Linda and Roger's Bunhybee Grasslands - Trees and Shrubs


This is a page within Roger and Linda's Bunhybee Grasslands Web-Site.
Bunhybee Grasslands is a 49 hectare / 120 acre conservation property 35km south of Braidwood, in southern N.S.W.
You can follow through the internal links, or you may find it easier to use the Site-Map.


Information about Trees and Shrubs

Given that the majority of the property is grasslands, our primary focus is on the grasses and the forbs, i.e. the small flowering plants that grow among the grasses. On the other hand, as partly shown by the satellite imagery, there are many trees and shrubs.

Below are photos, in chronological order.

Here are short-cuts to:

Here are alternative sources of information about trees and shrubs on the property:


The Photos

For larger images, click on the thumbnails below.

20 April 2008 – Autumn

Gums at the
eastern edge ...
... Ditto

1 June 2008 – Winter

Snowgums in the copse
on the ridge, looking NE
to Bunhybee Peak

23 August 2008 – Late Winter

Snowgums
central block?
Snowgums on South Block
– note the power-lines, looking NE
(Our very own Pro Hart?)

17 October 2008 – Mid-to-Late Spring

Snowgums
central block
with Mary Appleby
Hakea microcarpa
Small-fruited Hakea

22 February 2009 – Late Summer

Leptospermum ?obovatum
Tea-tree

13 March 2009 – Late Summer

Red-trunked gums
eastern edge
E. (ovata? rubida?)

25 April 2009 – Autumn

A lone Daviesia mimosiodes
northern slope of Echidna Ridge ...
... Leafy or Bush Bitter-pea, detail
Leptospermum ?obovatum - 25 Apr 09
Leptospermum myrtilofolium
with mould
waterline on South Block
Cassinia longifolia
waterline on South Block
?E. dives (peppermint)
South Block
?E. rubida (candlebark)
South Block

9 May 2009 (FOG Visit) – Late Autumn

Leptospermum myrtifolium
Tea-tree
Leptospermum obovatum
Another Tea-tree
E. viminalis seedling
above the small dam
Peppermint in NE corner
?E. dives (Broad-leaved)
?E. radiata (Narrow-leaved)
Its young fruit
Detail of its young fruit
Its old fruit
Its place in the landscape
E. dives (Broad-Leaved
Peppermint)
E. dalrympleana ...
... Mountain White Gum
E. ovata late afternoon,
some Black Sally too?
Oxylobium illicifolium
... Ditto
?Persoonia linearis
?Persoonia linearis
Leucopogon lanceolata ...
... Ditto
?Leucopogon ?hookerei / ?Acrothamnus hookeri ...
... Ditto

10 May 2009 – Late Autumn

Large E. rubida,
small E. pauciflora
Same pair, close-up.
Close to the southern boundary
E. rubida leaves
A nearby pair of
rubida pair,
pauciflora pair
Large E. pauciflora
a few metres inside
southern boundary
Probably the oldest
and largest on
the property ...
... immediately adjacent
to the water-line

1 August 2009 – Late Winter

Acacia brownii ...
... Prickly Moses, close-up
A. melanoxylon (blackwood)
amidst the
Echidna Ridge copse

6 September 2009 – Very Early Spring

A. melanoxylon,
roadside ...
... Ditto
A. dealbata,
roadside
Acacia brownii ...
... Pricky Moses, close-up

22 September 2009 – Early Spring

Indigofera australis ...
... close-up
Kunzea parvifolia ...
... Violet or Small-Leaved
Kunzea, close-up
Eucalypts flowering ...
... Ditto

7 October 2009 – Early Spring

Daviesia mimosoides
D. mimosoides,
and wind
D. mimosoides,
close-up
Kunzea parvifolia

7 November 2009 – Early Summer

Kunzea
Daviesia mimosoides ...
... Ditto
Hakea microcarpa ...
... Ditto ...
... Ditto

