Author: EJ

Orchids and Nest box checking

img_1754Sunday 18th September, 10am at the Muckleford Community Centre. Join us on a short bus trip to have a peek at the public reserves tucked away in Muckleford. Then we will be nest box checking with Miles Geldard at the Walmer South Conservation Reserve. Orchids and other wildflowers are in bloom so this will be a lovely half day to enjoy our native flora in its prime. Lunch is provided. Please RSVP to bethmellick@gmail.com or text me on 0431 219 980.

Upcoming Events

Here are two dates for your diaries:

Muckleford Catchment Landcare “Public Reserves and Nest Box Checking Field trip” on 18th September, 10am at the community centre. We will do a short bus trip around the ‘secret’ public reserves in Muckleford, and end up at Walmer Conservation Reserve to check the nest boxes with expert, Miles Geldard. It will finish at midday with a BBQ lunch. Short and sharp and hopefully a bit of fun.

Connecting Country is holding a woodland birds workshop for the Muckleford area on 8th October, 9.30am at the community centre. We have the opportunity to brainstorm ideas for future projects around habitat protection for woodland birds in our area, followed by a bird walk with Tanya Loos and Geoff Park in the state forest.

 

Muckleford Landcare AGM

Please join us for our AGM on Thursday 18th August, at 6pm at the Muckleford Community Centre, Walmer Muckleford Road, Muckleford.

Guest speaker will be Ken Willard from Neangar Nursery in Eaglehawk. Ken will talk about the revegetation industry from a nursery owner’s perspective.

Please come and renew your membership, or take out a new membership – you just need to fill out a form.

Supper will be provided.

Muckleford Community History Project

Would you like to know more about the story of your place? Do you see yourself as a local history buff? Do you already have family/property stories or photographs you would like to share?
Landcare would like to set up a Muckleford Community History Project

The purpose of the project will be to provide resources and support for people wishing to undertake local history research and to discuss the establishment of a website where participants can post material.

To this end we will host a meeting to discuss the possibilities on Sunday, July 24 at the Muckleford Community Centre.

There will be two guest speakers:

IMGP9948Paul Haw grew up on a family farm fronting the Loddon River at Yando, near Boort. Paul served as a National Servicemen in Vietnam where he almost lost his life. This experience and other factors led him to look more closely at the place where he lived, its history and its environment.
The result is a substantial local history, Footprints Across the Loddon Plains: a shared history, co-written with Margaret Munro. Paul will talk about what inspired him to embark on his project, how he went about it and what he learned.

Robyn Ballinger is an historian who lives in Maldon. Robyn has published an environmental history of the Victorian northern plains entitled An Inch of Rain: A water history of northern Victoria. Robyn undertakes writing, historical research, teaching, facilitation of community consultation, and preparation of heritage studies and significance assessments. Robyn will introduce the meeting to the range of ways in which local history can be pursued and the resources available.

Following a break for afternoon tea there will be a round table chat to gauge the interests of everyone and to plan the next step.

Join us if you have an interest in helping us tell the stories that will deepen our appreciation and understanding of the place where we live.

When: Sunday, July 24, 2 pm

Where: Muckleford Community Centre (the former Methodist Church, Muckleford-Walmer Road, south of Castlemaine-Walmer Road)

Afternoon tea will be provided. Please ring Paul Hampton to RSVP or make enquiries on 0408566909 or paul.hampton46@gmail.com

Planting Day

Planting-6New Landcare member, Adam, is having a planting day on his property this Saturday and all Landcare members are welcome to attend and help pop in a few plants. Adam and his friends and family will be there all day (25th June) to put in 2,000 plants. You can drop in anywhere between 11am and 5pm, corner Creasys and Woodbrook Roads. Please bring your own tools and gloves.

Burns in Muckleford State Forest

IMG_1502Here is a summary from Chris Johnston about the changes to the state government’s planned burns, highlighting a more strategic approach at first glance. There are three areas targeted in the Muckleford Forest – click here to read the summary. Well done to Chris for participating in the community consultations and having her voice heard. For more information on this issue, also visit Friends of the Box Ironbark Forests.

Meeting

SONY DSCPlease note that the next Muckleford Landcare meeting will be Thursday 2nd June, starting at 6.30, Ray Bradfield Room in Castlemaine. We will be discussing the upcoming history project, reptile monitoring with the Steiner School and Connecting Country, and other community education events. We may have guest speakers.