Monthly weeding sessions for 2022: We will start at 9.30am and finish at 12pm. We meet at the Kāniwhaniwha Reserve carpark. Everyone is welcome to attend.
Monthly weeding sessions in 2020: We start at 9.30am, go through to 12pm. All welcome
Third Thursday Thrasher – Thursday 20th August! Let’s do something different! Meet at the Kāniwhaniwha Reserve from 1pm (to 3pm) and do some weeding in the Reserve itself. Hope to see you there.
Third Thursday Thrasher – Thursday 16th July. At the risk of sounding repetitive, let’s go back to removing the bind weed up the Nikau Walkway. Remember, It’s about half way along the Nikau Walkway and quite a large area. As it’s school holidays, children are welcome, bring some snacks and water for them. Let’s try from 12pm – 2pm, unless it’s pouring with rain. Hope to see you there.
Third Thursday Thrasher – Thursday 18th June. Unfortunately, due to the heavy rain last month, we didn’t make much progress on removing the bind weed up the Nikau Walkway, so let’s go back there this month. It’s about half way along the Nikau Walkway and quite a large area.
I can’t make it this month, so how about anyone that is willing and able to, can go whenever they can – you don’t even have to do it on Thursday! : ) As ever, gloves and secateurs would be useful.
2019: Final weeding for this year is Sunday 9th December. Meeting at the Kāniwhaniwha Reserve 9.30am to 12pm. See you there.
2018: Community planting day for our group on Sunday 16th September which is the first Sunday of Conservation Week.
We will start at 9.30am and aim to finish about 12pm. As there are only 600 plants to get into the ground, I’m sure that will be enough time. Come prepared for changeable Spring weather, even though we have put an order in for sunshine, with raincoats and pants. Wear your boots (make sure your boots are clean so we are practising good biosecurity hygiene), bring your favourite spade to plant with, and water to drink.
Look forward to seeing you there.
Te Pahū Landcare Group Weedbusting Workshop. Sunday 12th August from 9.30am to 12pm at the Kāniwhanwha Reserve. Ben Elliot, Pest Plant Officer for WRC will provide information on tools, herbicides and techniques for dealing with weeds such as woolly nightshade, tradescantia, blackberry and more. All welcome. Please RSVP to Nardene and if the weather is really bad, we can go indoors if necessary.
Monthly weeding session for July is Sunday 8th July. Meeting in the Kāniwhaniwha Reserve carpark at 9.30am. Bring along your weapons of destruction, although there will be some grubbers available for those that would like them, gloves, water, snacks, etc. The forecast is for rain, so wear appropriate clothing. Look forward to seeing you there!
Weeding in 2017:
July’s Second Sunday Shredder was going to be our annual planting day, but the ground is too wet to get the plants up to the planting site, so we are delaying our planting day to Sunday 27th August, so no weeding Sunday 9th July.
Meet 9am on Sunday 27th August at the Kāniwhaniwha Reserve carpark, Limeworks Loop Rd, to walk to site. Bring spade, water, and snacks. Wear sturdy shoes and suitable clothing for planting in all weather. Sausage sizzle upon completion with thanks to DOC. Look forward to seeing you!
May’s Second Sunday Shredder is Sunday – 14th May, which is bad timing, considering it’s Mothers Day – but hopefully some people will still come along. Perhaps you could give your mother a rest and come weeding with us on Sunday while she stays home and reads a book? Just an idea. : )
We will meet at the Kāniwhaniwha Reserve Carpark and tackle the Montbretia near the stream down the far end of the Reserve. More info about Montbretia here.
Bring along spades/grubbers to dig out bulbs. A drink, snack, gloves, hat, sturdy footwear – you know what you need.
Remember come along if you can, whatever the weather, weeding will be on, even if it’s pouring down, so up to you and how you feel on the day.
9.30am – 12pm Sunday 14th May.
April’s Second Sunday Shredder is the 9th April and we will go back to the Nīkau Walkway, so hope to see you there. Remember a drink, hat, tools, gloves and wear sturdy footwear. We will meet at 9.30am in the Kaniwhaniwha Reserve Carpark and work through till 12pm. Hope to see you there.
We had a great turnout at our first weeding of the year in February and had a satisfying time pulling weeds from under a kahikatea stand on Te Pahū Road, managing to clear the whole stand! It was a job well done, and thanks again to those that came along.
For March, we decided to tackle the weeds along the Nikau Walkway, as the blackberry and bind weed are starting to impede access as well as smother the native plantings.
If you have a grubber, do bring that along, as well as gloves and long-sleeved pants and top. Other weapons of destruction that could be useful include lopers and maybe a rake would be handy too.
Remember a drink, hat and wear sturdy footwear. We will meet at 9.30am on Sunday 12th March in the Kāniwhaniwha Reserve Carpark and work through till 12pm. Hope to see you there.
