Workshops with a native seed focus
The native plants that make up the arid-zone landscapes are well adapted to the region. Despite this, one in four are under threat, competing with introduced and fast spreading invasive species for water and nutrients.
Attendees at two native seed workshops at Mt Little and Quorn in March this year heard how seed collection can be used to revegetate and regenerate land.
Ecologist Ben McCallum, of Flora Sight, specialises in South Australia’s Indigenous flora and is a former Quorn resident and SAAL Landscape Board employee. He shared information on the collection, processing and storage of native seeds, information on the required permissions and work health and safety considerations.
Providing a practical demonstration of seed collecting, Ben provided insight into how household items can be used to collect seeds. These included the use of a vacuum to collect grass and laying tarps around trees to avoid needing to sift the seeds from dirt. He spoke about cleaning seeds using air flow and how to best store them to prevent damage from moisture and insects.
During the presentation, Ben asked that consideration be given to preserving the native plants when collecting seeds. Limiting your collection to 10 per cent of a plant’s seed growth will allow the remaining seeds to spread naturally through the landscape.
The events were supported by the North Flinders and Port Augusta-Quorn Landscape Groups and attendees provided positive feedback about the workshop, and expressed further interest in learning more about the propagation of seeds, weed control methods, in-depth plant identification and the planting out process of seeds.
- Story by work experience student Natalia Kemp
