Saving Tassie Native Grasslands
Deddington 7212, Tas

Lowland Native Grasslands in Tasmania are worth protecting and improving because there is less than 10% left in Tassie and most is confined to a handful of private properties. The Lowland Native Grasslands of Tasmania are classed as a ‘nationally threatened vegetative community’ and have high conservation value. They also have high economic value to super-fine merino wool production.

This project will deliver a proven on-ground works program to help protect grasslands from invasive woody plants such as hawthorn, gorse, prickly box, silver wattle, and briar rose. Teams of supervised volunteers will remove the invading weeds with a focus on minimising chemical application and minimising ground disturbance. A variety of techniques will be used for the removal including: cut-and-paint, drill-and-fill, and grubbing. As well as on-ground works, the project will demonstrate what is required to remove invading woody plants and it will highlight the benefits of early intervention.

The grasslands are being infiltrated by a variety of woody weeds which we are going to remove.  With a focus on minimising chemical application and minimising ground disturbance, a variety of techniques will be used for the removal including cut-and-paint, drill-and-fill, and grubbing.

This is a big Tasmanian project that will go through until 2021. Project days will be on 5 of Tasmania’s most important and dynamic sheep farms across the midlands. The process and results will be documented using photographs and video so that a professional on-line presentation can be distributed to native grassland stakeholders in Tasmania and across Australia. The project will demonstrate what is required to remove invading woody plants and it will highlight the benefits of early intervention.

This project is supported by the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources, through funding from Australian Government’s National Landcare Program