News & Events

In full colour the Winter 24 Pigeon Post (PDF, 2.26 MB).

Recycling – all you ever wanted to know but were afraid to ask!!

Hamish McMurdo, general manager of Recycle South, will be the guest speaker at the AGM of the Otatara Landcare Group. His presentation will be at 7.30pm, the first item on the agenda at Otatara Community Church Oreti Road.

Hamish will give a comprehensive update on the recycling operations of Recycle South including what can be recycled and what can’t be and why. There will be time for questions.

The Otatara Landcare Group AGM will immediately follow his talk.

Regards

Richard Johnson

Chair Otatara Landcare Group

Tree Releasing Saturday 3 February 2024 2-4pm and Wednesdays in February 6.30-7.30pm - please come along and help - details below

Saturday 3 February -2-4pm

The plantings from Tree Planting Day September 2022, particularly in the lupins below the lookout seat, are in urgent need of attention. Locating the trees amid the lupins is quite difficult in places, and lupins need to be cut back to (re)create light wells for the seedlings to survive.

The next priority is the series of 2022 plantings alongside the Totara block, where grass and bracken are competing strongly with the young trees, and hopefully these areas can also be addressed on the day. Various methods can be used to release the trees and suppress competing grass etc growth, as will be demonstrated on the day.

Please meet at the Bryson Rd entrance to Bushy Point (or walk along to the lookout).

Wednesday evening Tree releasing at Bushy Point – February and March 2024

Otatara Landcare Group is organising tree releasing sessions at Bushy Point each Wednesday in February, starting 7 February, and possibly extending into March, from 6.30-7.30pm, weather permitting.

Meet at the Bryson Rd entrance to Bushy Point (or walk along to the lookout and you’ll find us).

For either event Please bring:

shoes or gumboots suitable for working in long grass and lupins

gardening gloves

clothing suitable for the expected weather conditions

a face mask if you are allergic to dust or grass seeds

safety (or other) glasses to protect eyes when weeding amid tall grass stalks

secateurs and/or a small pruning saw if possible for working in the lupins

optionally, a pair of sharp garden shears suitable for cutting grass.

Please feel free to join the working bee at any stage, and only stay for as long as you can.

Please contact Douglas Black on 022 104 8661 for more information if required.

The Summer 24 issue of the Otatara Pigeon Post is here! (PDF, 2.24 MB)

On Sunday 10th September, the annual Bushy Point Planting Day took place with 100 people, including 40 children, coming along to help. The plants had been moved onto site from the Southland Community Nursery the previous Friday and were in position for the willing planters to dig holes, plant and cover with combi-guards. The plants – red tussock for the hill, so we retain our estuary views, kapuka/broadleaf, kohuhu/black mapou, tarata/lemonwood, Ti kouka/cabbage tree, kotukutuku/tree fuchsia, mingimingi/coprosma, manuka, totara, karamu/Coprosma lucida were all planted to restore the area with locally sourced native plants.

This years planting adds to the previous 20 + years and according to Barry’s records totals 35,325 trees in the ground and 19,343.4 Hours of volunteer time spent on this project. Thanks to all involved.

OLG