17-06-2025
Reviving Paradise: Quick! Chop ‘n drop!
It's a blustery and cold, snowy kind of day, but we know for us in paradise, it will soon pass and blue skies will return, one of the many benefits of living in our gorgeous part of the planet. With World Oceans Day just passed, and the powerful messages about ocean conservation coming from David Attenborough's latest documentary 'Ocean', as citizens we need to do all we can to protect what we can. This could be as simple as not throwing a piece of litter (especially plastic) away where it could be blown into the storm drains, and into the ocean.
The road between Sheppie to Batstone's Drift is a disgrace! How is it possible our local authorities do not see the litter and arrange for it to be cleaned? Right on the river, and into the sea it will go, when it could have been a 'job' giving some folk an opportunity to earn and learn? Never mind making the 'temporary' entrance to our commercial capital a lot more welcoming.
It seems rather petty to bring up Alien Invasive Plants when basics like litter collection seem too much to ask, but I do so with relish because I just discovered it's possible to make a real positive impact, quickly. Those very pretty white tree daisies blossoming merrily at the moment are Classified NEMBA Category 1B and commonly known as montanoa, which due to its height, shades out indigenous species and obstructs vision – very obvious and important to pay attention to this along that fragile narrow road next to the river.
While we almost always advise removing problem plants by their roots, there is a simple strategy we can use in this small window of time before the seeds mature, and that is to cut the flowers and let them drop where they are. This will substantially reduce their propagation and then when the new budget magically appears at the end of the month, possibly we will see teams removing the roots and the rest of the plants, which have excellent stems for building fences, and replacing the problem with incredible indigenous alternatives – here's hoping! P.S. Everyone can do this!
Please note: If you have a 2025 The Green Net Biodiversity calendar the June AIP description is incorrect, it says metarungia pubinervia but should read rivina humilis, apologies.
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