11 November 2009 (ANPS-WW Visit) – Early Summer

Leptospermum lanigerum
... Ditto ...
... Ditto
Allocasuarina ?distyla or ?littoralis
Lomatia ilicifolia ...
... Ditto
Oxylobium ilicifolium ...
... On the fenceline ...
... Ditto
Leucopogon lanceolatus ...
... Ditto ...
... Ditto

14 November 2009 – Early Summer

Allocasuarina ?distyla or ?littoralis ...
... close-up

30 December 2009 – Summer

Banksia marginata ...
... Silver Banksia ...
... southern block ...
... near the waterline
Exocarpus cupressiformis ...
... Cherry Ballart
Leptospermum lanigerum ...
... Woolly or Silky Teetree
Cassinia longifolia ...
... Dolly Bush ...
... what a hopeless name ...
... for a striking shrub!

April 2010 – Very Late Summer

New growth on *which* bush ...
... Leptospermum myrtifolium?
Bark of the Lone Peppermint
(E. dives?)
Are the snow gums
spreading too quickly?

2 May 2010 – Mid-Autumn

Epacris microphylla ...
... a heath ...
... with one remaining flower
Banksia marginata ...
... with dog
Lomatia ilicifolia ...
... again with dog
Acacia melanoxylon,
Blackwood
Acacia brownii ...
... Prickly Moses
Melichrus urceolatus ...
... and Banksia marginata
Another M. urceolata
and friends

27 Sep 2010 – Very Early Spring

 
Acacia gunnii ...
... Ploughshare Wattle ...
... in Kunzea parvifolia
 
A young she-oak ...
... ?Allocasuarina distyla
 
At the forest edge ...
... watching the invasion ...
... from the marker-tree
 Nicky also working
on tree id:
A (Vulnerable)
E. aggregata ...
... at the southern end of its range ...
... leaves and fruit ...
... fruit close-up
View from just
inside the forest edge ...
...
with a fallen tree ...
... and other recent windfalls ...
... just over the fence

6 Nov 2010 – Spring

Epacris microphylla
Kunzea and view
Hibbertia and
Leucopogen
?fletcheri ...
... and detail
Epacris microphylla ...
... a heath
A Leptosperm ...
... and detail
Daviesia mimosoides ...
... and detail ...
... Leafy or Bush
Bitter-pea
Davesia mimosoides ...
... and detail
Kunzea and scrape
Acacia brownii
Acacia ?brownii ...
... and detail ...
... and location

13 Nov 2010 – Spring

Banksia marginata ...
... Silver Banksia ...
... and detail
Lomatia ilicifolia ...
... Native Holly
Acacia brownii

12 Dec 2010 – Summer

Allocasurina ?littoralis
Black She-oak ...
... but we're yet to nail down
A. littoralis cf. A. distyla

28 Dec 2010 – Summer

Leptospermum myrtifolium ...
... Teatree ...
... with beetle ...
...

12 Mar 2011 – Early Autumn

Acacia ?implexa
(if so, then it's a species photo) ...
... closer-up
Leptospermum ?myrtifolium ...
... close-up

20 Mar 2011 – Early Autumn

Banksia marginata ...
... close-up
Eucalyptus sp. (which?!)
with immature leaves

10 Dec 2011 – Early Summer

Lomatia ilicifolia ...
... Native Holly ...
... Stalk ...
... Leaves

15 Jan 2012 – Middle of a Cool Summer

Epacris microphylla ...
... a heath ...
...
...

22 Oct 2012 – Early-Mid of a Cool, Late Spring

Allocasuarina distyla
Shrub-like, near the track,
75m from the gate
Allocasuarina littoralis
Tree-like, North face of
Echidna Ridge
Leptospermum polygalifolium
...
... close-up (First species photo,
thanks Rainer)
Exocarpos strictus
(New Species) ...
... or Choretum candollei
but just over the fence
Euc. ovatum
Swamp Gum
The Kunzea may be extending,
so here are some
monitoring photos...
along the poles
to the NW ...
... and to the SE
Kunzea next door,
poisoned

