HOPE FOR THE FUTURE A Trees For Life Publication SPRING 2020 ISSUE 155
CONSERVATION ACROSS GENERATIONS
DESIGNER SPIDER DEBUTS WITH BUSH FOR LIFE
JEWEL OF THE SOUTH: STREPERA DREAMING ON KI
O E C d n a t n e id s e r our P a Je
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MESSAGES FROM
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elcome to our Spring ReLeaf. As we prepare this edition, the uncertainty and concern about coronavirus continues. However we’re so fortunate that our Trees For Life community continues to be as resilient and resourceful as ever. Our volunteers have been out in full force over winter doing bushcare and planting seedlings. The healing power of nature feels like just what we all need right now. And our wildlife and native bushland needs our help to heal – so the gift goes both ways. We’re extremely grateful to everyone who contributed to our bushfire recovery efforts – donors near and far, and volunteers both growing and planting seedlings. Thanks to your overwhelming support we’ve been able to provide around 18,000 bushfire recovery seedlings to many locations across South Australia. These seedlings have been carefully nurtured from local provenance seed
IN THIS ISSUE… 2
Cover image: Volunteer Thanee at our bushfire recovery planting at Woodside taken by Sam Catford.
CONSERVATION ACROSS GENERATIONS
4 HOPE ON THE HORIZON FOR KI 6
JEWEL OF THE SOUTH
10 DESIGNER SPIDER DEBUTS WITH BUSH FOR LIFE 12 Joy Beryl Noble
and we look forward to seeing them grow over the years and hearing the stories of recovery. It’s been a privilege to meet many of our Kangaroo Island members affected by the devastating bushfires. They have inspired us with their commitment to restoring the island’s natural environment, whilst endeavouring to rebuild their own properties and livelihoods. Our work supporting bushfire affected communities will continue for many years, so please continue to help us with your practical and financial support. Our vision of the future is hopeful, where our natural landscapes are healthy and strong, and nature is valued deeply by all members of our community. This edition is full of stories from people who share their love of nature and the work they’re doing to restore their patch of the world. Each story is inspiring to us and we hope to you too.
CONTACT US ReLeaf is a production of Trees For Life Editor: Sam Catford Email: samc@treesforlife.org.au Printing: Finsbury Green 100% Recycled Carbon Neutral IS014001 Environment Management Systems Trees For Life 5 May Tce, Brooklyn Park 5032 P: 08 8406 0500 E: info@treesforlife.org.au W: treesforlife.org.au
13 Trees For Life News 14 What’s on at Trees For Life 15 In the spotlight: Glorious Golden Wattle Indigenous Australians have sustainably managed our landscapes and wildlife for tens of thousands of years. Trees For Life acknowledges and respects the Traditional Custodians of our Country and we pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging. We also acknowledge and respect the deep spiritual connection and relationship that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have to Country. 1
CONSERVATION ACROSS GENERATIONS
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his is a story about five generations, many hands and a common goal. It’s a story about commitment and family. But most of all it’s a story about stories – the stories that we each pass on, from one generation to the next, the tales that run through us to our children and their children, and carry forward into the future. It’s about kids growing up into a world where the story of humans, plants and wild creatures can weave together sustainably and happily. Today’s tale, like Trees For Life, began with an organisation called Men of the Trees. The year was 1985. Trees For Life had, just been started by a group of South Australian nature lovers. They were inspired by South African conservation group, Watu wa Miti (Men of the Trees). One active member of Men of the Trees back in South Africa was Charles Samuel, a South Australian expat. Uncle Samuel had a young great-nephew, David Muirhead, then a self-described “budding greenie”. At the urging of Uncle Samuel, David joined the young South Australian environmental organisation, Trees For Life. David recalls the insistent urging of his great-uncle.
I particularly enjoyed being a grower for some years, and those few years gave me the skills and confidence to more or less ‘go it alone’.
