Our partners engage with 192 schools throughout Aotearoa-New Zealand, providing them with a shadehouse and thousands of native seedlings. Seedlings are re-supplied seasonally, year after year, over 117 planting sites. These are all environmentally damaged sites; typically creeks, streams, wetlands and erosion-prone land. Plantings take place on both private and public sites.
Key impact areas:
- Biodiversity/Habitats
- Watershed/Riparian Restoration
- Climate Stability
- Soil Stability and Erosion Control
- Social/Community Impact
- Indigenous Groups
- Youth Engagement and Education
Project description.
Most of our native plantings are on waterways – creeks, streams and wetlands – mainly near the headwaters, where possible, to have the greatest impact further downstream. The typical restoration approach is as follows:
- The site is inspected and a formal report on site restoration specifics is completed.
- A Planting Plan that meets the location and environmental requirements of the site is then drawn up. Typically this is grass and flaxes on the edges of the waterways and, as the plantings move away from the waters edge, native bushes, then canopy trees.
- Plant seeds for the site are then eco-sourced and germinated. Seedlings are 'potted-up' and grown by the school-children and plants are ready to plant out the following year. Organic potting mix is used, and occasional use of organic fertiliser assists plant health.
- While the plants are growing, the landowner fences the waterway (typically 5m either side of a stream). Sites are often riparian plantings, or the land is permanently 'retired'. The landowner also prepares the land for planting with weed and pest controls, as recommended.
- The density of planting for our trees is 1m spacing and for grasses 50cm. We find this results in a better start for the plants and fewer weeds.
- Monitoring of the site with plant counts, is carried out for the next two years minimum and recommendations of better weed and pest control may be advised to the landowner.
- Replanting of a site where plants have not survived is not encouraged. We rely on nature to regenerate itself. Note that many of the plants chosen are attractive to birds and re-seed easily e.g. coprosma varieties.
Ecological benefits.
New Zealand has a problem with its waterways. Through years of neglect many are now not swimmable and are unsafe, growing toxic algal bloom. Planting along our streams and rivers is the most important way to help adjust the water quality and bring back stream life to these waterways as well as protecting communities from flooding. Our mantra for steams is “Clearer, Cleaner, Cooler”.
Our aim is to restore the biodiversity of the area where we are planting. Kids often plant for a number of years along a stream so they have a chance to see the difference as the plants grow and shade the stream, filter out sediment and run off and they can see a vibrant, lush stream where once there was mud, baked in the sun.
We have started water testing and hope to have results like they had in the Raglan basin with E-coli levels reduced from 146 to 6 in the first year of planting.
We are also working with the Ornithological Society of New Zealand who are conducting bird counts for us at our planting sites.
Our landowners are encouraged to trap / reduce numbers of pests- possums, rats, stoats, rabbits and deer and record these on TrapNZ. Predator Free advisers come out to planting sites, when possible and educate the kids and landowners on how best to bring back the bird life and trap the pests.
In 2021 we planted 104,000 plants along streams and on eroded hillsides over 117 sites. Each year we aim to significantly increase this number and keep benefiting local communities and Aotearoa-New Zealand as a whole.
Community benefits.
As our local partners work with schools, planting days especially, is when the local school community gets involved – teachers, parents, whanau, community groups. It is an inter-generational activity that bonds all in focused effort of planting native trees.
As we work with schools in many regional areas of Aotearoa-New Zealand, we always endeavour to employ local people and source product from the local economy.
Tree species planted.
The main species for moderate climes are tabled below and will be grown according to the site requirements. Stream edges and wetlands will receive more of the carex and cyperus sedges whereas drier sites will receive more māhoe, kānuka etc., so the percentages vary for each planting site:
- Ti tree, Mānuka - leptospermum scoparium, 20%
- Kānuka - kunzea ericoides, 10%
- Cabbage tree - tī kōuka - cordyline australis, 15%
- Karamū - coprosma robusta, 20%
- Whitey wood - māhoe - melicytus ramiflorus, 15%
Plus native riparian plants and grasses (not included in the overall tree count):
- Flax - harakeke - phormium tenax, 20%
- Sedge – carex sp, 10%
- Sedge – cyperus sp, 10%
- Kahikatea - dacrycarpus dacrydiodes, 5%
Coastal areas will have a different mix of species, as will the sites around Queenstown, where a cold climate prevails.