14 Nov 2012 – Early in a Cool, Late Summer

Indigofera australis ...
... south block
Kunzea, in
late bloom everywhere
This one
especially vivid
This one, unusually, ...
... bright, clean white
Davesia mimisoides
with Pimelia glauca ...
... and a close-up
More advanced ...
... on the western side
Hakea microcarpa ...
... amidst the Kunzea
Dead snow gums ...
... in a drainage line

13 April 2013 – Mid-Autumn

Acacia ulicifolia
gunnii (NLF) (Jen and Helen Austin) ...
... dead?! ...
... cropped ...
... north block, centre

7 August 2013 – Late Winter

Moist-grass/dead-pauci ...
... dry-grass/live-pauci
Acacia dealbata ...
... bursting early

7 September 2013 – (Very) Early Spring

We saw a sapling that may be a new Eucalyptus species, among the A. ulicifolia gunnii (NLF) NW of the copse. It was red-stemmed, and the juvenile leaves were opposite, without stems ('sessile'), overlapped at the base ('amplexicaul'), narrow and long ('lanceolate') and about 1-1.5cm x 7cm. That's exactly how E. radiata juvenile leaves are described in Brooker & Kleinig p. 264. Narrow-leaved Peppermint is in the Tallaganda, 7km west. It was the primary source for the eucalpytus oil industry, which was big in the district from the 1850s to the 1950s. The only other local species with juvenile leaves at all similar is E. viminalis, which is present 400m at the northern end.

There was a sprightly ...
... Epacris microphylla

But mostly this was Acacia time, as the photos below show, including, remarkably, a new species:

Acacia Corner,
NW of the copse
A. melanoxylon ...
... Blackwood ...
... inside the copse
A. gunnii ...
... Ploughshare Wattle ...
... only on the NW
corner of the copse ...
... 1 small, 2 tiny bushes
A. ulicifolia gunnii (NLF) ...
... Prickly Moses ...
... NW of the copse ...
... many small bushes ...
... that small
Remarkably,
a NEW SPECIES ...
... A. siculiformis
Dagger Wattle ...
.. an old, blackened bush,
broken, but recovering,
NW of the copse ...
... missed for
the first 5 years!?

25 September 2013 – Early Spring

Acacia time was already almost over, but several other species were coming into play.

Brachyloma daphnoides
Epacris microphylla
Acacia siculiformis,
now (justifiably) tired
At last a species photo ...
... of Mistletoe ...
... Amyema pendula ...
... and a flower
Leucopogen lanceolatus ...
...
...
...
A chewed bush,
but what is it?
?Olearia iodochroa
Persoonia linearis ...
... in the far NE corner
Bursaria spinosa
At last a species photo
just over the fence
E. radiata ...
OR E. dives ...
OR a hybrid ...
... Narrow or Broad??
Pomaderris intermedia ...
... cropped ...
... just over the fence
... cropped ...
... one more time
Oxylobium / Podolobium
ilicifolium ...
... Prickly Shaggy Pea,
in the NE corner
An A. ulicifolia gunnii (NLF)
still blooming
The Echidna Ridge
Davesia mimosoides
warming up for a show
Red-stemmed
E. Pauciflora

8 January 2014 – Mid-Summer

Two new species?!

Acacia ?rubida
poss. implexa,
poss. melanoxylon ...
... cropped ...
... It's the one best-known to
have that leaf-pattern when young ...
... mid-way along the Nthn fence
Mystery Plant
?Olearia iodochroa ...
... mid-way along ...
... in the NE corner
Leptospermum myrtifolium

20 August 2014 – Very Early Spring

Very wet ground, after 100mm a few days earlier. And just after a series of late frosts finished.