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“He was of course, like most of that generation, quite a gentleman … he spoke softly. He was already about eighty or something, possibly older, and it was the only time I can remember him getting really animated in a conversation with me. He targeted me. It must have been 30 people, cousins and relations in the front room of the house we were living in … and he sort of hunted me down and I was very thrilled to talk to him because I was already a passionate conservationist. It was a really important connection. I probably would have joined at some later time, but it hadn’t occurred to me. I didn’t even know a local group would be starting, and it was him that told me. Uncle Charles Samuel. He was too old to be planting trees by that stage but he wanted to pass it on. It was a generational thing”. David’s enthusiasm for nature had been nurtured by his own parents from a young age. His mother, who came to Australia from Switzerland, shared her own amazement for her new home. “My mother couldn’t believe how beautiful most of the nature – birds, animals, plants – just around Adelaide and South Australia were“, he recalls. “We saw some of what would have been the last surviving populations of azure kingfishers in the gorge near here, down at Lady Bay … up until I was about age 15 we used to spot them diving off low branches to pull tiny little fish out of the river. They’re one of the many birds to become extinct
The Muirhead, Gordon and Need families at the Need’s family farm in 1991 (David Muirhead far left and Morgan Muirhead far right, holding a lamb). "The Porosa Patch" of planted tubestock seedlings in the background and ‘current’ plantings in the foreground, with a 1.5 kilometre straight fence line running from farm gate to high rocky knoll at rear of property.
in the Mount Lofty Ranges, and we saw them … they’re just dazzling, a little thing the size of a sparrow dropping down to the water in the sunlight … at things like that, my mother just swooned. And she really encouraged my interest in nature“. David’s father, too, supported his natural education, encouraging he and his friends to get out and explore. “He encouraged me and like-minded friends to roam free … so I had much fun exploring the Torrens and North Parklands on foot and bicycle”. This early encouragement left David the perfect target for Uncle Samuel’s prompting during that family Christmas gathering. David became an active member, growing trees through the Tree Scheme and undertaking his own growing endeavors. “I particularly enjoyed being a grower for some years, and those few years gave me the skills and confidence to more or less ‘go it alone’. By that I mean collecting seed on and near a good friend’s farm at Dawson … germinating and nurturing a diverse range of local provenance shrubs and trees using TFL kits …” he recalls. David and his young family went on to help with the planting at Dawson, watering and protecting the trees. They continued to visit regularly for over a decade. David’s love for environmental work continued and his personal passion for marine nature photography “melded nicely with TFL’s ethos”. But the story begun by Uncle Samuel did not end with those trees, now fully grown and thriving. David’s
young family was influenced by the growing and planting in those early days. Three and a half decades on, David’s daughter Morgan now sits on the board of Trees For Life. Morgan’s children, David’s grandchildren, are growing up as the fifth generation of this family with its roots deep in the soil of environmental protection. “I’ve got a four year old grandson who’s exactly where I was at that age”, says David. “He can already tell the difference between a river red gum and a South Australian blue gum, I’m not joking. It’s not because it’s been shoved at him – he actually just wanted to know. He runs around picking up sheoak cones, and treasures them as if they’re made of gold”. David is proud of the passion he can already see in his grandchildren. “All four of my grandkids have a positive view on nature, and an interest”. David sees the importance of this teaching, of continuing and evolving the story of conservation. “Somehow it seems to take a whole generation to learn that the previous one made a mistake”, he says. But now, he sees the positive impact of the work he and all of us have been doing towards a better future. “I’ve seen all the hard work that we – tens of thousands of volunteers, you and me and all the others – have sort of chipped away at, doing education and planting and so on, and you can see an improved catchment and improved wildlife corridors and carbon storage … you can get a sense of all those things. I do, as I get older”.
After nearly four decades of care and devotion to nature, David has chosen to carry on his lifetime of work with us by including a gift to Trees For Life in his will.
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“I have seen many positive changes. I’m increasingly impressed with the scale and frequency of revegetation that I see on private property - and National Parks as well, but particularly on private property – and anywhere in South Australia”. This revegetation is what David says is the “bottom line” of the changes he hopes the future will bring for South Australia’s beautiful landscapes. “Massive revegetation. Not just lines of trees – a proper attempt to restore the habitat. And then the hopping mice and the marsupial moles and the bilbies and the night parrots and so on … they’ll be fine”. After nearly four decades of care and devotion to nature, David has chosen to carry on his lifetime of work with us by including a gift to Trees For Life in his will. His story, which began with Uncle Samuel passing on his passion to the next generation, will continue through Morgan and, with this gift, continue still further to his grandchildren as they learn and grow in the South Australian landscapes David has worked so hard to protect. The trees he planted at Dawson, now fully grown, are a living reminder of the way the echoes of our positive actions can be heard well into the future. For information about leaving a gift in your will please contact Maureen McKinnie on 8406 0500 or email maureenmck@treesforlife.org.au.
