By Jan Fryer

What a month of cold frosty mornings we have been having, with lovely days to follow though and spectacular sunrises and sunsets to enjoy as a result.

This month we are celebrating a few things. Our small but mighty team have organised the logistics and planting of close to 80,000 trees this year. We are so proud of the results and how smoothly it has gone. Everyone has enjoyed the challenge of creating new forests and taking the long-term view of seeing what we are trying to achieve. What a fantastic effort and a brilliant team.

Desiah has completed his level 3 study of amenity horticulture and got his certificate, so we are very proud of his sticking at it to get this useful qualification. His knowledge of plants and the natural world has grown exponentially, and it is so cool to see his enthusiasm for all natural things. His photographic skills for capturing the intricacies of nature are amazing.

Anna has grasped a new opportunity for her career development. We are so thrilled for her and look forward to seeing where this takes her. Again, we are really proud of what she has learnt from her time at FuturEcology and wish her well. We will certainly miss her.

One of our mottos here is “Believe in fate but stick your head out where fate can see you.”

Spud Monday was this past Monday in Nelson, which to us always signals the beginning of the new growing season. I saw the first new lambs yesterday in our part of the world and the daffodils are out in force. Enjoy the life force of this change of season.

Anna’s Next Steps

By Anna Bradley

It is with mixed emotions that my time at FuturEcology is coming to end later in the month. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time here working with a highly talented team that are passionate about what they do.

I have been fortunate enough to support Robert and Jan in the administrative side of the business as well as being able to get out in the field with the whole team. I have learnt so much in the past year and will really miss everyone. I am taking on a new challenge and will be working as a Contract Supervisor in the Parks and Facilities team at Nelson City Council. I will be part of a team tasked with managing the maintenance and improvements of Nelson’s public open spaces and parks to enhance our city’s biodiversity and horticultural environments. I am looking forward to working with a diverse range of people and to serving our local community.

By Robert Fryer

Thank you Anna for choosing to work with us at FuturEcology. Anna came to us just over a year ago to pursue an interest in native plants and restoration ecology. Although we managed to convince Anna to take on most of the administration roles for our busy team, she did get to get out in the field working on projects across the region. We really enjoyed Anna’s positive attitude and constructive input into the team, along with the very professional way she conducted herself with both clients and other staff.

We understand that the chance to work for a larger organisation with opportunity for progression is difficult to turn down and we are sure that the new role will be both challenging and rewarding. FuturEcology's loss will be the NCC’s gain.

Louis from Tora

By Emma Fryer

Last month we were lucky enough to hear from Louis, who is the Event Director of The Aotearoa Surf Film Festival and Tora Bombora Festival. He reached out about a native planting he was doing on their piece of paradise in the Wairarapa. His energy was so inspiring and uplifting.

Louis is a good friend of Alvin’s so it was so lovely to see him helping out with the planting and continuing to use and share the wonderful knowledge and methodology he learned at FuturEcology.

On another note, here is the link to Tora Bombora’s instagram, which is hosted on Louis’ property.

Tora Bombora Music Festival (@torabombora) • Instagram photos and videos

Tree of the Month

By Desiah Neho

Griselinia littoralis

Griselina littoralis / Kapuka is a native evergreen shrubby tree. It has green, glossy, alternate leaves with black fruit in the right season and very small greenish flowers appear on slim stems. These usually start off round when young but eventually can grow into a tall upright tree.

This species can tolerate temperatures ranging from –10 to 35° celsius. Kapuka is found throughout New Zealand, from sea level to 900m above.

It is an extremely hardy plant that can tolerate extremely high wind exposure and salt, that's why it is commonly used as a hedging plant.

The Latin epithet “ littoralis” translates to “growing by the sea”.

Kapuka bark was used by early Māori to treat skin infections before more modern medicine became available from early settlers. Leaves were boiled and eaten just like a vegetable and were also steeped in hot water to treat other illnesses such as fevers and coughs.

Kapuka is clearly a very versatile plant, but due to it being highly palatable, goat, deer, possums and insects frequently graze on it. However, it can still bounce back eventually if the browsing is not severe.