 
Kunzea parvifola ...
... cropped
Epacris microphylla
 
Acacia ulicifolia gunnii (NLF) ...
... centre-east ...
... and cropped
Again ...
... NW of the copse ...
... and close-up
The only
A. siculiformis ...
... NW of the copse
The sole A. gunnii
The 'growing' threat
of Kunzea
A new A.
melanoxylon
?Dying ?Daviesia
mimosoides
Allocasuarina
?distyla ...
... ?littoralis
close-up
Melichrus,
Cassinia
A new Cassinia
amidst the
Austrostipa setacea
Young Euc.
pauciflora ...
... close ...
... closer ...
... closest, incl.
parallel venation
But what's this then?
halfway-down
NE Echidna Ridge,
150m from some rubida:
Leaves opposite,
ovate or elliptic, not cordate,
not orbicular (dollar),
sessile (stalkless),
not amplexicaul (overlapping),
glaucous/pruinose (bluish/waxy)
So the favourite
is Euc. dives ...
poss. rubida
?viminalis ?radiata
??aggregata
??ovata
??dalrympleana

10 December 2014 – Summer – and 14 January 2015

10 December 2014
Leptospermum
?continentale ...
... Plantnet ...
... more closely
14 January 2015 – E. ?rubida
and Daviesia mimosoides

Mid-Spring – 3 October 2015

The start of spring was delayed considerably, due to the cool mornings lasting a month longer than usual. This was the first real heat, with three 28-30 degree days over the long weekend. The ground was dry, presumably due to persistent winds (very strong indeed on Saturday night). The water table was high, the dam still fairly full.

Species seen in the North and Centre blocks – (F means in Flower):
Acac deal, Acac mear, Acac mela, Acac sicu, Acac ulic gunn (NLF) F, Allo litt, Bank marg, Cass Long, Davi mimo F, Epac micr F, Euca dive, Euca ovat, Euca pauc, Euca vimi, Kunz parv F, Lept cont, Lept myrt, Lept obov
Introduced: Rosa rubi, Rubu frut

Mid-to-Late Spring – 21 October 2015

Species seen on Echidna Ridge and in or near Gate Gully (F means in Flower):
Acac mear, Cass long, Epac micr, Kunz parv F (in full colour everywhere), Lept cont
Introduced: Rosa rubi, Rubu frut

An oddity, blackberry on the northern side of Gate Gully, and a Brachyloma.

A White Kunzea
A resurgent blackberry,
duly despatched
Brachyloma daphnoides

Late Spring – 4 November 2015

Visit by NCT's Nigel Jones and Rainer Rehwinkel, and a chance to sort out the larger trees.

Only 1 in Flower: Kunz parv (but at the very end).

Plus these were noticed (17 of which only 1 is Introduced):
Acac mear, Acac mela, Allo dist, Allo litt, Bank marg, Cass long, Davi mimo, Euca dive x pauc, Euca ovat, Euca pauc, Euca radi, Euca vimi, Indi aust, Lept cont, Loma ili, Meli urce, Rubu frut

Firstly, several of the Eucs:
E. ovata, maturing,
on the eastern edge
Young tree ...
... with big,
ovate leaves
E. radiata,
on the ridge, ...
... between the two
arms of Gate Gully ...
... Narrow-leaved
Peppermint ...
... used for Euc Oil
E. viminalis,
on the SW of
Echidna Ridge ...
... recently-appeared ...
... with curiously-shaped
young growth
Diagnostic: viminalis
has 3 buds,
radiata has 7 or more

Secondly, we need to sort out the Allocasuarina littoralis and Allocasuarina distyla.
We have a few, but we've yet to work out a reliable rule for distinguishing them in the field.
ANBG told us that this one is actually Allocasuarina paludosa pka Casuarina distyla var. prostrata

Allocasuarina littoralis,
says Rainer ...
... in the forest,
just E of Bunhybee
Allocasuarina paludosa
cf. distyla, on the
SW of Echidna Ridge,
above Gate Gully
... closer ...
... closer again ...
... and again ...
... another shot ...
... and cropped

Very Early Spring – 8 October 2016

Very wet grass and flowing waterlines, 11 degrees and drizzle.
All that was in flower was Acac mela (finishing), Epac micr and Kunz parv.

