Project under way at beautiful Baranduda

Some of the 60 enthusiastic volunteers at Baranduda on National Tree Day.

Baranduda Landcare, a sub-group of Kiewa Catchment Landcare, has embarked on a project with the vision of restoring native vegetation to hillsides and gullies to create a diverse, weed-free Parklands environment. parklands' Baranduda estate consists of 400ha of open semi-cleared hillside and remnant bushland at the north-eastern end of the Baranduda Range. It forms a critical vegetation link between the adjoining Regional Park (Parks Victoria) and the Kiewa Valley floodplain.

It also supports valuable remnants of Grassy Dry Forest, threatened Valley Grassy Forest, rare plants including Tick Indigo Indigofera australis and Slender Tick Trefoil Desmodium varians, and provides habitat for the vulnerable Brushtail Phascogale or Tuan. However, past over-clearing and excessive stock grazing has left a legacy of weeds. Unchecked, weeds are winning the war, threatening the long-term viability of this land.

The Baranduda Parklands protection project is a partnership between the Baranduda community (Landcare, Primary School, Scouts, CFA and Lions groups), and parklands. Funding dependent, further participation from Green Corps and Australian Trust for Conservation Volunteers in co-operative programs is also planned. The main project objective is to identify, protect and enhance remnant vegetation and wildlife habitat within and adjoining the Parklands estate.

Key components of the draft plan (still in development) are:

• Cessation of broad scale, unregulated grazing of hill country and major gully systems.
• Managed grazing of cleared lower foothills associated with fire access areas.
• Strategic, sustained and long-term weed control focusing on Paterson's Curse, Blackberry (plus a host of other broad-leaf weeds). Targeted revegetation using indigenous species.
• Community awareness and participation. Stage 1 funded by Parks Vic. grant.
• Revegetation of over 5ha (hillside and gully corridor extension).
• Paterson's Curse control, this year extending to a 12ha zone incorporating 1/3rd of the 3km urban interface, and major gully and hillsides in the Ridge Lane end of the estate.

Baranduda Landcare Planet Ark's National Tree Day on 30 July was a fantastic team event that resulted in more than 1500 tubestock planted. Indigenous understorey comprised the majority of the plantings, but a range of native grasses, lilies, and tree seedlings was also included.