The first Second Sunday Shredder for 2017 is on the 12th February. We will tackle the weeds in the kahikatea stand on Waikoha Station right beside the curvy bends on Te Pahū road. Access is down Wright Road, turn left into the farm race and follow down to the stand. Bring gloves, lopers, a drink, and wear sturdy footwear. 9.30am to 11.30am. Hope to see you there.
Dates for 2016:
Second Sunday Shredder in October is 9th October, and considering the rain we’ve been having (and forecast to get), it would pay to bring your tallest gumboots, rain jacket and rain pants on Sunday, as well as tools for weeding. We’re meeting on Grove Road (north end) to go into the Karamū Reserve and will see what we can do, given the weather forecast. 9.30am to 11.30am Sunday 9th October. Hope to see you there.
Come along and support the local Te Pahū landcare group with our monthly weeding session on Sunday 11th September from 9.30am to 11.30am at the Kāniwhaniwha Reserve, Limeworks Loop Road. Bring gloves and implements of destruction (spade, rake, loppers, grubber etc). We will be working within the Reserve itself, as there is some blackberry to deal to, and some Montbretia to dig out.
Bring a drink and picnic and/or your bikes and afterwards you can enjoy a well deserved break by the stream where your picnic will taste all the better after your good work, and then you could bike along the Nīkau walkway to the campground and bike the loop track, or bring a torch and explore the Kāniwhaniwha caves.
Family friendly and will happen whatever the weather, so come prepared. Children who participate can get a ‘Explorer’ medal.
Look forward to seeing you there.
Just a reminder that our annual planting day is this coming Sunday 22nd May 2016. Meeting at 9am at the Kaniwhaniwha reserve carpark, we should be finished by midday.
We will be planting at the DOC campsite up on the base of Mt Pirongia (at the end of the Nikau walkway) this year, due to being unable to access the other side of the river. We will also have enough plants to do some infill planting along the Nikau walkway along the way. Bruce from DOC will lay out the plants and mark out the areas with tape, so we can find them easily on our way up to the campground. Please wear walking boots/gumboots, bring clothing for changeable weather (although the forecast at this stage is for a sunny day), a water bottle, snacks, gloves and your favourite spade. Feel free to forward this message onto others that may be interested in helping too. Many hands make light work, and we have around 500 plants to get in the ground this year.
Bruce will also have a sausage sizzle and hot drinks available up at the campground for after planting, so it would be great if you can let me know if you’re going to come to the day so we can cater for sausages please. To RSVP or any questions, email me. Many thanks, Nardene.
A reminder that we’re going back to the Karamu Reserve to pull out the Jerusalem cherry and privet that we are hoping is still able to be pulled out. Bring some gloves and lopers and we’ll see if we can clear the dry part. We will meet outside the paddock at Slim and Viv’s place on Grove Road. Hope to see you there. Tomorrow, Thursday 10th December. 4pm- 6pm.
Instead of having a Third Thursday Thrasher in November, we’re going to have a social function instead! Thursday 19th November. Bring your family and some picnic food and drink, meet at the Kaniwhaniwha Reserve from 4pm (to 6pm-ish) and we will go down to Tony’s memorial seat and have a festive evening. Hope to see you there.
Then for the final Third Thursday Thrasher of the year, we will change it to the SECOND Thursday instead and go back to the Karamu Reserve to pull out the Jerusalem cherry and privet. Bring some gloves and lopers and we’ll see if we can clear the Jerusalem cherry on the dry part. We will meet outside the paddock at Slim and Viv’s place on Grove Road. Hope to see you there. Thursday 10th December. 4pm- 6pm.
You are invited to the Te Pahū landcare group meeting, Tuesday 10th November 7.30pm to 9.30pm at the Te Pahū School Den.
For October’s Third Thursday Thrasher – Thursday 15th October – let’s go back to the Karamū Reserve and check on the weeding we did awhile ago, and do some more. It’s a nice month to visit the Reserve, as the kowhai are in flower. Bring some lopers and a rake, if you have one, as we can rake up the tradescantia and cut down the Jerusalem cherry and privet. Now that it’s daylight saving, let’s meet from 4pm – 6pm, unless it’s pouring with rain, and then it’s pretty sheltered under the trees, so should still be okay. We will meet outside the paddock at Slim and Viv’s place on Grove Road. Hope to see you there.
As the weather was atrocious this morning, we made the executive decision to postpone our annual planting day to next Sunday (27th September) instead. Same time, at 9am from the Kaniwhaniwha Reserve carpark and same deal as before, with a sausage sizzle to end the planting around 12pm. Bring a spade, drink bottle and wear suitable clothing.