Early Spring – 15 October 2016

The season had finally got moving, a mere week later. The dams and waterlines were still full, but barely running, the various springs were easing off, and the ground in the lesser waterlines was moist rather than wet.

All that we saw in flower in the northern block were: Ac sicul (past), Ac. ulic gunn (NLF) (past), Brach daph, Davies mimo, Epac micro (very small, on PP2 – Dry), Kunz parv (early flower)

Spring – 9 November 2016

Kunz parv was in full bloom. But a new shrub-species doesn't offer itself every day!

Melaleuca parvistaminea ...
... Rough-barked
Honey-myrtle ...
... on Echidna Ridge ...
... amidst Kunzea parv

And possibly another new species, seen before in the very top corner, but not yet id'd:

A new Cassinia sp.? e.g. C. hewsoniae?

Late Summer – 17 March 2017

Remarkably, after 9 years on the property, we tripped over a new species!

Acacia decurrens ...
... closer ...
... tell-tale stems

Early Autumn – 7 April 2017

Our sole specimen of ...
... Lomatia ilicifolia ...
Views S and WSW ...
... and close-up

Early Summer – 11 November 2017

In Flower (2): Also Davie mimo (finished), Kunz parvi (spent)

Early Summer – 9 December 2017

In Flower (7): Acac mear (peak), Cass long (many buds), Good hede ssp. alpe, Hibb obtu, Kunz parv (the very end), Lepto myrt, Lepto obov, Lepto ?sp (long narrow leaves, close together)


Very Early Spring – 15 September 2018

A. ?brownii flowering dully, and a sample taken to check with ANBG.
The A. seculiformis was its best ever, the main stalk dead, and all flowers in the several sq.m. of prostrate branches.
No sign of flowering from A. melanoxylon.
All trees appeared to be coping okay with both the drought and the very gusty winds.

Early Summer – 1 December 2018

In modest flower were Cassinia longifolia and Leptospermum obovatum.
Almost completely finished were Kunzea parvifolia and Daviesia mimosoides.
No flowering from A. mearnsii, but buds on some.
We noticed a new, very young E. radiata 40m SW of the copse.

End of Autumn – 13 April 2019

Surprisingly?, Epacris microphylla was in partial but bright bloom at the top of North Gate Gully.

Several Banksia marginata bushes had had a very good summer, some with excellent, cylindrical, yellow flowerheads ("coflorescences").

Early Summer – 19 October 2019

Very dry

In flower, only Brach daph, Davies mimo, Indig aust, Kunz parv, Olearia iodochroa, with no sign of any of the Acacias yet


Early Autumn – 29 March 2020

An extraordinary transformation after the drounght broke.

Leptospermum myrtifolium ...
... again ...
... further cropped
Hibbertia,
flowering in abundance!
Acacia Melanoxylon
refusing to give up
Another tree fighting
back, with young, round,
blue leaves,
poss. E. rubida?
One of many in
epicormic recovery,
from drought not fire
Another. Smoke-affected??
E. rubida ...
... Candlebark ...
... looking NE
A larger and older ...
... E. rubida close by ...
... looking WNW

15 April 2020 – Early-Mid Autumn

Epicormic growth ...
... post drought ...
... post smoke, not fire

5 September 2020 – End of Winter

Moist in low-lying areas, wind-blown-parched elsewhere. Very little floral action.

Small numbers of blossoms seen on the following: Ac mela, Ac gunn (prolific on 30 bushes, east and west ends of Echidna Ridge), Ac sicu (prolific on the sole cluster just NW of the copse), Epac micro, Leuc virg.