HOPE ON THE HORIZON FOR KI
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eanette Gellard, President of the Trees For Life Board, has lived on Kangaroo Island for 25 years. Last summer’s bushfires devastated the unique landscape she and many others call home, presenting massive challenges for Kangaroo Island’s tightknit community. Several months into the recovery effort, and with many years still to go, we’re witnessing the profound resilience of fire-affected communities on Kangaroo Island and across SA. Importantly, we’re also seeing the incredible healing capacity of nature. We spoke to Jeanette about her life and experiences on this iconic and beautiful South Australian island. TOP LEFT: Seed Bank Manager Daniel with the volunteer grown seedlings off to KI. TOP RIGHT: President
Jeanette Gellard (left) hosted the KI seedling giveaway from her house in Kingscote. Pictured with Maren Norris (right) from Islander Estate Vineyards.
Nature-lovers are drawn to the island and it’s certainly appreciated on a national scale. What’s so unique about the landscapes there? Significant areas of intact native vegetation; incredible levels of roadside vegetation; high levels of biodiversity and high-functioning ecosytems; variety of wildlife that is easy to observe – kangaroos, goannas, echidnas, wallabies, possums, birdlife; marine environments and beautiful white sandy beaches (that are not crowded!); soaring cliff coastlines; and overall incredible diversity in land and seascapes. Have you had any stand-out experiences with KI’s special flora and fauna? Echidnas frequent our property – the little earthmovers dig up the front grassed area of our house! Glossy black-cockatoos just started to move into some feeding habitat at the end or our road. Some early morning drives we encounter four to six birds feeding by the roadside. Do you remember the moment you knew the island was in real danger from the fires this past summer? Our property came under threat on the 20th of December. At that point I thought it was going to be a ‘typical’ campaign fire situation – we had two main fires burning. On Friday 3rd of January I had travelled up to Adelaide in the morning and started getting messages about the fire activity and behaviour in the afternoon. By that evening I was really concerned and cancelled my Adelaide plans and returned home on the Saturday morning.
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What was it like being there during this bushfires? It was surreal … what I imagine being in a war zone would be like. At various points our town streets were full of defence personnel and vehicles, chinooks and other aircraft were in our skies. Much of our landscapes were devastated. The levels of anxiety and fear in the community were heightened. Has life on the island or in your community changed since this particularly difficult summer? In a word: yes. There was such devastation to our landscapes and infrastructure, as well as wildlife and our community members, that it has affected everyone. All our businesses have been affected in some way – either through loss of infrastructure or tourism business. There’s real concerns about the mental health and well-being of Islanders. Particularly fire crews and those who lost homes and livelihoods and stock.
Many of the seedlings are being used to replace shelter belts, which not only provide protection to stock but also provide habitat ... for wildlife.
We know recovery will take many years. How can we continue to support the people and animals who call the island home, during this year and into the future? Don’t forget us. The news cycle will move on but it will take us years to recover. Come and visit and help the local economy. Donate to organisations that are helping the recovery process – both social and environmental. Has anything come as a surprise to you or other residents during the aftermath and recovery effort? Broader public support (local, state, national and international) has been overwhelming. Your home has recently become a makeshift depot for people to collect Trees For Life seedlings grown from KI provenance seed. How will these seedlings make a difference in the landscape? These seedlings will help replace vegetation that was totally destroyed by the intensity of the fires. Many of the seedlings are being used to replace shelter belts, which not only provide protection to stock but also provide habitat ... for wildlife. Some are going directly to support habitat restoration. Kangaroo Island is so close to the hearts of many South Australians, who’ve shown a lot of support for the recovery. As a resident, is there anything you’d like to say to the many Trees For Life supporters who’ve donated generously and grown plants to restore the landscapes around your home? Thank you. Only two words, but they reflect immense gratitude and acknowledgement of everyone’s contribution. Kangaroo Island is important to all South Australians as a place of incredible beauty and environmental importance. Working together we can support the future of Kangaroo Island for all South Australians.
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Daniel with the trailer full of seedlings bound for KI.
