Exploring the siteBehind the cottage is a large section going uphill to a flat space with a brazier. These photos are from my first visit. Hover over the pic to read caption. Start clearing and discoveringWe gathered our tools on site to start clearing and discovering what was coming through under the weeds. We piled the waste on site to make compost and improve the soil over time. There were so many pest plants that it wouldn't have made enough difference to take the considerable time to remove it all. Worst comes to the worst, we can weedspray the piles later. New plantsThen we got planting. Wharangi on the edges. Poa cita grass to hold the bank and for its feathery flower heads. Coprosma kirkii to cover the awkward corner and keep weeds down. Small muehlenbeckia complexa to reduce disturbance to the bank and to cover it. Perennials for colour and to enjoy. Dwarf toe toe to add continuity with existing ones.
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A very large house with a small garden area, embedded on a densely housed hill in CBD.
The first job was to see what was involved in refreshing the garden area. We took photos of the various areas, cleared the weeds, pruned the very old rose right back and created a large compost pile. Hover over the photos for explanations. This Southgate property has a large bush area where weeds had taken over and karaka had become the dominant species, considerably reducing diversity. Although karaka is a NZ native, it isn't native to Wellington and takes over from our locals. Te Motu Kairangi explains more. We are gradually managing the herbaceous weeds. With the karaka, we are hand pulling the seedlings and chopping down larger plants then Stump Stopping the cut. This seems to be working though karaka does re-sprout from below the cut, so we have to be more persistent than karaka. We're careful not to take out too many larger trees at once as the area is on a bank and we don't want to disturb the terrain more than necessary. Assessing the bush area Aug 2018 Hover over the images to learn about our first visit to this bush area. Starting work First task was to dig some rough steps for safe access and to start dealing to the weeds (tradescantia, convolvulus, galinsoga, bay tree, with old man's beard and German ivy on the fringes). Continuing our mahi October/November/December 2018. Hover for explanations Summer 2019
Already we've noticed more birds (types and numbers), seen dragonflies and more native seedlings popping up. Now we've made space, let the light in, and it's planting time, we're hoping to plant some Wellington natives, ideally those that are getting rare in the wild. This will add to the wider ecosystem and increase diversity in this little piece of bush. See photo albums of customers' gardens on our Facebook page.
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