The Acacia gunnii (the unusual narrow-leaved form, easily confused with brownii, but early-flowering and light yellow) was in fine shape in several areas, east of centre-block, east of Echida Ridge, and north of the copse:
Large A. gunnii (NLF) ...
head of Gate Gully ...
... erect form
Smaller on Echidna Ridge ...
... and pale and sharp
Acacia siculiformis ...
... a single specimen ...
... dying small tree ...
... active low progeny
Allocasuarina littoralis ...
... tree-form, square-coned ...
... phylodes 5-8cm

19 September 2020 – Early Spring

Noted in flower: Brach daph, Crypt amar, Epac mimo, Kunz parv, Leuc virg
Lomatia ilicifolia ...
... with Hardenbergia ...
... as a close companion
Banksia marginata,
festooned with
three different cryptogams
Epacris microphylla ...
... and closer up
Brachyloma daphnoides ...
... and closer up
Yellow Kunzea, with
greener foliage ...
... amidst the mauve
and grey K. parvifolia
Cryptandra amara ...
... and closer up

20 January 2021 – Late Summer

Now this is a worry. The story has always been that E. pauciflora (Snowgums) are at especial danger from bushfires, because, unlike other Eucalyptus species, they do not respond to fire or other stress with 'epicormic growth'. (That's new leaves growing from trunks and major limbs). They're only supposed to re-grow after fire from the roots, and hence snowgum woodland is much slower to recover than other forms of Euc. woodland and forest.

But no-one seems to have told this tree. It's in the moisture-line just south of the gate. It and its mates went under 5 years back. Moist soil appeared to have killed them. Then we had a savage 3-year drought. Then good rain. And now ... epicormic growth:

23 October 2021 – Spring

Melaleuca parvistaminea ...
... Centre-East of North Block ...
... Bunhybee's only specimen? ...
... not seen in flower before
Olearia iodochroa ...
... and inhabitant
Hakea microcarpa ...
... and detail
Leptospermum, poss. Lanigerum ...
... but buds only slightly hairy ...
... Why didn't Linnaeus ...
... train plants better??

10 May 2022 – Early Summer

After a very wet couple of years, including recent months, and with waterlines having only just stopped running, 2 new species of Grass and 3 NEW SPECIES of shrub put in their appearance, all in Picnic Corner and within the small (2/3rds of an acre?) triangle of forest:
Olearia lirata
Ozothamnus poss. conditus
Senecio diaschides

29 March 2023 – Early Autumn

This was a busy blackberry day, with no camera carried. In bloom, we saw some Epac micro, and a Meli urce was just yellowing up a little. The Blackwoods (A. melanoxylon) have had a great year, ditto the Banksia marginata.

23 March 2024 – Early Autumn

This was a busy blackberry day, with no camera carried. What was worth noting was that there seemed to be far more E. rubida along the western edge of the southern block than we'd previously realised.

There was a great deal of strong yellowness evident in the bark of what are known as candlebarks (presumably from the colour of tallow candles in the 19th century). The strong growth following several wet years presumably means both healthy trees and growth bursting off the old bark to reveal the new layer.

14 April 2024 – Mid-Autumn

Day 2 of 2 of the next year's blackberry attack.
Olearia lirata ...
... in our SE forest ...
... but no longer one ...
... lonely bush
Ozothamnus diosmifolios ...
... a new species! ...
... in Year 16 ...
... a second in that genus
Persoonia linearis ...
... SE corner ...
... multiple bushes now
The feature E. dives
in the SE corner

15 November 2024 – Mid-Spring

Another busy blackberry day, with no camera carried. 6 bushes were were in flower: Acac mearns (budded), Burs spin, Cassinia, Dav mimo (finishing), Hakea micro (at peak), Leptosperm ?poly (one species, few in bloom).


Future Activities

1. Eucalyptus Management

For centuries prior to being cleared in 1884-1893, what is now Bunhybee Grasslands was a mosaic of forest, woodland and grassland. The category of vegetation in the region that's most threatened is Southern Tablelands Grassland, so our purpose is preservation of the current open grassland plant communities and the considerable diversity of flora species (but also insect species) that they support. That's rather different from conservation, in the sense of supporting natural processes. However, 120 acres is enough space that we can also support areas of Snow-Gum Woodland, and areas of shrubs, particularly the several Leptosperm species, and rims of Eucalypt forest adjacent to Bunhybee Peak.

