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November 2019 newsletter

FRIENDS OF SOUTH SURREY PARK NOVEMBER 2019 NEWSLETTER Sunday Working Bee - 24th November, 10.00 - 12 noon It is the end of the year and we have had a very productive time planting, mulching and weeding our beautiful park.   For our last working bee we will be in the park below Delta street where there is a load of mulch waiting for us to distribute around the plants we have freed from weeds. It is a most satisfying task to release our indigenous plants from being strangled by introduced weeds and then protect them from drying out in the summer.  Children really enjoy putting mulch down. Everyone is welcome to come to Delta Street at 10.00 am wearing strong shoes and being prepared for any weather. At twelve o'clock we will be gathering together at David and Jenine's house for our traditional end of year barbecue lunch.   Bring your own meat and drink and either a salad or desert to share.   Jenine is happy to have you leave your food before the working bee if that suits you. Co-coordinator is Peter Hannay - 0412 183678 Sunday Working Bee Report - 27th October Saturday October 26 had been stormy, wet, windy but at times sunny. Sunday was a much more pleasant day. While it was overcast and the humidity was high, no wind made working in the park a quite a peaceful experience. Nine members returned to the area we were at last month.  The aim was again to weed close to the indigenous plants planted years earlier and then spread mulch over the weeded section close to the native plant. Everyone found their own place down the slope, concentrating on removing just the weed species such as onion weed and ehrharta. Again, members found this approach to weeding satisfying as they felt their efforts were having a more significant impact, assisting the indigenous plants to thrive and minimising weed growth for some time to come.  Pam Welsford October working bee co-ordinator. Tuesday Toilers We had a most enjoyable morning with Peter at the Willsmere Billabong and alongside the Yarra river.   Peter Tucker, Biodiversity Sites and Re vegetation Officer from Boroondara showed us how the replanting he has organised over many years has changed the nature of the billabong and river side.   At one spot this is very obvious as one side of the path beside the Yarra is completely weedy and the other side is beautifully clothed with indigenous trees, shrubs and grasses.   Another one of the many  interesting sites we visited was where there has been extensive growth of young river red gum saplings following a flooding event.  Hanging in the trees here are some impressive bird boxes made from logs. The sun shone and the whole trip was delightful. The last picture above shows the group enjoying lunch at Olive Lane in Doncaster Road, Balwyn North. Tuesday Toilers will finish the year with Adrian Hotchin giving a presentation on grasses on Tuesday 17th December.   They will resume work on Tuesday 4th February, 2020 General News Committee Meeting - The Committee met on 6th November and, among other issues, discussed plans for next year which is exciting as it is 25 years since the group formed and work began in South Surrey Park. We hope to have our AGM in September as usual and National Tree Day in early August. Aspect Group- We have had two sessions of weeding with the group in the small garden below Delta Street.   It looks so much better now and one more session will see it completely free of weeds.  We will have our last session for 2019 on  11th December and resume on 5th February, 2020. It is great to have our new volunteer, Phyl Halpin, joining us each fortnight. Thank you Phyl. End of Year - As summer is now here, we will not be working in the park on Sundays until March. The next newsletter will appear in your inbox in late March giving times and venues for work to recommence. In the Park this month - Dianella admixta or Black Anther Flax Lily In our park we have three species of Dianella - dianella admixta,  dianellal longifolia and dianella tasmanica. There has been an outbreak of a thrip which damages the flowers and results in reduced seed set in many parts of the wider  Melbourne area.   Naomie Sunner alerted us to this threat and we do have it in the park.  Tuesday Toilers have sprayed the flower buds with white oil on Naomie's recommendation and we hope this has helped to reduce the impact of this thrip - Anaphothrips carlylei. This thrip causes every affected flower bud to show moderate to severe distortion and much of the affected parts darken into a curled mass of underdeveloped flowers which linger on the plant for a very long time. Only about 20% of flowers bear fruit. Dianella's are buzz pollinated so we hope our native bee population is up to the task of ensuring at least some berries form. Membership of Friends of South Surrey Park You can join in the work of the group and contribute to running expenses by becoming a member. If you would like to become a Friend of South Surrey Park you can find the application for membership form at the end of this newsletter. Facebook and South Surrey Park website You can see some of what is happening in the park on Facebook and South Surrey Park website.     Work in South Surrey Park is brought to you through the efforts of the Friends of South Surrey Park, a voluntary group working with the local community, City of Boroondara and Melbourne Water.  For information about your local Park, contact any committee member below.   Pam Welsford (President) - 9830 5178  - pamwelsford@gmail.com Ursula Povey (Vice President) - 9836 6149 -  ursulapovey@gmail.com Maggie White (Secretary) - 9888 4479 - john_maggie@hotmail.com Lyn Read (Treasurer) - 0408377668 - lynmread@gmail.com Jenine Fleming - 9830 7767 - fleming.jenine@gmail.com Peter Hannay - 9830 5493 - phhannay@bigpond.com