by Basil | Sep 10, 2019 | Green Skills Inc. - Sustainability Non-Profit
Appreciating some magnificent contributors to our Denmark-Kwoorabup community
Here Green Skills takes the opportunity to thank and appreciate those volunteers and groups who support the Denmark Community Garden and who are consistently marvellous. This is a tribute to them and all the many quiet people who give heaps to our town and our world. Thank you
Support to establish the garden has come from Green Skills, the Denmark CRC, Kwoorabup Denmark Transition Town Network, the Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal, the Denmark Community Windfarm Group Sustainability Fund, Metroof, Thornton’s Hardware & Mitre 10, the Denmark Men’s Shed, contractors, other groups & volunteers
Basil
Green Skills Denmark 98483110
Michael (of RAC rescue fame), Don and Greg. Last Wednesday in the pouring rain, Michael volunteered his truck and skills to help move some big shadehouse benchtops to the DCG
The Denmark Men Shed guys – rough sense of humour but true legends. Here they are helping relocate a shadehouse.
Greg helping relocate a shadehouse.. a true Aussie stalwart !
Neal – Denmark’s garden maestro and enthusiastic teacher of horticultural knowledge
Shirle, Greg and Neal at our composting workshops.. all deeply feeling beings who have green hearts and fingers
Lucia guiding the group through her spectacularly productive garden
Lucia (centre) with her garden produce, Dawn (right),another dedicated volunteer and contributor to not just the community garden but much more.
Lucia( right) who let us loose in her wonderful home garden last weeke\nd – and Petra ( centre) who does a fabulous job of helping drive the Denmark Community Resource Centre, and Shirley ( healer and giver)
Campbell communicating with the garlic in the DCG (Denmark Communitarian Garden)
Greg communicating with the broad beans
Neal, Gloria and other garden enthusiasts
Carl, another legendary community supporter, who never fails to lend a hand
Thanks to all the Wwoofers who give so generously to the places they volunteer, in this case the Denmark Community Garden
Kristi, in her element at the Golden Hill Waldorf School.. winning Gold at the Waste Minimisation Olympics and another unsung community heroine
Kristi in composting action
by Basil | Jul 31, 2019 | Green Skills Inc. - Sustainability Non-Profit
Cranbrook School Tree Planting Outing to Tom South Lake – Tuesday 30th July 2019
Cranbrook Primary School Tree Planting Event Links Students to Landcare
The Cranbrook School Tree planting day held on Tuesday 30th July at Tom South Lake went well. Green Skills coordinated the provision of local native plants grown in the Katanning Landcare nursery, and guidance for the students on the day
The Gillamii Centre and the Shire of Cranbrook provided assistance in terms of planning and site preparation.
Forty or so students accompanied by several teachers and supporting adults from the Cranbrook Primary School participated in planting and watering around 1100 local shrubs and trees around the fenced off edge of the lake foreshore. Thanks also to the Jones and Williamson farming families for providing permission and support for the plantings. . This landcare project has been supported by the Koorabup Trust, Green Skills, Gillamii Centre, Shire of Cranbrook and the Cranbrook Primary School.
For a number of years bird enthusiasts including Steve Elson from Ongerup and others from BirdLife Australia have been surveying the birdlife of Tom South Lake, noting that it is an important haven for shorebirds including the threatened Hooded Plover, In 2018 Green Skills and the Gillamii Centre organised support for a 3.7km fence to be built protecting the foreshores of this lake from sheep grazing.
Last summer, it was noted that Hooded Plovers were breeding on the edge of the lake, the first time in years. The proximity of this lake adjacent to the main road between Cranbrook and Katanning makes it an ideal demonstration site to promote lake conservation to the broader Great Southern farming community.
Cranbrook School tree Planting Outing to Tom South Lake – Tuesday 30th July 201
by Basil | Jul 22, 2019 | Green Skills Inc. - Sustainability Non-Profit
Learning is Fun at the Denmark Community Garden
At the Denmark Community Garden workshop on Saturday 20th July, local garden expert, Neal Collins, shared his knowledge on how to grow fruit bearing trees and bushes.
Twelve people attended the event, held at the newly established Denmark Community Garden, which is a collaborative project between Green Skills and the Denmark CRC.
People interested in joining workshops and other activities at the Garden can register with Green Skills Denmark .. email at [email protected]
Neal Collins demonstrating helpful tips on how to plant a Mulberry at the Denmark Community Garden.
