Back to Bush

Since we moved in almost 3.5 years ago, we've been wondering what to do with the area of our land that we call the "back paddock". It isn't fenced and it's quite steep - not easy to mow with a ride-on mower. It has very poor grass and although not too soggy in winter, the earth does tend to crack in summer. We considered pigs but we don't dislike our new neighbours that much and goats would need better fencing. Luckily nature has taken the decision for us.

We noticed recently that there are lots of manuka saplings taking hold and growing well. In the light of that, the logical option seems to be to let the land return to bush. I hardly dared to read up on regeneration techniques, fearing that the preferred option of letting it re-grow naturally wouldn't be feasible. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that we can leave the land to its own devices and still expect some success, providing we take some steps to protect and encourage the emerging native species. This article in the NZ Listener debates the pros and cons of the passive regeneration method.

We have an area of native bush to the south-west of the back paddock which I think is the source of the manuka saplings which can be seen in the centre picture below (the ones with the little white flowers). I've also been slowly planting out some more diverse species along the edge of the lawn - coprosmas, puka, hebes, kaka beak, cabbage trees and so on. We protect and encourage the birds which will spread the seeds of the native plants by poisoning the possums and letting the grass grow long. We're hoping to have some bees soon too which will help the pollination process.

The most invasive plant species (particularly the convolvulus) is sprayed regularly and I hope to go out and use some herbicide gel to attack a few tobacco plants, sapling pines and other intruders. Leaving the grass long in the back paddock will have helped the existing seedlings to grow and those will now provide shelter for new seedlings. Eventually, when we have more time to get out on the land, we should be able to add to the diversity of the area by planting a wider range of native species. I hope that within the next five years, this will be more like bush than paddock. Watch this space!