Weed control program makes the bush a better place
Producing positive outcomes for the environment is what motivates the dedicated members of Gympie and District Landcare.
The group's important work focuses on managing weeds, adding diversity to local ecosystems, and repairing creek lines and waterways.
However, after major flooding in 2021 and 2022 devastated the Gympie region, Gympie and District Landcare found itself in unfamiliar territory, working with flood affected landholders.
In partnership with the Burnett Mary Regional Group (BMRG), they set about eradicating invasive weeds on properties at Barambah Creek, Booubyjan that had been ravaged by floodwaters.
The work targeted weeds such as lantana, Chinese elm and cat’s claw, which can aggressively overtake and compete with native species.
These weeds, although providing coverage, create troublesome gaps in natural vegetation that allow scouring and erosion to occur following severe weather.
Cat’s claw, for example, climbs native trees and suffocates them, leaving them vulnerable to being swept away in a big flood and causing further damage downstream.
Gympie and District Landcare members are working to control the weeds and encourage native plants to fight their way back to reclaim some of the creek line lost in the floods in a bid to improve future resilience, but it hasn’t been a simple task.
Unfavourable weather conditions and the emergence of girra burr, another weed that thrives on disturbance, have added to the challenge.
But the persistence of Gympie and District Landcare has paid off with most of Barambah Creek’s cat’s claw successfully removed and the Chinese elm thinned out, saving native trees and allowing other native plants to start out-competing weeds.
Establishing a diversity of native ground cover has been a win-win, providing producers with healthier, more resilient pastures, and giving native animals safe passages to travel around freely.
Assistance for the Barambah Creek Weed Control project was provided through the jointly funded Commonwealth-state Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA).