JEWEL OF THE SOUTH ‘STREPERA DREAMING’ ON KANGAROO ISLAND By Phil Bagust
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t’s 2020, and we all need a good news story. An uplifting story. A hopeful story. An inspiring story. This story is
all four. With its pristine coastal beaches and cliff scenery, its wildlife and wilderness-filled western end, and its relatively large areas of intact native bush, Kangaroo Island has always been special. This is reflected in Aboriginal lore, European history and its unique matrix of locally ‘evolved-inisolation’ plants and animals. Long a centre of agriculture, more recently ‘KI’ has seen a renewed focus on ecotourism and private conservation, a resurgence that partners Bev Maxwell and Colin Wilson, along with Bev’s sister Alison and brother-in-law Andrew Jessup, are well and truly part of. Their property, Strepera (named after the waterfall nearby, and the genus name for the iconic Grey Currawong1 often seen there) is 650 hectares of mostly low forest surrounding the Middle River, near the north coast of the island. The quartet have spent many years – with more than a little help from Trees For Life – learning to work and thrive with their land. As I speak to Colin he relates their story. Nearly two decades ago Bev and Colin were living in Darwin when they agreed to act as tour guides for a German friend whose parents were visiting Australia and wanted to visit Kangaroo Island. On seeing
the island the pair were immediately smitten. Before purchasing the property that became Strepera they had little specific knowledge of the local flora and fauna, but the extent of the natural vegetation and the abundant wildlife was obvious. Colin says, "Most of the land was [already] under a Heritage Agreement so was relatively intact native forest. The cleared areas had been mainly used for sheep farming and were heavily infested with capeweed2. Our decision to restore the cleared areas was made pretty much at first sight”. They also knew about the critically low numbers of the nationally endangered Kangaroo Island subspecies of the glossy black-cockatoo3, and were thrilled to find out the property was important ‘glossy’ habitat. Colin describes the natural plant mix on Strepera, which straddles a deep river gorge where there are several different plant associations. “The plateau tops are mainly cup gum4 with stringybark5 interspersed with banksias, hakeas, yaccas6 and lots of prickly things like KI conesticks7 and the rare splendid bush-pea8. There are also significant stands of sugar gum9 and many of the slopes are cloaked in drooping sheoak10”. The native mammal, bird, reptile and insect populations are equally impressive.
Glossy black-cockatoo on KI by Peter Hammond.
…it has been exciting seeing flocks of up to 10 glossy black-cockatoos now feeding almost daily in our planted sheoaks.
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1) Strepera versicolor halmaturina 2) Arctotheca calendula 3) Calyptorhynchus lathami halmaturinus 4) Eucalyptus cosmophylla 5) Eucalypus baxteri 6) Xanthorrhoea sp. 7) Petrophile multisecta 8) Pultenaea villifera var. glabrescens 9) Eucalyptus cladocalyx 10) Allocasuarina verticillata
Their next step was obviously how to go about restoring those cleared areas. This is where Trees For Life came into the picture. Colin remembers, “My sister Wendy in Adelaide had been growing trees through Trees For Life for some years. She readily agreed to become our grower and has just completed her nineteenth annual tree growing season for us”. The owners are at pains to emphasise that this whole endeavour has been a collaborative partnership
Colin says they wouldn’t be able to plant so many trees without a lot of community help. “It is also a great opportunity for friends, and even strangers, to meet over an uplifting activity. We ask people to meet at our shed at 10 in the morning. I give a bit of a pep-talk about what we are planting and where and give some guidance as to techniques for newbies. There are a range of jobs to be done: holes to be dug, wire guards to be made, tree guards and stakes to be distributed, seedlings to be planted, tree guards fitted and stakes hammered in and empty seedling containers to be collected.” It’s not all work though. “Alison and Bev are busy keeping the billies boiling and preparing food. After an hour or so somebody does the rounds with a variety of cakes and slices, and after another hour or so we retire to the shed for lunch and tea/ coffee. Sometimes we arrange for a talk (for example on the glossy blackcockatoo) while people are eating their lunch. Then it’s back out to the planting site. We usually end the day with a BBQ at the shed”. That sounds like a very satisfying and educational day out. Colin reckons that theirs may be the longest continuously running tree planting event on the island. The results of all this effort have taken time and experience to bear fruit. "When we first started planting we were pretty naïve about the seasons on KI. A few times we planted too early in the season before the rains had broken and spent much labour in bucketing water up and down hills. But now, apart from occasionally giving the seedlings a drink as they are planted, they are on their own and we have discovered just how resilient the local native species are”. Colin explains however, that tree guards have been an absolute necessity. “We have experimented with a variety of guards over the years and have settled on the corflute guards for the drooping sheoaks but rigid wire guards for almost everything else. Most species, especially the eucalypts, eventually make it above the height of the tallest kangaroo and can be released”. Native fauna can be a challenge in revegetating but an even bigger challenge is fire, something thrown into harsh focus early this year as some of the worst blazes in history ravaged the western half of the island. These fires "destroyed nearly all of the
