Introducing BARB (BGANZ Arboriculture Specialist Group)

Ian Allan, Chair, BARB and Supervisor Natural Areas & Arboriculture, Blue Mountains Botanic Garden, Mount Tomah

On 27 September 2022, following a day of inspiring tree conservation presentations at the 7th Global Botanic Gardens Congress, arborists from Kings Park and Botanic Garden (WA), Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, and Royal Botanic Gardens & Domain Trust (NSW), joined Botanic Gardens Conservation International and global tree conservation practitioners for a social meet-up to talk all things trees.

The group of Australian arborists shared their experiences and discussed botanic gardens arboriculture in Australia and New Zealand. Inspired by the unifying themes of the congress and the work of groups such as BGCI’s Global Conservation Consortia, BGANZ’s BCARM and the Climate Change Alliance of Botanic Gardens, those at the table agreed we could be doing more to work together in advancing tree management and conservation across the BGANZ network. And with that, the idea of forming a BGANZ network was born and that meeting was to go down in history as the inaugural BARB forum…

Why do we need an arboriculture professional group?

‘It is estimated that over 8,000 tree taxa, 10% of the world’s total, are globally threatened with extinction’ (Global Trees Campaign, 2018).

Arboriculture has come a long way since we were commonly known as ‘tree loppers’. As the science behind trees and their conservation has developed, the benefits of trees and urban forestry have also become better understood and more important than ever. As Nicole Cavender and Gerard Donnelly state in their paper Intersecting urban forestry and botanical gardens to address big challenges for healthier trees, people, and cities, ‘Horticultural and scientific knowledge combined with extensive public reach make botanical gardens and arboreta important potential partners in achieving urban forest objectives, but a greater call to action is needed.’

BARB aims to advocate for botanic gardens arboriculture, foster collaboration and provide support across the network by:

• creating a network of arborists across BGANZ member gardens

• Identifying and providing professional development and support for tree managers across the BGANZ membership

• promoting arboricultural industry best practice and alignment of tree conservation aims with BGANZ and global tree conservation aims

• improving the intersection of botanic gardens and urban forestry by collaboration with urban forest managers, external agencies and the public to better utilise our living collections

• promoting the professions and career pathways of botanic gardens arboriculture and tree conservation across the wider green industries in Australia and New Zealand.

Dan Marges from the Australian National Botanic Gardens tree team removing dead wood from a Eucalyptus grandis in the rainforest gully.

Credit: Pete Feile

Other members of the BARB committee are Chelsea Payne, Deputy Treasurer/Secretary (Kings Park and Botanic Garden), Committee members – Dan Marges (Australian National Botanic Gardens), Neil Bollinger (Orange Botanic Gardens), Peter Berbee (RBGV Melbourne Gardens), Matt Coyne (Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney), Chani Humphries (Geelong City Council) and Laura Williams (Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens).

If you’d like to join BARB or learn more about the group, please contact Ian at ian.allan@ botanicgardens.nsw.gov.au

Seed collecting from the critically endangered Eucalyptus strzeleckii near the La Trobe River at Tyers in Victoria. This involved Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria Melbourne Arboriculture (Jim Shugg arborist, Peter Berbee arborist, David Roberts horticulturalist) and members of La Trobe Valley Field Naturalists Club. It was important to obtain seed from these trees before they were removed as part of road widening work.

Credit: Jim Shugg