Samantha Lisle and Lucy Sykes, year eight, Braemar College
Term three has been busy for a group of year eight students at Braemar College who worked in partnership with Newham Landcare to plant 180 indigenous plants at the school’s Woodend campus.
This project was a part of a community service initiative to replenish an area of the Cobaw Biolink.
Students got to work with Newham Landcare volunteers, Jim Sansom and Penny Roberts, who provided practical help and expertise, as well as donating plants to the cause.
The Cobaw Biolink is a vital way of linking the Macedon Ranges to the Cobaw Ranges and is maintained by local landowners and landcare groups. It provides a network of wildlife habitats to encourage migration of native animals, birds and insects.
Braemar’s boundary encompasses a section of the Cobaw Biolink where the planting was introduced 14 years ago. By planting these trees and shrubs, students were contributing to developing different layers of the forest to provide habitat for a wider range of native species.
Although the Biolink is designed to regreen farmland, individuals living in towns can also contribute to the wellbeing of native species. Planting your garden with consideration to the native wildlife is an important step to take to maintain urban and suburban biodiversity.
As a cat owner herself, Braemar environmental captain Ella also urges pet owners to be responsible.
“A cat will kill, on average, 110 native animals a year,” Ella said.
“Keeping your pets safely inside can be one of the biggest steps you can take to maintaining a healthy backyard ecosystem.”
