HELP, our garden is in danger
- To: m*@ucdavis.edu
- Subject: HELP, our garden is in danger
- From: G* K*
- Date: Tue, 03 Apr 2001 11:40:44 +1000
This is a copy of a letter I sent to our
largest daily newspaper "The Mercury".
Yesterday, I was interviewed at
"Kibbenjelok" by a feature reporter and
photographer. Simon wants to place an
article in the Sunday newspaper [our
largest newspaper] and thought it may be a
good idea to include the thoughts of my
gardening friends from around the World
Briefly this is what will happen: The
land next to our country property was sold
a few months ago [due to domestic trouble]
and the new owner has leased the forest
area to the Forestry Dept. to clear fell,
wood chip the Eucalyptus, then air spray
with "Round Up" and then lay 1080 to kill
all the fauna. The land will then be
replanted with Eucalyptus regans and the
whole cycle will start again. The
boundary is very close to the creek that
feeds our water dams that we use to
irrigate the gardens.
At the moment, there is a huge ground
swell of protesters against these
practices that is not only ruining our old
growth forests all over Tasmania but
endangering our native fauna
If you decide to help, this is the
reporter's email address. When you email
the paper, they ask for plain text and
your name. I don't know if Simon
requires the same - the article should be
printed next Sunday [our time]
bevilacquas@dbl.newsltd.com.au
Letters to the editor require full name
and tel no.:
mercuryedletter@dbl.newsltd.com.au
Please help!!!! and this is my original
letter:
In 1986, my husband and I purchased an 137
acre property at Middleton in the Channel
district. The property consisted of
approximately 32 acres of old apple and
raspberry orchards, 25 acres pasture and
70 acres of natural bush. The apples
and raspberries were irrigated by two
dams, fed by a creek and transported to
the orchards. The largest dam holds
approximately 5 million litres. We pay
the Water Resources Department for the use
of the water which has overflows so the
creek can continue to other properties.
We have observed platypus using the "big"
dam and brown native ducks live there
permanently.
We moved into the house and began to
create a large ornamental garden in
1987. This garden has become famous
Australian wide and, through my working
as a journalist, on the Internet, World
wide. Visitors have included Americans,
Canadians Dutch, New Zealanders, and
English and Japanese photographers
In 1988, we decided to plant blackwoods
trees on the property, as these trees,
native to the area, had been milled by
the first property owners. With advice
from the Forestry department, we cleared
five acres from the cursed blackberry
bushes, fenced the area, and purchased
5000 seedlings in 1 inch pots. The area
we planted with these tiny seedling
blackwoods was in the vicinity of the
dams. Our aim was to try to return the
natural habitat to the bush, not for any
milling purposes. The scheme cost us a
lot of money and labor time.
We only spend three days of the week at
"Kibbenjelok" but during the years we
have observed the following fauna:
Platypus
Eastern Barred Bandicoots and Southern
Brown Bandicoots
Spotted-tailed Quolls and Eastern Quoll
Ringtail Possums and Brushtail Possums
Sugar-gliders
Potoroos
Pademelons
Bennet's Wallibies
Grey Kangaroos
Tasmanian Devils
Bettongs
Black and white Cockatoos
Moepoke
Masked Owl
White Perigrene
Wood Ducks
Wedgetailed Eagles
White Sea Eagles
Various Hawks
Lorikeets and various Parrots
Many other native, but less endangered
birds, visit the gardens and these include
ground thrushes, blue wrens, redbreasts,
flame robins, silver eyes, New Holland
honey eaters, pardalotes, wattle birds,
native hens, wattle birds, bronzewing
pigeons and willi wagtails.
To our horror, we have been advised that
875 acres of land, adjoining our Western
boundary is to be clearfelled and
replanted with Eucalyptus regnans. This
area contains the creek that, after
passing through our dams flows, into
other properties. The area to be
stripped also abuts our dam area and
blackwood plantation. The dams not only
supplies all our irrigation water but is
used by the above fauna that live in the
State Forest that adjoins the land to be
clearfelled on its Western boundary.
We contacted various bodies, such as the
involved councils, State Forest and North
Forest Limited. A representative visited
and viewed our property and during
discussions agreed that it was a
"sensitive area". After this meeting,
the creek catchment area that was to be
protected by 10 metres in the original
plan, was increased to 40 metres.
Surely this is an admission of
uneasiness, by the developers, of how the
water supply will be affected?
We were told Roundup will be initially
used and later, the deadly poison 1080
will be laid to rid the area of so-called
"vermin".
Can you wonder that I am very emotional
about this happening? So little natural
bush is left in Southern Tasmania and
especially in the beautiful Channel
Area. The forests were very badly
damaged in the 1967 horrific bush fires
and are now, after nearly 40 years,
returning to their former glory.
Many famous gardeners, world wide, and
academic horticulturists, know our gardens
through my writings on the Internet. I
write a monthly article publishing twenty
to thirty new photographs, called
"Tasmanian Garden Journal". This is in a
site privately owned by a Canadian and
American firm and my site alone may
receive between 500 - 3000 hits a day. I
have been writing for over three years and
have informed thousands of Northern
American browsers that,
1: Tasmania is not inhabited by only
Tasmanian Devils
2: Tasmanian is not a "mythical island"
3. And that [after running a pole in which
my readers took part] Tasmania is the most
beautiful island in the World. The result
of the pole was 83% of readers, supporting
this claim]
Is there anything we can do?
Mrs Gay Klok
--
Gay Klok Tasmania
Latest article: "Are you True Gardeners
in Real Gardens?"
"Rose are Red
Violets are blue
I am a gardener
And you are too"
http://www.suite101.com/welcome.cfm/tasmanian_gardening
http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/3411
http://members.tripod.com/~klok/WRINKLY_.HTM