We have 1500 plants to get in the ground, so please consider coming if you can. Please let others know that might be interested and hope the weather will be a bit kinder to us this time!
Third Thursday Thrasher – Thursday 20th August! Let’s do something different! Meet at the Kāniwhaniwha Reserve from 1pm (to 3pm) and do some weeding in the Reserve itself. Hope to see you there.
Third Thursday Thrasher – Thursday 16th July. At the risk of sounding repetitive, let’s go back to removing the bind weed up the Nikau Walkway. Remember, It’s about half way along the Nikau Walkway and quite a large area. As it’s school holidays, children are welcome, bring some snacks and water for them. Let’s try from 12pm – 2pm, unless it’s pouring with rain. Hope to see you there.
Third Thursday Thrasher – Thursday 18th June. Unfortunately, due to the heavy rain last month, we didn’t make much progress on removing the bind weed up the Nikau Walkway, so let’s go back there this month. It’s about half way along the Nikau Walkway and quite a large area.
I can’t make it this month, so how about anyone that is willing and able to, can go whenever they can – you don’t even have to do it on Thursday! : ) As ever, gloves and secateurs would be useful.
Waikato Botanical Society field trip
Pirongia Forest Park – Nikau Loop and Schofield Route
18th April from 9:00 am – 4:30 pm
A walk through lowland podocarp / broadleaf forest via a little used route. The quickest way to get the the Kāniwhaniwha Camp Site is by bicycle (20 minutes from Reserve Carpark) otherwise it’s a 45 minute walk from the car park. The ridge that we will follow heads off from the Southern End of the Nikau Walk. The ridge is not marked but reasonably easy to follow. If we have time we will come back down the old Schofield route otherwise we will return the way we came. We aim to get out of the bush by 4:30.
Meet: Kāniwhaniwha Car Park (Karamu Limeworks Road) at 9:00 or Kāniwhaniwha Camp Site at 10:00
Grade: Medium – Hard Date: April 18
Time: 9:00 am – 4:30 pm Organiser Kerry Jones
Phone: 07 855 9700 or 027 747 0733
Events in and around Te Pahu 2014:
Annual planting day – Sunday 31st August 2014. Meet 9am at the Kāniwhaniwha Reserve.
The farm discussion group and landcare group are having a discussion day on Wednesday 23rd April 2014 at Rick and Doneghue’s farm, Arthur Road. Covering such topics as rearing replacements and Riparian planting. The Landcare group, Waikato Regional Council and DairyNZ will have expert and experienced people available to answer your questions. Please RSVP to Nardene for catering purposes.
Events in and around Te Pahu 2013:
Waikato Botanical Society report– Karamu Bush Reserve, Te Pahū
, Saturday 12th October 2013
Our visit to Karamu Bush was unfortunately limited on the day by very high water levels in the adjacent stream. But still a hardy few turned out disregarding thunderstorms over Hamilton, and the rain did hold off while we botanised. We were only able to access the fenced reserve edge and the higher ground of a small peninsula within a stream bend. The canopy within the reserve consists mainly of totara, including some very large multi-stemmed individuals, intermingled with kahikatea, ribbonwood, kowhai, tanekaha, pokaka, miro and matai. A subcanopy is formed by mahoe, cabbage trees, lacebark, swamp mahoe and pigeonwood. A single large black maire tree remains leaning over the stream and was unfortunately inaccessible on this visit. Interestingly, on the high ground we found a diversity of native understorey species while in contrast it has been noted on other visits that the flooded areas are predominantly a thick carpet of Tradescantia flumenensis. Some introduced hawthorn, Jerusalem cherry and native karamu have grown through the Tradescantia ~0.5m thick mat but little else has established on the floodplain which in flood becomes inundated up to nearly 2m deep in places. The higher ground was thick with understorey shrubs, predominantly native, including mahoe, mapou, kawakawa, Leucopogon, several small-leaved Coprosma species and Melicope simplex. A few native sedges (Carex) and grasses were found and the native vines pohuehue and Parsonsia, some large specimens of the latter grow up into the canopy. Epiphytes are present, particularly in the large totara, although the wet conditions were not ideal for canopy survey. Some epiphytic Drymoanthus orchids growing on the reserve edge provided some photographic interest growing amongst ferns, Astelia and Collospermum.
We discussed that a strategy for weed control could be to work outwards from the high ground, rolling back Tradescantia and allowing native seedlings to establish from the existing understorey. The hawthorn sub canopy trees on the floodplain could be removed along with several privet shrubs and the Jerusalem cherry on the high ground.
