Tree Scheme Summer 2010Number 2

Volunteer Grower

You’re invitedA Growers Information Day will be held at our nursery on Wednesday, February 10.

We’d love to see you there.(Full details on back page).

Contact usVolunteer Grower is a production of Trees For Life.

If you would like to help us save paper by receiving this via email, please let us know.

Seed replacementIf the seed you have sown has not germinated in the time specified in the appendix of your Propagation Instructions Booklet, please phone us before February 6 and we will replace it.

Caring for seedlings in a heatwaveMany growers are concerned

their seedlings will die in full sun during heatwave conditions. This is not the case however.

At our Westwood nursery, we put our seedlings into full sun as soon as they emerge and start to grow their first pair of true leaves after their cotyledons. All of our seedlings flourish and look beautifully strong and healthy. Not one seedling has died as a result of the move from shade to sun.

As long as the soil is wet on days of extreme heat no harm will come to them. If the temperature climbs over 35 or 40 degrees, growers should regularly check the soil and may need to water their seedlings two or three times a day.

The flipside is that seedlings left in shade for too long will be lanky and weak and when finally put into full sun they wilt, suffer, struggle and can die.

These are Australian native species and are meant to thrive in our hot conditions, so get them used to it as soon as possible. Just make sure you keep the soil moist!

Welcome to 2010By JENNIFER HOWE

Volunteer Grower Coordinator

Welcome all to the 2009-10 growing season and our

second edition of the Volunteer Grower newsletter.

A huge thank you goes out to our dedicated return growers and a warm welcome to our new growers on board this year. We hope you will all have a great season.

This season you form part of an incredible team of more than 1500 individuals who together will be producing almost 800,000 seedlings for South Australian revegetation work. This is equivalent to revegetating approximately 400 x AAMI Stadiums! You are all doing a fantastic job and making a vital environmental contribution to the community.

I would also like to acknowledge those volunteers not included in the registered growers tally of 1572. Not only are there schools, community groups and work colleagues involved, but there are many husbands, wives, children, partners, trusty mums and dads and maybe even the neighbours helping out!

Continued Page 2

Trees For Life

5 May Tce

Brooklyn Park 5032

Ph: 8406 0500

Fax: 8406 0599

info@treesforlife.org.au

www.treesforlife.org.au

What you need to do in Jan/Feb It’s tough at the top - but rewarding

Happy Valley depot manager Campbell McKnight could

just about be classed as full-time staff, judging by the many hours he continually puts in to Trees For Life.

Since joining TFL 11 years ago, he has volunteered his time doing everything from growing seedlings and stuffing envelopes to being a Bush Action Team (BAT) member.

Campbell said his interest in helping the environment was sparked by seeing the “baldness of the hills from Willunga around to Sellicks and beyond”.

He volunteered to take on the depot manager’s role four years ago when the previous manager retired.

In his role as depot manager, Campbell liaises with SA Water regarding use of the depot area inside the Happy Valley Reserve and organises delivery of soil, boxes, and other propagation supplies. He manages access to the site, boxing up and distribution days, chases people who don’t pick up their materials on time and cleans up the site afterwards. Campbell said that fortunately, he received much-needed help from about five other volunteers on big days such as boxing-up and distribution. – “many of the same faces each year”.

Although it can be hard work, especially on distribution days like last year which was exceptionally hot, Campbell said each year he enjoys catching up with long-term volunteer growers, and meeting new volunteers.

“As ever with my participation in TFL activities, it is a delight to be with people who share their commitment to the work, who share their knowledge and who get great enjoyment from what they are doing.”

TFL is always on the lookout for more depot managers, as well as those willing to spare some time at their local depot on specific days.

We are particularly looking for people to manage depots in Angaston, Laura and Davoren Park. If you can help, please phone Maureen on 8406 0500.

Happy Valley depot manager, Campbell McKnight.

Workshops very popular

TFL started the growing season off with another

engaging string of Propagation Workshops.