We source the seed from the property and Trees For Life provides the growing materials. between grower and landholder. “We source the seed from the property and Trees For Life provides the growing materials. We’re registered landowners with Trees For Life and none of what we have achieved in restoring cleared areas on the property would have been possible without them”. They haven't been shy about experimenting with a wide range of locally indigenous plants and techniques while revegetating. “We have planted over 100 native species to date”, Colin says. “Drooping sheoak and five eucalypt species comprise about two thirds of all seedlings planted. Recently we have been collecting soil from around the property and Wendy lights a fire over it. All sorts of things have germinated, some of which we haven’t seen before on the property. Our native grasses are recovering well after decades of grazing, so we haven’t felt the need to grow them ourselves. We have grown some native sedges to plant around some soaks in an effort to reduce erosion”. A crucial aspect of the project has been about community. It’s not just about the plants and animals, but the people who are actively helping to bring about positive change often returning year after year to help. Through running annual planting festivals they’ve "had approximately 200 people plant trees on our property over the last 19 years and many of them feel a personal and ongoing connection with what we are doing”. They remember volunteers coming from as far away as Queensland and even New Zealand.
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naturally occurring sheoaks on our property. The Middle River gorge is home to a significant flock of glossies. Luckily, most of our plantings over the previous 18 years survived and it has been exciting seeing flocks of up to 10 glossy black-cockatoos now feeding almost daily in our planted sheoaks. We were despondent following the fires as they went right through the valley and up all of the tributaries and we expected that most artificial nests and natural hollows would have been destroyed. Miraculously nine of 11 artificial nest boxes survived and this year four of them were used by glossies for breeding”. Some years ago, the pair took their commitment to the next level when they moved permanently to the island. Colin shares the important lessons they’ve learned over the years. “We haven’t had any real failures, but have learned what works best for us. We have learned not to plant too early in the season otherwise water needs to be carted. We have learned that native plant seedlings are very resilient to drought, grazing,
RIGHT: Tree Planting Festival at Strepera in 2019 by Colin Wilson. BELOW: Bev Maxwell surveying their surviving plantings post bushfire by Colin Wilson.
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LEFT TOP: Before – tree planting near Marron Dam April 2005 by Colin Wilson. LEFT BOTTOM: After – tree planting near Marron Dam July 2020 by Colin Wilson.
and now even fire. We have learned that possums are more destructive than we imagined and are capable of pulling seedlings out of tree guards and even dismantling guards. We have learned that planting trees in tree guards is only half the job and that it is just as important to have a structured program of guard removal. Our greatest success would be in attracting native wildlife back into old sheep paddocks. Areas which have been planted for a decade or so are now alive with dozens of species of birds, buzzing with native insects, ploughed up by echidnas and
We have planted over 100 native species to date.
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goannas and sheltering kangaroos and wallabies. The capeweed is disappearing as the canopy is reestablished, with fungi, mosses and self-grown seedlings emerging”. On the human side, the lesson is simple but profound. “We have learned that people almost universally love planting trees”. Bev, Colin, Alison, Andrew and Wendy’s experiences are a fantastic example of what can be achieved with time, effort, outreach and a willingness to take setbacks like the recent fires as a learning experience. This doesn’t have to happen on Kangaroo Island and it certainly doesn’t have to be on a property this large. Your own experience could start with planting natives in your backyard, caring for a local Bush For Life bushcare site, ordering seedlings through our Tree Scheme, or signing up to be a volunteer grower. Who knows, there’s every chance you could get connected with landholders as inspiring and caring as these. I ask Colin what advice they would give to others planning to go down their path and his answer is simple and to the point. “Just go for it … treat your collaborators well … and learn as you go”. I’m sold; I’d love to visit Strepera. My final question is simple. I ask him what emotions they feel at the end of a hard day, when they can relax and look over the property they have loved and nurtured for nearly 20 years. “A deep sense of satisfaction at the part we have played in preserving and restoring a little bit of wild nature,” Colin says, and just as importantly, “a great deal of thanks for those who have helped us do so”. So say we all.