Karamu Bush Reserve species list:
Trees, shrubs and vines | |
| Alectryon excelsus | titoki |
| Berberis sp.* | barberry |
| Coprosma arborea | mamangi |
| Coprosma areolata | |
| Coprosma areolata | |
| Coprosma rigida | |
| Coprosma robusta | karamu |
| Coprosma tenucaulis | |
| Cordyline australis | ti kouka, cabbage tree |
| Dacrycarpus dacrydioides | kahikatea |
| Elaeocarpus hookerianus | pokaka |
| Hedycarya arborea | porokaiwhiri, pigeonwood |
| Hoheria populnea | houhere, lacebark |
| Kunzea ericoides | kanuka |
| Leucopogon fasciculatus | mingimingi |
| Ligustrum lucida* | tree privet |
| Ligustrum sinense* | Chinese privet |
| Lonicera japonica* | Japanese honeysuckle |
| Macropiper excelsum | kawakawa |
| Melicope simplex | poataniwha |
| Melicytus micranthus | swamp mahoe |
| Melicytus ramiflorus | mahoe |
| Muehlenbeckia australis | pohuehue |
| Myrsine australis | mapou, red matipo |
| Nestegis cunninghamii | black maire |
| Parsonsia heterophylla | native jasmine |
| Phyllocladus trichomanoides | tanekaha, celery pine |
| Pittosporum eugenioides | tarata, lemonwood |
| Plagianthus regius | manatu, ribbonwood |
| Podocarpus totara | totara |
| Prumnopitys ferruginea | miro |
| Prumnopitys taxifolia | matai |
| Rubus fruticosa* | blackberry |
| Sophora microphylla | kowhai |
Herbs, sedges and grasses | |
| Carex secta | |
| Carex virgata | |
| Microlaena stipoides | |
| Solanum pseudocapsicum* | Jerusalem cherry |
| Tradescantia flumenensis* | wandering willie |
Epiphytes | |
| Anarthropteris lanceolata | |
| Asplenium flaccidum | hanging spleenwort |
| Astelia solandri | perching lily |
| Collospermum hastatum | |
| Drymoanthus adversus | |
| Earina mucronata | bamboo orchid |
| Microsorum pustulatum | hounds tongue |
| Pyrrosia eleagnifolia | leather-leaf fern |
*Denotes non-native species
Working bees to release plants corner of Smith and Te Pahu roads:
Friday 17 May 1.00pm and Saturday 18 May 10.00am
Nikau Walkway planting Conservation Week 2013: Sunday 8 September
Events in and around Te Pahu 2012:
Thank you to everyone who came along on Sunday 9th September 2012 for planting along the Kaniwhaniwha Stream on the 1st Day of Conservation Week this year. We planted over 1,000 trees in the rain, hail, thunder and lightening (and sunshine)!
Events in and around Te Pahu 2011:
Working bees to release plants corner of Smith and Te Pahu roads
31st July, 29th October and 27th November
10am meet at Grove Road
Clearing Day at Karamu bush concentrating on privet, Jerusalem cherry and other pest plants in the area previously worked on Saturday 14th May, meet on Grove Road Saturday and Sunday 10/11 September Nikau Walkway Planting (Sat) and celebration of the re-development of the picnic area and the 10th anniversary of planting (Sun)
Thanks to everyone who helped with the annual Nikau Walkway planting day on Saturday 10th September 2011. One thousand plants were planted! Thanks to all the hardy souls who braved the rain and attended our 10 year celebration on Sunday 11th September 2011. The plants loved the rain!
Sunday 30th May Planting day at Smith Road 10am meet at Grove Road Tuesday 29th June Water Quality Field day 10am meet at the Hall Sunday.
Summary of the Improving Catchment Water Quality Field day in PDF below:
Events in and around Te Pahu 2010:
11th July Under planting at Kāniwhaniwha Reserve 10am meet in the carpark.
Events in and around Te Pahu 2008:
“Ask the Scientists” a networking evening where you can get free scientific information on pests and predators, plants, weeds, water quality and waste, or ask advice on ecological issues for your project.
Thursday 10th July at the Hamilton Environment Centre.
Kāniwhaniwha planting day Sunday 8th June 9.30am – 2pm BBQ provided.
Karamu Reserve weeding, either Sunday 7th September OR Sunday 19th October
10 – 12pm Te Pahu Landcare Group AGM Tuesday 7th October 7.30pm
Awards:
In 2009, at the Environment Centre’s Green Xmas, the Te Pahū Landcare group was honoured to win the Community Group Award which came with a prize of “environmental advice from a team of NIWA scientists for up to four hours”.
In August 2008 the Te Pahū Landcare Group was awarded a Waipā District Natural Heritage Award, for “Contribution towards the advocacy and safeguarding of Waipā’s natural heritage”.
The prize was a book: Ghosts of Gondwana: The History of Life in New Zealand by George Gibbs
Available for loan to the Te Pahū community, please contact landcare@tepahu.co.nz to organise.