand side). I had wanted to dig it out completely but the angle of the slope and some rocks made sure that was not going to happen. I will need to keep an eye on it to make sure it does not resprout from the remaining root system.