DESIGNER SPIDER DEBUTS WITH BUSH FOR LIFE By Claire Bowman
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uring bushcare events and planting days, the quiet chatter of volunteers blends with the hum and ripple of rustling leaves, insects and bird call. Sometimes the voices rise above the thud of holes being dug or stakes being hammered, and sometimes the intermittent drilling of olive roots stops the conversation altogether. Pairs and groups of bushcarers move here and there, carefully avoiding natives while they treat weeds or put plants in the ground. For many of our volunteers, caring for the bush is more than just the bushcare itself – it’s about getting out in nature with others, banding together with a shared vision, having a laugh and sharing stories during a well-earned morning tea break. When volunteer activities were forced to stop this year, many of us quickly missed the community side of bushcare. However, striking out solo has reignited the joy of being alone in the bush, without the industrious hum of activity. In quiet moments, the solitude becomes a blessing. The stillness of a single human visitor emboldens hidden creatures to emerge from beneath leaves or between dark folds and curls of bark. As our bushcare activities resumed in July, I talked to Belinda Copland, a herpetologist and Bush For Life volunteer who’d spent her time off in the bushland north of Adelaide. She spent many days wandering slowly through the Bush For Life sites at Willaston Cemetery and Pengilly Scrub, hunting for tiny, furry spiders. According to CSIRO's Australian National Insect Collection1, only 2,700 species of spider have been scientifically described in our vast and ecologically diverse country. This is just a fraction of the true number, which they estimate at 10,000 species, from the tiniest colourful peacock
spider2 to the massive whistling tarantula3, big enough to snack on birds. The particular critter we hope to find when I meet Belinda at Willaston is only about 5 millimetres long, approximately the size of a grain of rice. Named Jotus karllagerfeldi after fashion icon Karl Lagerfeld, the stylish spider has large, shining black eyes not unlike Lagerfeld’s dark glasses. The scientists who described it last year noted its distinctive black and white markings were reminiscent of the fashion designer’s iconic dark gloves and high, white Kent collar. This black and white brushed jumping spider, first recorded near Dalby in Queensland, was the
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FROM TOP: Jumping spiders are often found on curled bark, ready to hide at short notice.
Jotus karllagerfeldi male at Willaston Cemetery.
specimen that started Belinda on her hunt for tiny arachnids. “I found that one karllagerfeldi, and then I was hooked”, she tells me matter-offactly. “For a while there, every time I came [to Willaston Cemetery] I was finding the black and white brushed jumpers”. Since that first find, Belinda has photographed many females and several males at the site, all tiny and covered with fine fur. “It’s like looking for orchids … you train your eyes to look for tiny things”, Belinda tells me as we walk through the bush, squinting through the midday sun into the low scrub. “It’s just a matter of walking slowly and sneaking up … just picking shrubs at random …” “The females do tend to like hanging on the bark because they can hide underneath it fairly easily”. However, she tries to temper my expectations, warning me that no matter how good your eyesight, spider seeking is very much a game of luck. Recently she hasn’t seen as many jumping spiders as usual – perhaps it’s the time of year. “I quite often come in and don’t find anything”. Belinda tells me that after finding several spiders at Willaston Cemetery, she’d decided to actively search for Karl Lagerfeld spiders at Pengilly Scrub, a nearby Bush For Life site with similar vegetation. After initially finding a few females, Belinda spent several days quietly peering through the leaves of sea box4 and saltbush5 and peeking under curls of dried bark before she finally came across a male and could officially record Pengilly Scrub as another location for the species. By the time we meet in July, Belinda has spent many hours searching and photographing jumping spiders. “I’d come in here and I’d say to my daughter ‘I’m just going to go take some photos, I’ll be back in an hour’ and some days it was four hours later …” she says. As well as Karl Lagerfeld’s spiders, Belinda has recorded several other species of tiny jumping spider at both sites. While Belinda can happily spend hours searching and getting her dose of nature during lockdown, the benefit of her “Covid hobby” reaches well beyond her own wellbeing. By identifying species in new locations, she’s helping to promote the great biodiversity of our local bushland and the importance of the work she and