Preparing a range of bushes and herbs for planting at the Denmark Community Garden
The new Denmark Community Garden coordinated by Green Skills slowly taking shape
by Basil | Jul 22, 2019 | Green Skills Inc. - Sustainability Non-Profit
Monday 22nd July 2019
Volunteer University Students help plant out landcare sites
A team from Trinity Residential College at the UWA joined in a two day program of tree planting for habitat restoration on a farm near Cranbrook on the 18th and 19th July 2019.
The team of eight, led by College head, Mike Shearer, planted 6500 native trees and shrubs on two sites on the Williamson farm, north of Cranbrook. Trinity College had grown 4000 of these trees as part of their landcare effort.Other trees came through Katanning Landcare, Habitat Nursery in Denmark, and through North Stirling Pallinup NRM.
The team worked with Green Skills’ Basil Schur, and the Gillamii Centre’s Freyer Spencer, on the project. They were able to stay three nights in a spare homestead on the Walsh family farm.
Volunteer team of Uni students from Trinity College planting a habitat restoration site on the Williamson Farm, Cranbrook with Green Skills and Gillamii
Volunteer team of Uni students from Trinity College help clean up planting equipment after a day with Green Skills and Gillamii
Ian Walsh, Cranbrook farmer, speaking to Freya Spencer of Gillamii and some of the team from Trinity College, This tree planting project helps provide a valuable experience for city based uni students, several of whom from overseas. The Walsh family kindly hosted the team in one of their homesteads during the event.
For further information, contact Basil Schur at Denmark Greens Skills on [email protected]
by Basil | Apr 17, 2019 | Green Skills Inc. - Sustainability Non-Profit
In March 2019 , Green Skills completed a State 2 project for the Balijup project aimed to build community capacity in the eco-restoration of the 919ha Balijup property near Tenterden with its Fauna Sanctuary (a 111ha fenced feral predator free exclosure into which Quenda (Southern Brown Bandicoots) and Coomarl (Brush tailed possums) have been successfully established) Green Skills has partnered with Conservation Council of WA Citizen Science team, other groups, property owners and many volunteers in community capability building in terms of eco-restoration, feral animal control, and citizen science community research into native fauna recovery. installation and monitoring of more than 35 Phascogale nesting boxes, research into feral animal baiting and further fauna research and monitoring on Balijup.
The project facilitated improvements to the capacity of both Green Skills and Conservation Council, and their key project staff, to plan and execute fauna and environmental monitoring at Balijup. It also provided hands on practical experience to over 30 volunteers, several of whom were university graduates or current undergraduates very keen to get hands on experience with fauna trapping and environmental monitoring. Green Skills was able to gain a lot more knowledge and technical capability in relation to implementing a Brush tailed Phascogale conservation project. Important progress has been made in developing the foundation for implementing a feral animal control program at Balijup.
The Feb 2019 report is down loadable in a small size file at
https://greenskills.org.au/wp-content/ uploads/2019/03/Balijup-Citizen-ScienceReport-Green-Skills-February-2019-SmallFile.pdf
or high resolution version at
https://greenskills.org.au/wp-content/ uploads/2019/03/Balijup-Citizen-Science-Report-Green-Skills-February-2019-Large-File.pdf
Future proposed priorities for the Balijup Citizen Science progranm t include 1) Ongoing camera monitoring 2) Further cage trapping program events 3) Ongoing monitoring of Southern Heath Monitors within the Sanctuary and relocation of some of these 4) Control of rabbits and Kangaroos within the Sanctuary 5) Ongoing monitoring of the Sanctuary fence and maintenance of the firebreaks 6) Ongoing monitoring and maintenance of the phascogale boxes and development of further research. 7) Ongoing monitoring of the other phascogale nesting boxes on three properties. 8) Other vegetation, bird and wetland monitoring both within the Sanctuary and Balijup property. 9) Further development of a feral baiting program for the whole of Balijup property.
This project is supported by funding from the Western Australian Government’s State Natural Resource Management Program, supported by Royalties for Regions.
Green Skills’ Balijup, Biodiversity and wetland conservation activities have also received support from the Parks and Wildlife Service of the WA Department of Conservation, Biodiversity and Attractions, Bush Heritage Australia, The University of WA (Albany), and Conservation Council of WA. The Feb 2019 citizen science event formed part of the South Coast Festival of Birds & Biodiversity, which was supported by Lotterywest, BirdLife Australia and Green Skills.
Balijup Citizen Science Report-February 2019