Running 15 workshops throughout October- November we trained a total of 120 growers.

Thanks to experienced trainer, Harry Chambis, the workshops were a huge success with participants agreeing that they were extremely interesting, practical and worthwhile. Even long-time growers commented they learnt some new tips! The workshops will be back again next year, so be sure to book in early.

Join our Fringe

To promote the environment, Trees For Life is

participating in the Fringe Opening Parade on February 19. We are looking for volunteers to help prepare props and take part in the parade. You don’t need to be creative, just enthusiastic and willing to pitch in and have fun! For more information please contact Sam or Glenys on 8406 0500.

Welcome to 2010(Continued from front page)

To all those who were roped in to help with the fun-filled tasks of tube filling, constructing a nursery bench, watering or ‘baby’sitting duties over the holidays, a very big thank you for your involvement also! It is truly inspiring what a community of individuals is able to achieve at home in their backyards with just some sun, water, soil and seeds.

At this stage of the season, most growers will be well on their way through germination, with shadecloth off and in to the full sun with your trusty seedlings. If you are having problems, don’t panic, you are not alone. Please do not hesitate to call us on 8406 0500 with any queries. There are additional resources available online on our website and home visits are available in certain circumstances. Thank you and all the best for your growing success.

Volunteer Grower Cordinator Jennifer Howe, left, with three generations of family members, the Willmotts, preparing tubes.

Call TFL for replacement seed if required.

Establish contact with your landholder if you have not already heard from them.

Move seedlings into full sun at the first true leaf stage.

Continue to keep your seedlings moist using a fine spray and ensure the soil at the bottom of the tubes does not dry out.

Carry out thinning & transplanting as required. See pages 20 & 21 of the Propagation Booklet.

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Project worth doing: Dulux

Dulux AcraTex employees work alongside Volunteer Grower Coordinator Jennifer Howe, second from left, filling tubes for their growing project.

A 100-day challenge to reduce Dulux AcraTex’s carbon

footprint at its Beverley site has led to staff growing 1000 seedlings – or 20 boxes – for two South Australian landowners.

The Trees For Life growing project was instigated by Sales Support Manager Digby McKenna, who has been a TFL member since 1992.

“We recently embarked on a 100-day challenge to reduce the carbon footprint of our site (production and administration) on an ongoing basis and to assist staff to be ‘greener’ at home,” Digby said. “This has since resulted in substantial reductions in power and water use as well as greater recycling.”

Digby said he wanted the growing project to be seen by staff as a positive, visual and easily measurable action.

A volunteer grower for TFL twice previously himself, Digby said although it is the first year his work colleagues have tried their hand at growing seedlings, he has been very pleased

with the enthusiasm shown.“This is our first year of

growing but going on current interest we should have this as an ongoing annual project. They seem to be enjoying it and we anticipate the entire staff will be involved in some of the planting with one of our landowners,” Digby said.

As well as staff ‘TLC’ helping the seedlings along, they have also developed a special system for watering. Water from their office roof is collected into a rainwater tank, which is then micro-sprayed around a raised racking system. The watering is controlled by an electronic timer.

The Dulux AcraTex team is growing 11 different species for their landowners: Allocasuarina verticillata, Melaleuca acuminata, Melaleuca lanceolata, Acacia oswaldii, Maireana brevifolia, Acacia notabilis, Rhagodia parabolica, Acacia victoriae, Eucalyptus brachycalyx, Eucalyptus porosa and Acacia ligulata.

 

Do you have your water permit? Thanks to SA Water, Trees For Life members growing in the Tree Scheme are eligible for a permit allowing the use of hand-held hoses fitted with a trigger nozzle to water their seedlings when required on any day.

If you have not received your water permit, contact TFL on 8406 0500 by January 31.

The racking system with water tank at rear.

