History
First established in 1996 by a group of local seniors who saw the adverse impacts caused by the encroachment of weeds on the dunal bushland. Monthly working bees were introduced but soon replaced by weekly weeding events. The team of began working on the original piece of Dune Bushland Reserve site at Beach Access 65-66. The team was met with an impenetrable forest of lantana and a thick carpet of asparagus that had started climbing over the native trees. It was a mammoth task and progress was slow but rewarding. Each success led to another, and the team was soon able to start working on nearby sites.
Today
In 2023, our team continues to work on Thursdays from 7.30-9.30am and maintains all the beach accesses in southern Peregian Beach BA 60-66, with some work at BA-59 around the sculpture and Pitta St ‘s BA-67 when necessary. Lorikeet Park is also on our agenda for a couple of working bees per year.
The PBCA bushcare team at Lorikeet Park
How do we operate?
The PBCA Bush Care team works as part of the Noosa Council’s Bushcare Program and under the umbrella of Qld. Water and Land Care. Noosa Council provides the tools, gloves and shirts for volunteers to use.
Best Practice
Asparagus Aethiopicus is still a major weed, and Gloriosa superba is testing bush carers from Agnes Water to Port Macquarie, all seeking a solution for this invasive pest.
Weed removal methods have been modified over time and local research has led to more efficient tools and better weeding practice. The invention of the Asparagus Assassin has made it possible to drill down to remove several cores stacked on top of each other buried in the sand and other simple adjustments to the tools have made difficult tasks possible.
Ron Gooch – developer of the ‘asparagas assassin’.
The Team
New volunteers are always welcome, and the team is able to cater for individual needs and commitments. The work is outdoors and is often enhanced by magical moments such as watching Humpbacks close to shore or dolphins surfing the shore-break while weeding on the frontal dunes. In the bushland, yellow tail black cockatoos unperturbed by the team at work or spotting a rare flowering such as bush iris.
Rewards
Conversations each week cover a wide range of topics from community news and council related discussions to family successes and challenges. Friendships are fostered by working together in a collegiate manner to achieve rewarding outcomes. As well, knowledge is also gained through plant and animal identification. Our community greatly appreciates the natural native bushland approaches to the beach and its rehabilitation. A healthy dunal bushland protects the frontal dunes and the beach itself.
Outcomes
Our team of Volunteer Weeding Warriors know they are making a huge difference by enabling and restoring healthy dunes and bushland with native plant species and wildlife. Our community also greatly appreciates our massive effort in restoring the native bushland, dunes and foreshore areas.
Like to get involved? Here’s how you can join PBCA or the local bushcare group.
