Enviroment report

 

Committee Chairman Colin Mackintosh is assisted by Brian Shanks, Merv Clearwater and other members as required.

 

Our two main responsibilities are maintaining the 17 Mosgiel planter boxes and assisting the Taieri Plains Environment Trails Group planting the Silverstream bank, in collaboration with school and youth groups.

 

In early May, Brian Shanks and I painted the 117 planter boxes with a charcoal oil stain, which John van Delft had used in the past.

In late April the summer geraniums were cleared out of the 17 boxes, leaving three shrubs/plants in place, and the soil was topped up, fertilised and turned over. Four polyanthus were planted between the shrubs in each box and 16 pansies were planted around them for the winter. The polyanthus had been saved from the previous winter planting in November and potted up. Three hundred pansies were ordered in late February, purchased in early March from Mitre 10 (propagated by Zealandia in Christchurch), potted up in individual pots and grown on. The boxes will be watered and weeded as required.

A budget for 24/25 has been drawn up for discussion.

I recommend that Mosgiel Rotary open an account with Mitre 10 Mega to facilitate ordering plants and obtaining a discount.

This Group, chaired by Brian Peat had its AGM on 8 May and meets periodically as required. At the AGM I was appointed treasurer because the finances are administered through the Rotary Foundation Trust.

The planting programme over the next 3-4 months, will be conducted by various Mosgiel schools. There is also an initiative to get more local people involved, especially house-holders that border the Silverstream.

A new planting plan has been negotiated with the Otago Regional Council because the previously prescribed plants proved to be unsuitable due to their lack of hardiness under hot dry conditions in summer when planted at the top of a dry sandy bank. The new approved plants are red tussock (Chionochloa rubra), silver tussock (Poa cita) and wind grass (Anemanthele lessoniana), which should be better able to handle the conditions. These should be OK, but we are hugely dismayed and disappointed that there are no specific approvals to plants small natives like Pittosporum, Kowhai, Manuka, Hebe or lancewood.

The change of prescribed plants means that we now have surplus quantities of the previously approved plants propagated and grown on by inmates at Corrections at Milton, supervised by Tua Koloi. Efforts are underway to swap these plants for suitable red tussock, silver tussock and windgrass grown by local nurseries.

A schedule of times for school groups to resume planting the Silverstream is currently being drawn up. I will be calling on the assistance of Rotarians, Blokes Shed members and other willing helpers to assist the school planting groups.

 

Colin