Wellington team

A group of Wellingtonians spent a weekend at Rewanui and cleared the remaining snow damage on the Matai loop. Thanks guys!

The group on Mt ClydeTravelling through radiata

Kowhai moth caterpillar

The Kowhai moth caterpillar strips all the leaves off some Kowhais in the Autumn. The trees recover but do receive a setback.  The caterpillars also feed on broom, gorse and lupin so they do some good.

Seedling Titokis 

The wet summer has helped many trees,  these Titoki seedlings  form a carpet under the bush canopy along the Totara loop.

Ecocover weedmap around a hebe

Protecting young trees from being smothered by grass is an essential part of establishing new plantings.  We are establishing a trial of techiques on the 2011 plantings along the watercourse west of the Rewanui carpark. The trees involved in the trial are the first two rows along the Eastern fenceline.  The treatmemnts are:

• Spraying with Glyphosate (roudup)
• Physically celaring grass by hand
• Using bio degradable weed mats
• No treatments.

Trees with white stakes have been sprayed and weed mats will be put around some of these and some unsprayed ones. The aim of the trial is establish the best results in term of growth as well as cost effectiveness

Controlling summer growth in Redwoods planted in 2010

After waitng several weeks for the right conditions we sprayed redwoods with Terbuthiazine to control the strong summer growth. Our exprerince is that redwoods need releasing from competing grass growth for three years after planting.

Most tracks are marked with with white stakes and markers as shown

We have been replacing the original track markers on the bush tracks with white poles and coloured indicators. The one shown indicates that the section of track is part of both the Totara loop (red) and the Matai loop (yellow). The original posts were too low and not easily seen.

The grass clearded from the hebes at the richard Hall memorial grove.

The good growing season has meant the grass has grown as well as the trees.

Kanuka seedlings trial plots. 

Scion Research has established these trial plots in the Mt Clyde valley to investigate the best way of establishing Kanuka. Some plots are sprayed others cultivated and Kanuka seed sown on all.

Eucalypt planting

The Marlborugh Drylands Trust has established a Eucalypt seed orchard and demonstration plots for ground durable timber on the terraces area at Rewanui.