This is an ongoing project that continues to seek funding to help landholders manage environmental woody weeds on their properties.
One of the major threats to the quality of flora and fauna habitat in Christmas Hills are woody weeds invading native vegetation. Species such as Blackberry, Boneseed, Sweet Pittosporum, Cootamundra Wattle, Sallow Wattle and Radiata Pine can form dense infestations preventing natural regeneration of native species and altering fauna habitat.
The Christmas Hills Landcare Group helps landholders tackle these weeds in several ways – seeking funds to engage a skilled contractor, Indigenous Design Environmental Services, to do larger scale weed control works, holding weeding working bees with the Christmas Hills Tool Trailer to help neighbours, and developing landholder skills in weed identification and simple control methods.
Each year we aim to treat more properties to increase the area of native vegetation in Christmas Hills with little or no woody weed cover.
2012 - 25 properties treated covering 379 hectares (funded by 2011-12 PPWCMA Community Grant, 2011-12 Communities for Nature Grant, and the Nillumbik Conservation Corridors project)
2013 - 22 properties treated covering 158 hectares (funded by 2012-13 PPWCMA Community Grant)
2014 - 6 properties treated covering 69 hectares (funded by 2013 Communities for Nature Grant)
2015 - 1 property treated covering 4 hectares (funded by 25th Anniversary Landcare Grant)
2016 - 2 properties treated covering 7 hectares (funded by 2015-16 PPWCMA Community Grant)
Total to date: $112,031 to treat woody weeds on 44 properties covering 615 hectares
The involvement of additional properties to help fill the gaps is typically sought through an expression of interest process.
Check out the latest CHLG Annual Report to see a map of participating properties: https://www.landcarevic.org.au/groups/portphillipwesternport/christmashills/christmas-hills-landcare-group-annual-reports/