Flora revegetation ideas

Me and my brain come up with some brilliant ideas at times but I tend to run out of enthusiasm after a while. This is simply because I do not know if the plants will survive nor do I know if the people in question will approve of my ideas. However, it is a fact of life here in Tenterfield that bird species are leaving Tenterfield as fast as you can identify them and this deeply concerns me. Why? Simply because of a lack of rain and the plant life is sparsely scattered across town so there isn't enough trees, etc to maintain even a small number of any species.

If any bird species do breed in Tenterfield the juveniles tend to move elsewhere and never stay in Tenterfield. A lot of bird species have become migratory birds that were not that way inclined before. I have seen entire species leave town and never return. Where they go to I do not know. Do they become extinct? I don't know that either. All I know is that the remaining bird species are clinging to dear life here, often times many species of birds will inhabit one single tree.

I am aware, for example, that in a densely flora area of the Tenterfield Creek located near my home, a stand of about 5 plants including one mature gum tree, there are at least 7 species of birds that inhabit those plants. See image to the left.

The worst part to this is some of those plants are invasive weed species but the native birds have nowhere else to roost and nest. The weed is the tall bright green plant on the left in the photo. I am trying to find a more suitable flora species to eventually replace that plant even though it is not my business to replant vegetation along the actual Tenterfield creek.

The image to the right was recently desecrate by the local council to remove all the plant life and the invasive weed species from two areas of the Tenterfield Creek less than 100 metres from my home. As a result large boulders were disturbed and no native plants were replanted in this area. Several large trees were removed from this area.

In this image you will see some regrowth from the plants that were pulled up on the left side of the creek bank. Like everything that is done in Tenterfield, the invasive weeds will regrow but will come back profusely if nothing is done to revegetate this small area of the creek properly. Should Tenterfield experience another flood most of the creek's dirt will be washed away as has happened in the past.

My idea is to revegetate this area with natives but it is a huge task for just one person. I am currenlt trying to grow Grevillea from seed at the moment whilst waiting for the local gum trees to come into flower. But the problem is much more greater than simply planting a few trees or bushes. The local gum trees are dieing because of the drought. In the last 3 years they have been dropping large branches. Not all the gum tree species are doing that though.

Planting local willow trees seems like a waste of time as I only know of one bird species (I've yet to identify that species) that actually inhabit willow trees in Tenterfield along the Tenterfield Creek. The main two plant species I will add are wattle and gum trees. I would like to plant some Lilly Pillies and others but am not able to know exactly for sure if they will survive. You see I recently learnt that a big chunk of the Tenterfield Creek and nearby areas adjacent to it are actually "frost hollows" - meaning cold air is attracted to these spots. These frost hollow areas is also where most of the birdlife in Tenterfield exists, or used to exist.

The Tenterfield Creek seriously needs to be revegetated if the birdlife is to remain in town. Not only that but serious soil erosion has begun to take place along certain areas of the creek, especially along the edge of my neighbour Carol's property that ends next to the creek itself. All through the Tenterfield Creek in town you'll see a build up of sand in the creek. Where the sand came from I do not know but it got washed into the creek from somewhere. The source of the sand needs to be located and the whole area revegetated to prevent soil erosion. The sand piles up higher every time we have another flood.

I seriously need a trip to the local nursery, but unfortunately all the plants I buy from there die after a while. Why that is so I have no idea. I guess that is why I have begun collecting my own seed and cuttings from local plants. Some cuttings are much harder to strike than others, and some don't strike at all. Knowing that I continue to wonder if revegetating my neighbour's edge of the creek is really worth my effort.