other volunteers normally do on Bush For Life sites. As a scientist herself, Belinda was perhaps more aware of the lack of records of species at the sites. “I had noticed on Atlas of Living Australia that there was no real knowledge of invertebrate life at either Willaston Cemetery or Pengilly.” Belinda was the first to record J. karllagerfeldi at both sites, as well as finding one at Marino Conservation Park while doing reptile surveys. She’s also recorded peacock spiders and other jumping spiders6, some species of which are yet to be identified from her photographs. Belinda is a strong advocate for the bush, and for taking time to observe your surroundings. “Whenever outdoors I try to remember to take at least fifteen minutes to slow down and closely observe what is present around me. This can be therapeutic … with the added benefit of discovering new and exciting things.” As many long-time bushcarers will tell you, discovering new species of plants, animals and insects is one of the joys of getting to know a particular patch of bush. With weeds under control, Bush For Life sites provide an ideal safe haven for so many creatures, from the large to the very, very small. Spiders might not be the most loved amongst the residents you’ll find on a site, but the Karl Lagerfeld’s spider
has a certain charisma, not unlike its namesake. Though Belinda and I didn’t find one on our walk through Willaston Cemetery, I came away with an important lesson: you never know what you might find in the bush if you tread lightly, move slowly and look closely. 1) https://www.csiro.au/en/Research/ Collections/ANIC 2) Maratus sp. 3) Selenocosmia crassipes 4) Alyxia buxifolia 5) Rhagodia sp. 6) Saitis sp., Sandalodes sp., Maratus sp.
ABOVE FROM TOP: Belinda Copland, Bush
For Life volunteer, herpetologist and budding photographer.
The distinctive stripes are reminiscent of fashion icon Karl Lagerfeld's signature look. Photo by Belinda Copland.
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JOY BERYL NOBLE (1925-2020)
By David Mitchell AM President, Trees For Life 2000-2018
Mavis Reynolds OAM (left) and Joy Noble AM (right), co-founders Volunteering SA & NT 35th anniversary at Government House 2017. Photo by Volunteeting SA & NT.
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ith the death of Joy Noble we have lost one of our greatest volunteering advocates and champions. Founding Volunteering SA in 1982, Joy developed many of the principles and practices of volunteering employed today. Quiet, but with a fierce determination, Joy was a true pioneering champion. In 2002, her services to the volunteer movement were justly rewarded with an AM. I first met Joy in the early 1970's when she was appointed regional director in the newly created Department for Community Welfare, becoming one of the most senior women in the state public service. No big deal for her however, since, rather than personal achievement, Joy was more about improving quality of life for those in need and for the general community. 12
I reconnected with Joy many years later as a volunteer and member of government committees. Her focus was still the same and her passion for volunteering inspirational. She became a member of Trees For Life in 1991, and remained a great moral and financial supporter of the organisation until her death. Her advice and wise counsel over many years was greatly valued and in 2009, I was privileged to be awarded the Joy Noble Medal for volunteering.Â ď†Œ
RIP Joy Noble
WHAT'S HAPPENING AT TREES FOR LIFE? END OF YEAR PARTY CANCELLED
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ue to the uncertainty created by the COVID-19 pandemic, and in the best health and safety interests of our supporters and staff, we’ve decided to cancel this year’s End of Year Party. But … we’re still taking nominations for our Thank You Tree Awards and Gold Memberships will be awarded with certificates/gold keyrings posted to recipients. Thank you all for your generous support through these challenging times. We look forward to celebrating our 40th Anniversary with you in person in 2021.
THANK YOU TREE AWARDS
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ominations for our Thank You Tree Awards are now open and we encourage you to nominate a fellow member or volunteer to recognise their outstanding contribution to Trees For Life. For more information and to download a nomination form please visit our website: treesforlife.org.au/latest-news. You can also call us on 8406 0500, or email info@treesforlife.org.au to receive a nomination form. Nominations close Friday 30 October.
NURSERY SUMMER SOWN ORDERS
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ustralian native seedlings love summer. That means it’s the main growing period for our Westwood Nursery which raises up to 200 different native plant species every year to help landholders, local government and conservation groups meet their revegetation goals. We grow herbs, grasses, ground covers, shrubs and trees from across the state, helping South Australians create homes for native creatures and bring landscapes to life. If you’re not sure where to start, the nursery team would love to share their expert advice on species selection. Our years of experience and specialist knowledge mean we can suggest the perfect plant for your project or property. We’re also able to grow rare and threatened species for projects. We’ll collect seed and cuttings suitable to your local provenance, or will collect seed from your own property by request, at cost. Have a chat to our friendly team and see what we can do to help. We grow a minimum of 50 seedlings to order at a very competitive price. The deadline for summer sown orders is Monday 30 November. Please get in touch earlier if you have specialist provenance requirements.