Weed of the Month

By Anna Bradley

Tithonia diversifolia (Mexican Sunflower)

This was a new one for our team. This specimen was spotted in Todd’s Valley last week and immediately caught our eye with its bright yellow flowers and weed-like appearance.

A member of the daisy family, it produces beautiful yellow sunflower-like flowers in the winter offering much needed winter fodder for bees and other insects.

Originating from Mexico and Central America, it has been introduced around the world as an ornamental and is considered invasive in Asia, Africa and other Pacific Islands. It is tolerant of drought and poor soils, but doesn't like wet feet or frosts.

It is a favorite among permaculturalists in establishing food forests as the plants grow quickly and can shade out tough grasses like kikuyu. Tithonia is nutrient rich providing good amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, and produces a huge amount of biomass, making it ideal as a green manure crop.

Although it does not set viable seed, it grows easily and rapidly from fragments, so it is a plant that needs to be carefully managed to stop unwanted spread. We advise removing this weed, especially from locations near waterways where it may be carried down stream during flood events.

Weed matting - the Do’s and Don’ts

By Emma Fryer

We are operating in an interesting time here in the environmental restoration industry. Historically, as an industry, we have leaned heavily on plastic products to support the growing and establishment of plants. The last ten years have seen a shift in preferences and people are actively alternatives for more sustainable alternatives. We have seen the reduction of plastic consumption where possible and the use of reusable trays increase, which is fantastic.

However, for what is seen as a green industry, we are not immune to greenwashing. A product we came across recently on a job was a coconut fibre weed matting for erosion control and weed suppression. We questioned the project manager about the product, and were told that the engineer had chosen the matting for its biodegradable nature. Unfortunately, the matting was laced with a double layer of nylon mesh and then sewn together with plastic thread. This product had been used next to a creek above an estuary.

If you are in the market for weedmatting, we urge you to do your due diligence and ensure you are buying what you think you are. This particular coconut fibre is the classic example of a product marketed to be a green alternative, but actually will leave microplastic in the environment.

Wool is a fantastic and local alternative for weedmatting and erosion control that will in turn feed the soil.

Suppliers we recommend are:

Terralana

Wool.Life

Floating Peaks

EmGuard Update

By Emma Fryer

The EmGuards turned 6 this year which is a real milestone.

The initial R&D stage took 4 years and we couldn’t have been happier with the product we produced in 2018.

The size and density of the board worked out to be perfect. The only design improvement we made was the shape of the holes for the canes. We went from a circle to an oval to make assembly a little easier.

Back when we started working with our manufacturers, the production side of the EmGuards was very manual. They had a machine that was a bit like a cookie cutter that someone would load the board on to, pull the lever and make 2 EmGuards at a time.

As popularity grew and demand increased, the manual machine couldn’t keep up with the demand. The factory invested in a very fancy die cutter that could make 3 at a time and 50,000 a day when it is running at full speed. While the die cutter has greatly improved supply, the process is a little different to the old cutter, so the end product has been slightly altered.

Our long standing customers will know the creases in the guards aren’t quite as crisp as they were. This is because the stamping process has changed from impact on both sides to only impact from above. We have been working with the factory to fix this and are having a new die built that will stamp in a double-creased line. This will make folding the guards much easier. The new die will be up and running for all orders next year.

The key for folding EmGuards currently is to fold into the crease line and give each ridge a good squeeze. The EmGuards strength comes from the density of the board and its triangle shape.

Watch as Desiah and Shaun demonstrate how to fold an EmGuard.

Buy EmGuard ™ now

Interesting Snippets

Recipe: Mandarin Marmalade

By Emma Fryer

Marmalade is something I never particularly liked until we made it ourselves. We are lucky enough to have lovely neighbours with the most impressive mandarin tree I've ever seen. Our neighbours don’t like the mandarins and told us we could pick as many as we liked. 20 jars of marmalade later, the tree is still covered.

