Landcare projects undertaken in Muckleford Catchment
In October last year we planted 432 plants on a property bordering the Muckleford Creek, to provide new vegetation connecting up to the riparian habitat. Six months on with so little rain, the plants are forging ahead and sticking their heads over the top of the guards. Well done Dan and Michael for keeping them alive.
We had a great day on Saturday putting in plants along the Muckleford Creek. Thanks to our members for coming out and helping, and for the lunch provided by Michael and Dan. We put 432 plants in the ground with guards in about one and a half hours. Great going gang!
Although cloudy, it will be 18 degrees tomorrow and we’d love to see you at the community planting day on the Muckleford School Road, starting at 10am and staying for lunch. Then we can all go home and plant in our own gardens and properties with the free plants we take home with us.
Hi all, we have the walk down the Bassett Creek tomorrow morning, to check out our planting from last year. It’s a lovely walk past 300 year old Redgums that are nestled amongst a young Landcare forest, to emerge into our new Landcare planting. Meet at the end of Lyndham Road at 10am.
Thank you to everyone who came to the nest box monitoring activity on Sunday 19th May 2019 at the Walmer Conservation Reserve. And a big thank you to Blair from City of Greater Bendigo who lent us the pole and camera equipment, which I found incredibly useful and definitely beats the ‘going up the ladder’ approach. Miles Geldard led the activity and is going to be doing some follow up repairs in the Reserve.
We surveyed for two hours in the morning, but then Nev, Dave, Beth and Theo went back in the afternoon and did another two hours to finish it off. There are around 90 boxes on the reserve and we are currently working on putting in GPS points for each box as well as a new labelling system. Some boxes are for Bats, Pardalotes and Kookaburras, but we only surveyed the larger mammal boxes.
The results are as follows: We checked 74 boxes in total. We found 28 animals – 5 Brush-tailed Possums, 4 Brush-tailed Phascogales, and 19 Sugar Gliders. There was evidence of recent phascogale nesting in 14 boxes. Three boxes had bees. This data will be submitted into the Atlas of Living Australia.
Sunday 19th May 2019, 10am
Walmer Conservation Reserve
(Muckleford-Walmer Road)
Come and join us this Sunday to look for Brush-tailed Phascogales in the nest boxes at the reserve. We will live-stream boxes, and enter data into the Atlas of Living Australia. Queries to Beth on 0431 219 980.
Thanks to Albi and Eleanor for doing the Photopoint monitoring on our Bassett Creek planting from last September. Click here to open PDF of monitoring document
Thanks to all the volunteers of Muckleford Landcare that came out on a terribly cold and raining (and hailing) day to plant along the Bassett Creek, as part of our Bassett Creek Restoration Project Stage 2 as funded by NCCMA.
This planting, when grown, is going to connect up to plantings that were done on the creek ten years ago (also funded by NCCMA). This is part of the plan to improve the overall health of the Bassett. Thanks also to the landholders whose land we planted on, and who are also interested in improving habitat health in this area.
(Thanks to Albert Wright for the photos, and Eleanor for the cakes)
Muckleford Landcare is having a planting day for our Bassett Creek Project on Saturday 15th September, starting at 10am. Hot lunch is provided. Enter via the Muckleford Bush Reserve on the Muckleford School Road. We’d love to see as many members as possible.
Please bring mattock for banging in stakes, gloves to protect your hands, as well wearing all the appropriate gear, bringing your own water etc etc. Phone or email Beth with any queries on 0431219980.
Would you like a seed orchard on your property? Seed orchards could provide our Landcare group with seed stock and supply our members with plants for habitat enhancement. I can apply for funding to set up a seed orchard but do need some-one to volunteer a few acres of land for the purpose. In return, you would have a lovely forested area on your land attracting birds and other fauna. Please contact Beth if you are interested.
mucklefordlandcare.org 