VOLUNTEERING WITH OUR TREE SCHEME GET YOUR GROW ON Have you thought about being a volunteer grower but you’re not sure how to get started? The first step is to register your interest. Registrations close soon and our grower workshops start in October. The growing season begins in November and ends around May 2021. Call us on 8406 0500 or email info@treesforlife.org.au to register.
VOLUNTEER GROWING GEAR Most depots will open their gates on 15 November this year for Tree Scheme volunteer growers to collect everything they need to raise native seedlings. If you have registered to grow and haven’t heard from us by early October, please give us a call.
Volunteer grower Elle.
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WHATS ON
BUSH FOR LIFE EVENTS
Biodiversity Month
September
National Wattle Day
1 September
National Threatened Species Day
7 September
If you’re interested in becoming a volunteer on one of our Bush For Life sites, or would like to learn more about managing your own bushland, contact us to find out how to get involved.
Board Nominations
Close 15 September
BUSHCARE WORKSHOPS
Mental Health Week
5 – 11 October
Elizabeth
Friday 18 September
Annual General Meeting
15 October
Burnside
Thursday 8 October FULL
Thank You Tree Award Nominations
30 October
Pt Adelaide
Saturday 24 October FULL
Mitcham
Friday 13 November
TREE SCHEME AND NURSERY Spring Australian Plant Society Sale, Wayville
12 – 13 September
Volunteer Grower Workshops (bookings essential)
22 October – 7 November
Materials Collection Day for Tree Scheme Growers
15 November 9.00am-1.00pm
Nursery Summer Sown Orders Open
1 September – 30 November
THANKS TO OUR SUPPORTERS…
BUSH FOR LIFE
I
t was thrilling to get back out to our Bush For Life sites once COVID-19 restrictions lifted. We were equally excited to see strong interest from the wider community, with many of our bushcare workshops and Bush Action Team days booking out almost immediately. The Bush For Life team has been busy with many other activities, including bushfire recovery planting events for Cudlee Creek bushfire affected landholders. Volunteers, like Henry (pictured above) and Bush For Life staff visited fire affected properties to plant native seedlings carefully grown in direct response to the bushfires by other volunteers over the summer. It has been a rewarding experience for our volunteers and staff, and a cathartic activity for landholders who lost so much. Although we don’t have any dates listed in this edition of ReLeaf, our Bush Action Team days will continue through October to the end of the year, so please keep an eye on our website for future dates and locations. Thank you to all our volunteers for your patience and understanding.
South Australian Government entities not shown above include Green Adelaide and the Department for Environment and Water.
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In the spotlight:
GLORIOUS GOLDEN WATTLE “…all at once, in spring, the most delicate feathery yellow of plumes and plumes and plumes and trees and bushes of wattle, as if angels had flown right down out of the softest gold regions of heaven to settle here, in the Australian bush.” – Kangaroo, D. H. Lawrence.
T
he feathery yellow orbs of the golden wattle (Acacia pycnantha) that so captured Lawrence’s imagination are a common sight in spring, blooming brightly in their native range across the southeast, from the ACT to the Adelaide Hills. This wattle grows as a large shrub or a small tree up to eight metres tall and lives only about ten years. It is one of over 1,000 different acacia species found in Australia. However, golden wattle boasts a certain status among its kin; this iconic
species is Australia’s national floral emblem, the inspiration for the Aussie green and gold. The cities of Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide celebrated the first Wattle Day on 1 September 1910, and golden wattle has been on the coat of arms since 1912. On 1 September 1988, golden wattle was declared our national floral emblem. Like any famous figure, however, the wattle has its private secrets. The long, sickle shaped leaves of a mature golden wattle are a clever deception – they aren’t true leaves at all, but flattened leaf stalks called phyllodes. Likewise,
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each spherical flower is not one bloom but many, a delicate inflorescence of 40 to 100 small flowers, each with five tiny petals. These flowers, breathtaking in bloom, often cause acacia species to be blamed for spring allergies. However, research suggests that in fact wattles are rarely the culprit. Rather, spring flowering grasses and other species with much smaller pollens are responsible for most of our sniffles. Bless you!
