TENDER loving care was the order of the day on Sunday 30 July as Korora Landcare marked National Tree Day planting about forty coastal acacias and callistemons, allocasuarinas and acacias on a site it has been restoring.

“This year we met at one of our newer worksites, Hills Beach Coffs Coastal Regional Park,” Simon Proust, the unofficial president of Korora Basin Landcare told News Of The Area.

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What is now vegetation behind Hills Beach was previously the site of a caravan park up until the mid-1980s.

Since then, it has been an unloved public reserve with native vegetation regrowth dominated by banksias, acacias, allocasuarinas and figs and taller grey gums, forest red gums and bloodwoods together with a whole lot of weeds.

“Since working on the site over the last three years we have controlled an assortment of weeds such as lantana, senna, ochna, murraya, and the prolific mother of millions, whose pretty pink flower deceives how invasive it is to coastal ecosystems.”

A garden escapee originally from Madagascar, mother of millions is controlled by hand pulling and then bagging the succulent plant before drying it out and burning it.

“With some fifty bags collected over the past year we are almost on top of it,” Simon said.

The group set to work behind the beach on a broad site cleared of mothers of millions.

“In sandy soils we prepared the site beforehand, controlling grasses before planting, mulching, staking and guarding followed by a final watering.

“With an expected dry season there will be plenty of days ahead watering and keeping them alive,” said Simon.

This is the third consecutive year Korora Landcare group has participated in National Tree Day.

Korora Landcare was inaugurated in Korora Basin in 2007 and has fifteen active members.

By Andrea FERRARI