Volunteer Bush Regeneration Training
Bushcare Essentials - Beginners
When starting bush regeneration as a Bushcare Volunteer many feel there's a lot to learn.
Council recognises the importance of volunteers knowing the basic principles behind bush regeneration, plus the safety measures and hazards to avoid when doing Bushcare.
Therefore there is training recommended when you have begun volunteering and have a basic knowledge of what's involved being a Bushcare Volunteer. You will need to book yourself into Bushcare Essentials - Beginners training within the first two years of volunteering. You may be sent a letter recommending you attend.
The Bushcare Essentials - Beginners course covers:
- a brief overview of OH&S requirements
- weed control approaches
- maintaining and managing habitat
- keeping simple records
- awareness of relevant legislation
- minimising impacts on the environment
- identifying environmental threats and hazards
- understanding and protecting your site values
Before attendance, the required preparation is to read the manual and answer the training questions. The morning will cover the topics and the questions and answers. The afternoon is more hands-on as you learn some correct techniques for treating weeds.
Upon completing your training you earn a Statement of Attainment for the module 'Natural Area Restoration' from TAFE NSW. This certificate is recognised nationally.
The Bushcare Essentials-Beginners course for 2011 has already been hosted, but it will run again at the beginning of 2012, if you are interested then let us know and we will keep you informed.
Bushcare Officer Ph: 9936 8258
Bushcare Essentials - Advanced
Saturday 13 August
Enrol now for Bushcare Advanced Training-2011
Just when you thought you knew it all the next level of training is Bushcare Essentials - Advanced.
It's a must for the experienced volunteer.! The comments below illustrate how this training develops a holistic view of the efforts of volunteers and introduces new developments in the evolution of bush regeneration. You may be sent a letter recommending you attend.
Bushcare Officer Ph: 9936 8258
Volunteer Feedback - what was said about the training?
Bushcare Essentials - Beginners
"I felt very privileged to be able to participate in such a well organised and informative training session. The volunteers that participated in the course can take this further knowledge to individual Bushcare sites and help train other volunteers"
Lynne SheridanTunks West Bushcare group
Bushcare Essentials - Advanced
"Mark was a great presenter and it was good to be reminded of some of the basics and to learn his interpretations of some of the established beliefs."
Gerri NicholsShellbank Bushcare group
"So much was packed into the Advanced Bushcare Essentials training and all credit is due to experienced bush regenerator and teacher, Mark Walters, who was the excellent presenter of the Ryde TAFE course.
It was a balanced mix of theory and slides and later, a stroll through the park's remnant bush where we tried to apply what we'd learned and to identify problematic areas and how they could be fixed. We learnt about 'resilience' - a key concept - defined as the ability of a site to bounce back to a condition similar to before its disturbance.If it is too degraded, for example, with poor soil and seed bank, and few pollinators and wildlife, then it is often wiser to go elsewhere where time and energy will be better spent.
To me, an initial and thorough analysis of a site seems to be the all-important first step before any work is ever attempted. Many and varied, and often costly, are the techniques used to revegetate the Australian bush today. They range from the type of things we volunteers do on our sites, to massive projects such as in outer western Sydney where heavy machinery is used to sow seeds, dig trenches and impregnate the verges of new highways.
Yet the concepts behind much of it, we learnt, still go back to those first basic principles that the Bradley sisters devised to restore some battered bush in Ashton Park, Mosman, in the '60s and which are now the practice of bush regeneration. The advanced training made me realise that what we as bush regenerators do is far more than weeding or planting. It is an acknowledgement that Nature's Ways are mysterious and we have to tune in to the ecology of the bush in order to act in a restorative capacity. The course taught us many practical ways to do this and the mindset it requires.
Finally, some hints that 'stuck':
- The top 2cm of soil is where the seed bank lies.
- Your aim should be to walk off your site (having restored it).
- OH&S issues: Bushcare, like Forestry, is classed as a very dangerous industry.
- The second highest cause of injury in Bushcare work is Manual Handling.
- If transplanting, ensure that similar soil and site conditions prevail to where you are transplanting.
- If you come across a lone species of weed, pull it out. You might have prevented an infestation.
- Always examine deliveries of stock tube for weeds, especially flick weed.
- Bush Regeneration should be enjoyable for you.
I went home feeling that my eyes had certainly been opened wider! Thanks North Sydney Council for this training opportunity."
Margaret Ryan volunteer since 1997 at Forsyth Park Bushcare group