Ingredients

1 kilogram (2 pounds) mandarins

1/4 cup (60ml) lemon juice

1 litre (4 cups) water

5 cups (1.1kg) white (granulated) sugar, approximately

Method

1. Combine whole mandarins, juice and the water in large saucepan; bring to the boil. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, about 45 minutes or until fruit is soft.

2. Remove mandarins from liquid; reserve liquid. Coarsely chop mandarins, including rind; discard seeds. Return the chopped mandarin to reserved liquid.

3. Measure fruit mixture, allow 1 cup sugar for each cup of fruit mixture. Return fruit mixture and sugar to pan; stir over high heat, without boiling, until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil; boil, uncovered, without stirring, about 30 minutes or until jam jells when tested.

4. Pour hot jam into hot sterilised jars; seal immediately. Label and date jars when cold.

Mandarin marmalade | Women's Weekly Food (womensweeklyfood.com.au)

What we’ve been reading:

Breath by James Nistor

As an asthmatic, I often find this time of year a bit challenging especially with the cold frosty mornings and pine pollen floating around.

I discovered this book in my travels in the North Island and have found it absolutely fascinating. Apparently, we breathe around 25,000 times a day and this book explores the issues we are having as a species, having lost the ability to breathe correctly.

James Nestor has travelled the world exploring the hidden science behind ancient breathing practices and what we can do ourselves to improve our own health. Nose breathing is a real key apparently, especially for people like me, with my asthma issues. Now I am trying to consciously think about my breathing.

It is a very readable book with so many interesting observations.

By Jan Fryer

The Team That Hit The Rocks: The inside story of the Wahine disaster by Peter Jerram.

Most of us will be familiar with the Wahine Disaster, an inter island ferry that ran aground in Wellington Harbour 10th of April 1968. Although this was 56 years ago the tragedy is still part of New Zealand’s collective DNA. I have always had an interest in this event, although I was only 4 at the time, I remember discussions about this and also remember seeing the ship stuck on the reef. Like many New Zealander’s, I know people connected with the tragedy.

I have always admired Peter Jerrams work in Marlborough as a District Councillor, giving a voice to many issues that needed to be addressed. Peters book provides a first hand account of the disaster and his story as a 21 year old passenger on the ship. It is a very human account, where he explains a lot of the technical aspects and issues that unravelled in various enquires and accounts of the disaster.

For me though, I was captivated by Peters descriptions of his emotions and dealing with a recurring thought of “did I do enough?” From what I could see he certainly did, and did even more over the years that followed.

Marlborough district has been very fortunate to have had Peter contributing over many years, and our lives are richer for the publication of this book.

A compulsory read, especially with the troubles besetting the ferry services almost 60 years on.

By Robert Fryer

Conclusion:

By Anna Bradley

I always feel a sense of hope this time of year as the daffodils start to emerge and the first kowhai flowers appear.

I hope that the coldest of winter days are behind us and am hopeful for the season ahead as the days get longer. I get excited as I flick through the Kings’s seeds catalogue, planning my summer garden in my head.

At FuturEcology, it is also a nice time of year for us to pause and reflect on all the mahi we have done over the past few months. We had a challenging start to the planting season this year with what seemed like an extension of the summer drought with no significant rainfall until later in autumn. This meant we had to delay some plantings and focus on the ones where the soil moisture was greater. Despite this, it was our best planting season ever with around 80,000 plants in the ground, as Jan mentioned earlier. This is truly an amazing effort for a small team of people! We will now transition to our maintenance season focusing our efforts on weed control to ensure our plantings have the best chance of establishment.

If you still have trees to get into the ground, it’s not too late. For those who are thinking of kick starting a garden project, I would encourage you to give it a go. As well as the physcial and mental benefits of being outside, it’s also a great way to connect with your local community by sharing advice and produce.

Growing from seed remains the most cost effective and environmentally friendly option to begin your garden. With so many resources out there don’t be afraid to give it a go!

“To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow”. - Audrey Hepburn

If you have any projects in mind and would like to talk further, give us a call or pop in and see us.

We look forward to hearing from you!