Reflecting those aims, our plan in relation to the management of Eucalyptus regeneration is as follows:

2. Leptosperm sp. Management

There are clumps of Leptosperm sp. in various locations. We're not particularly concerned about them, because their foliage spreads only after about 30cm above the ground and the clusters tend to be sparse, hence leaving scope for grasses and forbs. They're also often in multi-species scatters rather than being a mono-culture.

3. Kunzea parvifolia Management

The Kunzea is altogether too healthy, and has spread considerably since the end of the drought in 2009.
Kunzea spreads low to the ground, and forms thick clumps, and hence denies space for grasses and forbs.
Without intervention, it would continue to become denser and to spread.
Clumps of Kunzea are something of a mono-culture and therefore particularly harmful to the diversity objective.
(The above is based partly on our own monitoring and judgement, and partly on discussions with Geoff Robertson, Margaret Ning and ANBG botanist Joe Mc whose property east of Nerriga we've visited, and then with Rainer Rehwinkel and Nigel Jones)

Our current thinking about the management options is as follows:

The priority areas to manage are those that appear to be otherwise rich in forbs and hence the Kunzea has become a threat to diversity. We assume that - although it's justabout a mono-culture - the clumps provide refuge for small birds. But we've never really seen any birds in Kunzea clumps.

The next steps are:

Kunzea Management Options appear to be as follows

(1) 'The Nuclear Option'

Parlour's owners used a contract sprayer shortly before November 2011. We assume Grazon, but we've been unable to get any information from the Airport about either the spray or the sprayer (who we would avoid, or educate). 2 years later, all of the clumps of mainly Kunzea and some Leptosperms on the block south of us were entirely grey. 4 years later, they were no longer visible from 600m away, and from close up there was limited re-growth of Kunzea (or indeed of Leptosperms), but no obvious damage to the grass.
However, there in 2015 there is little evidence of forbs. That may be because of the locations, the previous dominance of the Kunzea, or the spray, or a combination of any and all of the above.
We lean away from this approach, unless industrial-scale intervention becomes demonstrably necessary.

(2) 'Pull'

Roger has pulled a couple of (youngish) plants in order to get a feel for (a) what the root-system was like — reasonably wide-spreading but not all that deep, and (b) how easy it was to pull — tenable, for small, reasonably isolated plants; probably untenable with older and larger plants and/or inside clumps. Either way, it's feasible only for quite small volumes

(3) 'Craft Cut-and-Paint'

In 2013, Linda cut-and-Glyphosate-pasted a selection of plants, at varying heights, using a small hand-secateur and a Margaret Ning dabber. Roger did a similar thing just north of Picnic Rocks in 2015, painting rather than dabbing. It's a problematic method — hard work to cut, and difficult to paint the remnants of the smaller branches.
At best, it's a 'craft' approach, i.e. practicable only for small numbers of isolated plants, possibly useful to cull outliers, or thin growing patches by removing the young growth.

(4) 'Industrial Cut-and-Paint'

A long-handled lopper could be used, partly to apply greater force to the stems and partly to do it in a standing position rather than bent over, e.g. these 90-degree 'edging shears'.
If done in a 2-person team, the other could paint immediately afterwards, possibly the main branches only. To check whether it's an 'industrial' approach (i.e. applicable on a larger scale), it may be best to pick a small-to-moderate-sized clump that appears to be taking over an area that should be richly diverse — probably on the centre-block, or the northern edge of the southern block.

(5) Fire

Rainer suggests that fire could be used to reduce the intensity of some of the clumps, and enable grass and forb diversity to recover. He says it would need to be applied to an area at least twice.
We would need to further develop our thinking about fires. Because of the woody nature of the plant, Kunzea would inevitably generate considerably hotter fires than grasses, and hence the fire plan and fire-fighting resources would need to be a lot more sophisticated

(6) Slashing

We could get someone in to slash, allow regrowth, and slash again.
Or we could invest in a serious brushcutter (c. $1,000).


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Contact: Linda or Roger
Created: 8 December 2008; Last Amended: 17 November 2024