SEED EXPEDITION UPDATE

Our Seed Bank volunteers are busily cleaning and processing the many kilograms of collected seed. Daniel, our Seed Bank Manager, is thrilled to bring you this update on his expeditions to regional South Australia which shows how your generosity has made an impact in this Season of Seed.

Yorke Peninsula:

- Due to the cool spring of 2022, many of the acacia species weren’t ready to collect in early December like they normally would be. However, there were plenty of grasses, daisies and small peas like pultenaea which we were able to collect and further increase the diversity of our Yorke Peninsula seed stock. We'll have to head back later in the season to collect the seed that wasn't ready.

Eyre Peninsula:

- Over two days in the Streaky Bay area we were able to collect a wide range of acacia species, including Acacia notabilis (notable wattle), Acacia cupularis (coast umbrellabush), Acacia brachybotrya (grey mulga) and Acacia anceps (Port Lincoln wattle, two winged wattle). As well as diversifying our Seed Bank with a number of native grasses and daisies such as Helichrysum leucopsideum (satin everlasting), Minuria leptophylla (Minnie daisy) and Vittadinia gracilis (woolly New Holland daisy). In an area so infrequently visited by Trees For Life it was great to be there at the right time of year to collect such a wide variety of species and others like Templetonia retusa (cocky’s tongue) and Callitris gracilis (slender cypress pine).

- Three days of collecting in the Lower and Eastern Eyre Peninsula — from the Tumby Bay region heading west towards the Marble Range and in the vicinity of towns like Cummins, Ungarra, Edillilie and Yallunda Flat — resulted in a bounty of seed. We were able to collect good quantities of Acacia gillii (Gill’s wattle) and Acacia imbricata (imbricate wattle) — both endemic to Eyre Peninsula. As well as Eucalyptus cladocalyx ssp. cladocalyx (sugar gum) and Eucalyptus petiolaris (Eyre Peninsula blue gum), which are two favourites amongst our Tree Scheme landholders in the region. The majority of the seed for these two species came from Jim’s bushland block at Yallunda Flat, which he has named ‘Coolanta Wilderness’.

TOP: Collecting buloke seed in the South East.

BOTTOM: Sugar gum woodland at 'Coolanta Wilderness' in the Eyre Peninsula.

South East:

- We collected a number of acacia including Acacia cupularis (coast umbrella-bush), Acacia acinacea (round-leaf wattle) and Acacia brachybotrya (grey mulga) as well as dodonaea and wallaby grasses near the towns of Keith, Bordertown and Bangham.

- Buloke (Allocasuarina luehmannii) and banksia were the focus of the second trip which was spent with Emily Baldwin, Habitat Officer Southeastern Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo. We were able to collect buloke around the southern part of the species range near Frances and further north near Wolseley. We also managed to replenish our stock of Banksia marginata (silver banksia) and Banksia ornata (desert banksia) and a number of hakea species. Samantha Rothe, Paddock Tree Project Officer South East, also joined us for a day in the field along with Peter Tucker, Principal Consultant at Mister Tucker’s in Naracoorte, helping us to collect a number of hakea species and Xanthorrhoea australis (austral grass tree).