Five Rivers Reserve and Central Highlands Weeding

Over the past six summers, dedicated volunteer teams have contributed over 450 days of work removing invasive weeds from the TLC's beautiful Five Rivers Reserve and Interlaken properties, in Tasmania's Central Highlands. We estimate that together, we have removed more than 1,000,000 weeds!

This summer we’re at it again. We need three big teams of volunteers for three successive working bees. This approach will enable us to work efficiently to remove the threat of weeds across 20,000 hectares of beautiful highland landscape. It’s also bound to be a lot of fun and a great chance to meet like-minded people, so come join us!

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

The Activity

We will break up into small teams of two to four people to search for weeds, either from vehicles or on foot. Each team will include a weeding expert. When we find weeds, such as ragwort and great mullein, we will either pull them out by hand, or spray them with a low-toxicity herbicide***. We will start work around 8am each day, and will work until mid-to-late afternoon. With the longer daylight hours, after work there will be time to explore, have a swim and enjoy a delicious dinner provided by TLC. We need at least eight volunteers per working bee.

Where

All working bee activities will take place on TLC’s beautiful Five Rivers Reserve at Bronte and our New Leaf properties at Interlaken in Tasmania’s Central Highlands. We will send direction maps and other more detailed information a week or so before the activity.

When

The working bee dates are:

Monday 22 – Thursday 25 January at Interlaken

Monday 5 – Thursday 8 February at Five Rivers Reserve, Bronte

Wednesday 14 – Friday 16 February at either Five Rivers Reserve, or Interlaken (TBC)

You can choose to volunteer for two or more days of any trip, however you will need to commit for whole days at a time. We will start the first day mid-morning to allow for travel to and from the accommodation. On other days we will generally start around 8am. Volunteers arriving after the first day can travel up the night before they start working with us, or make arrangements with us to arrive later than 8am if needed. We’d love it if you could volunteer more than once too!

Accommodation

We provide accommodation at shacks at either Brady’s Lake or Interlaken depending on where we are working. The shacks are equipped with basic kitchen, bathroom and bedroom facilities. You can share bunk rooms in the shack or alternatively, pitch a tent or park a campervan outside. More detailed information about the accommodation will be provided before each working bee. You are welcome to arrive the night before your first day of volunteering, or stay the night after your last day should you wish.

Transport

The TLC actively encourages carpooling. You can choose to arrange your own transport to and from the Central Highlands or you can express interest in carpooling during the registration process. We will do our best to match up volunteers requesting lifts with volunteers offering lifts.

Required knowledge and skills

• No special knowledge or skills are required; full training will be provided to ensure the work is performed safely and effectively.

• A moderate level of physical fitness and mobility is required. However, the work is flexible and can be easily adapted to accommodate different individual’s fitness and mobility levels.

• You will need good long distance eyesight (with glasses is fine) to be able to spot weeds.

• You will need to be comfortable wearing personal protective equipment if undertaking spraying.*** Required personal protective equipment includes cotton overalls or a spray suit, safety glasses, gloves, a broad-brimmed hat and gum boots.

• Your safety is our first priority. Before the activity commences you’ll be asked to complete and sign a Volunteer Safety Form.

What to bring

• Your own food for breakfasts, lunches and snacks. We will provide a delicious dinner for everyone each night.

• If you opt to sleep in a bunk in a shack you’ll need to bring bedding including a sheet, pillow and sleeping bag.

• If you opt to camp, you’ll need to bring your tent and camping equipment along with bedding.

• Clothes suitable for hot or cold weather including lightweight clothes to wear underneath coveralls i.e. shorts, a t-shirt or singlet and thermals for cold days.

• A raincoat (just in case).

• A broad-brimmed, washable hat.

• Gum boots or other rubber boots to wear if spraying (we can provide a pair for you if you require them).

• Towel and toiletries.

Register now

We really need a great response so please register here. We look forward to working together with you to secure a healthier highlands environment!

NOTE: Using low-toxicity herbicide

Our weed control methods exceed best practice standards. Even still, it would be impossible for us to control weeds across such a large area using manual methods alone. This means using some herbicides where handpulling is not possible or practical. For this project, we use a low-toxicity herbicide called Associate, which is selective, meaning that it only affects certain types of plants. With careful spraying, we have no impact on the surrounding vegetation. This herbicide also has a minimal effect on mammals, birds and fish, and we use it in such low quantities that it does not enter the water table. It also breaks down rapidly in the soil, which means that it does not have a lasting effect on the environment.

Spraying is usually only a small component of the work day (averaging about 30 mins – 1 hour), with most of our time spent searching for weeds as we drive along tracks or walk through grasslands. If you would personally prefer not to spray herbicide, you are still welcome to join us on this activity, acting as a weed spotter and weed puller. If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Denna Kingdom on 0424 507 148 or dkingdom@tasland.org.au.