Restoring a Waipu Nursery

A nursery is being brought back to life with the aim of producing 20,000 native plants per year for the riparian banks of Waipu’s rivers and streams.
On Sunday 12th June, the first steps were taken to bring a disused local nursery back to life. Through a collaboration between Waipu Waters and Weed Action Piroa Brynderwyns, 25 supporters came together in response to a call for help to clear the weeds, repair the wind cloths and start restoring the old nursery on Dave Brown’s Cove Road Tahamonana Farm. Work was also completed in establishing the layout of the nursery, with Waipu Water leader Peter Grant with input from local experts and hapu. 

After an amazing 3-hour effort to clear the ½ hectare site, a demonstration of how to create a hot compost was given by Weed Action Coordinator Ron Haynes. Old newspaper, cardboard, egg cartoons and sawdust (the carbon component) was added to coffee grinds, kitchen scraps, sheep/ chicken poo, and seaweed to create the microbiological activity to break down the weeds which produces finished compost in a much shorter period.