New on-line resources for growers

Do you need more tips or help with growing your

seedlings? If so, check out the new

‘Grower Resources’ page available through the link on the homepage of our website, www.treesforlife.org.au

You can download the Instructions Booklet, watch the DVD on transplanting and thinning, or browse the Frequently Asked Questions page.

Another resource available to growers is the Photographic Growers Journal which documents the growth stages of a number of common species (see photos at right). This resource is particularly handy for new growers to gain an understanding of what things should look like and by when.

In addition, the Tree Scheme now has its very own Facebook site, ‘TFL Way to Grow!’ Become a friend on Facebook and you can access additional links to photos and events, network with other growers and write messages direct to your Grower Coordinator. The Facebook link is also available from the Grower Resources section on the website.

Rhagodia parabolica at 2 week growth stage.

Rhagodia parabolica at 4 weeks

Rhagodia parabolica at 6 weeks.

Information Day on Feb 10

You’re invited to come and meet the Tree Scheme team and fellow volunteer growers for a sausage sizzle and an

opportunity for discussion on growing seedlings.Gain advice on your seedlings and you can even bring in

seedling samples for feedback on plant heath if you wish. Staff will also provide transplanting demonstrations on request.

Please RSVP to this event by phoning the TFL office, 8406 0500.

3pm to 6pm, February 10Betty Westwood Nursery, Cnr May Tce & Bradman Drive, Brooklyn Park

What’s going on in the plant nursery?

This season we will be growing around 1000 boxes

or 50,000 seedlings for projects such as Urban Forest Million Trees, Carbon Neutral, councils, Monarto Zoo, SA Water, ElectraNet and direct seeding sites.

Acacia paradoxa

When it germinates, Acacia paradoxa , like all

Acacias, produces cotyledons followed by juvenile bipinnate leaves. These support the plant in its early stages of growth before the next stage where modified stems called phyllodes begin to form. These have a leaf like appearance. This is a natural adaption to arid conditions. The phyllodes are hairy and take on an oblong shape with an off centre mid-vein. At the base of each phyllode two spines called stipules are formed.

The Tree Scheme team, from left, Manager Maureen Redfern, Nursery Assistant Sam Rudolph, Tree Scheme Officer Graham Greaves and Volunteer Grower Coordinator Jennifer Howe.

An Acacia paradoxa seedling.

Allocasuarina

Allocasuarina is a genus in the flowering plant family

Casuarinaceae. Like the closely related genus Casuarina, they are commonly called sheoaks or she-oaks, and are notable for their long segmented branchlets that function as leaves. These branchlets resemble pine needles. Allocasuarinas are flowering plants with most species having separate male and female plants. The flower spike is an extension of the branchlets and the seed cones form at the base of older branches.

An Allocasuarina verticillata seedling.

Backup stock available *

Are you a volunteer growing for a landholder

and finding it hard to fill your complete seedling order?

If you are missing a few boxes or have had poor growth you are able to come and collect backup stock to make up your order. Backup stock is grown each year by 200 dedicated volunteer growers.

Call into the nursery on:April 15 & 16 (10am-3pm)April 17 & 18 (10am-1pm)Betty Westwood Nursery,

Cnr May Tce & Bradman Drive, Brooklyn Park.

A reminder will be printed in the March ReLeaf newsletter.

* (limited supply)

Transplanting your seedlingsIf you have empty tubes

around one month after germination begins, you will need to transplant to fulfil your order as it is unlikely that many more seedlings will germinate.

Your seedlings should be at the first leaf stage, which is a perfect size to transplant. Do not leave your seedlings too long as the larger they get, the less likely they are to survive transplanting.

Most seedlings transplant easily if you follow a few easy rules on pages 20 and 21 of your Propagation Instructions Booklet.

Don’t thin out and throw away before you are sure you won’t need to transplant.

If you’re ready to transplant some seedlings, make sure you carefully read pages 20 and 21 of your Propagation Instructions Booklet.

Nursery volunteers Graham Garfoot, at rear, and Noel Kelly.