Community nursery activities
The Southern Dandenongs Flora Trail
The flora trail commenced development in 1999 at Birdsland Reserve Belgrave Heights. Financial assistance has been received from the Department of Sustainability and Environment community grant scheme. The flora trail is located above the community nursery with views down the Lysterfield Valley and across to the Dandenong Ranges National Park. The flora trail is composed of a broad range of ground, shrub and tree flora that are indigenous or naturally occur in the region. The object of the flora trail is to increase community awareness of the values of indigenous flora and to provide a seed orchard to assist the nursery to continue to produce new indigenous plants. The project involves developing the following:
- Protection of remnant and naturally regenerating indigenous plants
- Individual plant labels
- Description of the local Bioregions and associated Ecological Vegetation Classes
- Habitat boxes
- Fauna information
Update August 2010
Individual signage for identifying plants is being progressively placed around the trail. Further trail plantings will occur this year focusing on weed control and planting of shrubs and ground covers.
Seedbank
The community nursery is progressively developing a seedbank in accordance with national seedbank guidelines. Installation of wall, ceiling and door insulation is now completed. Shelving is now being assembled.
Rehabilitation and revegetation of the Monbulk Creek biolink
SDCN continues to implement this project which commenced in 1997.
Activities include weed control, collection of seed, growing of plants and an annual community planting day. Annual grant funding has been received from Parks Victoria since 2005/6. Recently a new grant of $1350 was received for a further stage of the project in 2010. Extensive damage was caused to the project site during the 2009 February bushfire in the Lysterfield Valley. Damage to the site and loss of plants occurred in association with a bulldozed strategic firebreak and the bushfire. The rehabilitation site has Riparian Forest EVC vegetation which provides habitat for Powerful Owl, Wedge-tail Eagle, Yellow-bellied Glider, Sugar Glider, Swamp Wallaby, Eastern Grey Kangaroo, several reptile and bird species. The remnant vegetation also helps stabilise the creek banks and riparian zone of Monbulk Creek with its Platypus population.