28/01/2025
Hello All – To support the Riverfront Body Corporate Committee, we thought it prudent to provide an update on the activities of our community Landcare/Land for Wildlife group. As we are all painfully aware, the developer/previous body corporate left us with an overgrown and unmanaged green space (the common area between our complex and the residence behind our complex at #17 Stewart Rd), so we took the initiative to establish the Landcare/Land for Wildlife group to ensure the complex has a coordinated approach to our responsibilities as land managers of this area.
Landcare:
• Invasive Weeds
o In 2024, we targeted the invasive and restricted vines choking our trees in the riparian space (along the creek and river). This is a hands on/minimal herbicide project in which we work tree-by-tree to cut the vines, then use minimal herbicide by hand painting the vine crown to avoid regrowth.
o In 2025, we’ll expand this to include the invasive, highly flammable, non-native monoculture of Guinea Grass that is the green space. As this is also a valued ‘habitat’ area for our native fauna as well as a recreation area for the complex, we intend to manage the Guinea Grass in 2 ways: 1) reduce the height of the Guinea Grass (by hand, by whipper snipper) to an appropriate and manageable height (and one in which you won’t lose a small child!) and 2) over time, replace the Guinea Grass with native Blady Grass. Although flammable, Blady grass has a small, balanced role in the landscape and a place in the ecology where it binds soils and stream banks helping them resist erosion due to its extensive underground rhizomes. It can be easily slashed during periods of high fire danger and will quickly regrow and flower. Ref: https://qldnativeseeds.com.au/plant-profiles/imperata-cylindrica
• Creek Clean Up
o Community working bees to clear rubbish from our creek throughout the year.
• Fire Risk Mitigation
o Based on consultation with Fire & Rescue who advise that they do not fight fires under easement lines (smoke=carbon=fire) and therefore would not action a fire in our green space between the Energex easement lines and the Creek, we are implementing a Fire Risk Mitigation project to 1) implement a ‘fire break’ (mowed area) under and following the Energex easement lines and 2) ensure plantings supporting Land for Wildlife projects are fire retardant plants.
Land for Wildlife:
• Pale Headed Rosellas Project – We applied for and received designation as a Land for Wildlife property and received grant funding for a specific project to support habitat for the Pale Headed Rosella. Work will begin shortly to install nesting boxes on timber poles within the Energex easement area. This location was chosen as competing birds won’t necessarily nest under power lines leaving it to the shy and timid Pale Headed Rosella. Plantings at the base of the timber poles will be fire retardant plants to support the Fire Risk Mitigation project.
All members of the Riverfront community are welcome to join the Landcare/Land for Wildlife group and/or volunteer when we have working bees. Notices of working bees will be posted on the Riverfront Owner’s What’s App group, the Riverfront Community page and the Riverfront Landcare page…or contact Lea Barrett (unit 17) via any of these pages if you’d like more info.
Imperata cylindrica has become a w**d in countries where its a naturalised, exotic invader. In Australia however, as a native grass, it has a small, balanced role in the landscape. It has a place in the ecology where it binds soils and stream banks helping them resist erosion. This is an effect of t...
