Connection Through Planting for National Schools Tree Day

Published on Monday, 15 August 2022 at 3:09:57 PM

Kwoorabup Nature School and the Shire of Denmark collaborated to revegetate bushland areas near the school in support of Schools Tree Day this year.

Schools Tree Day is a call to action every July for classrooms full of young Aussies to get their hands dirty by planting trees and understory to promote biodiversity.

Shire of Denmark Sustainability Officer Yvette Caruso said school planting projects foster and enable ongoing connection with nature and Country.

“We hope community planting days - like our Schools Tree Day planting day recently - are inspiring the next generation of our community to care for the environment, particularly our beautiful native bushland in Denmark,” Ms Caruso said.

This year’s collaboration is part of an ongoing revegetation project that the Shire and the school have worked on since 2020.

Under the guidance of Shire of Denmark Revegetation Officer Mark Parre, students collected locally sourced plant material and seeds from nearby reserves and propagated the plants to seedlings in the Shire Revegetation Nursery ready for planting this year.

The students have also done plenty of weeding to control invasive species at the revegetation site prior to planting.

More than 500 plants from twenty different native species were planted at two sites near the school including ‘Spirit Creek’, a drainage line near the school, and the road reserve along Inlet Drive with students across all age groups and classes involved in the planting.

Kwoorabup Nature School teacher Olly Watkins said caring for the school site and nearby area forms an integral part of the school program for students and staff.

“This involves both nurturing the environments we have and creating opportunities for regeneration," he said.

"We are so grateful for the support of the Denmark Shire and the local knowledge and passion of Mark Parre, as he has provided quality knowledge and inspiration to our students in collecting seed, germinating, growing and planting local species to regenerate our local environment."

Local native plant species for the project included a variety of acacias, bossiaeas, melaleucas, callistemons, and hibbertia species to name a few.

For further information on community revegetation activities and initiatives within the Shire please visit the Shire’s website at: https://www.denmark.wa.gov.au/residents/sustainability-and-biodiversity/flora.aspx 

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