ENM JOINT PROJECTS
Sometimes ENM gets asked if the network of groups rather than individual groups could be involved in developing projects for the area and that is where the Coordinator's role helps.
Coming soon will be the:
 Native Plant Guide for Urban Wildlife Gardens
The group of voluntary experts Jonathan Proctor, Helmut Janssen, David Havell, Vivienne Nicholls, Charles Foulds, Jane Carver, Helena Margeot, Rochelle Viles and Peter van Essen with the support of Colin Macpherson and Terry Andres have been developing a list of local native plants and appropriate zones for the city area of Palmerston North. The Palmerston North City Council have offered to publish the guide when it is completed.
It is planned that the local Nurseries and Garden Centres will start to hold more "ecosourced" native plants for gardeners wanting to encourage our local "biodiversity".
 Terms:
Ecosourced means having local plants that have adapted to a particular area and are suited to that area's soils, climatic, ecological and geographical conditions. The plants growing naturally in areas known as Ecological Districts have similar plant characteristics of resilience. It is like having family from a particular area and though the distant relatives may be of the same heritage they have adapted to different conditions. For example, kowhai, found throughout New Zealand, has different flowering times and the local ones cope with our drought and wet periods much better than plants sourced from other regions.
 Biodiversity is a term that means the variety of living forms and again these are ones that have adapted to the plants and habitat of a particular area. The living forms range from the smallest of bacteria and fungi in the soils, soil organisms, invertebrates or bugs and spiders to the more obvious birds, lizards and plants. The range is meant to be diverse and our indigenous range of living forms needs our help here locally to protect or enhance as there is so little left after all of the clearance for agriculture when what grew or lived here naturally was not as well appreciated as it could have been. Working with what you have that has adapted to the conditions is much better than "fighting nature!"
Encouraging Sustainable Households
The Workers Educational Association (WEA) requested ENM to organise a series of talks and workshops on environmental topics and Sustainability in homes is what the series will be about. Topics on Energy use in the home, Healthy travel about town, Healthy building choices for DIY, Better shopping - less waste and Gardening and composting at home were offered in 2005 and provided practical help and assistance with overcoming barriers to making better choices for ourselves and our bigger home, the planet. See the website: www.sustainablehouseholds.org.nz for more information about what you can do.
Experts helping out with these five talks and five workshops were Professor Ralph Sims, Dr Robyn Phipps, Dr Christine Cheyne, Alan Fielding and Anna Brooking.
They were extremely informative and useful with top quality speakers.
|
)
)
)
)
