Sarah has a background in terrestrial ecology with a focus on botany and restoration. She has headed numerous impact assessments and management plans, and watched restoration of native forest, from farmland to birdsong, first hand.

Sarah is passionate about freshwater and marine ecosystems, and loves seeing what landowners can do to improve water quality and habitat for native fishes and other aquatic life.

From rugged coastlines and the fertile ring plain to steep eroding hill country, this region sees a wide variance in climate, soil and land use. There is a strong riparian planting program led by the regional council and increasing interest in native regeneration on marginal farmland.

Smaller landowners, community and iwi groups are demonstrating a commitment to native planting and working hard to do their bit to enhance and protect our biodiversity for generations to come.

Commonly used coloniser tree species for the region:

Every site is different, and we all have varying capacities, knowledge and experiences.

Sarah can help with site-specific planning, from preparing the land and reducing problematic pest plants, to planning what species to plant in what area (is it damp? Is it exposed? How tall will it get?) and, very importantly, a maintenance plan to make sure all your hard work pays off with high survival rates and quick canopy closer. It can take a few seasons to learn what works well, and every season will be different so be prepared for experimental learning too!

Contact local nurseries at least a year ahead of planting, even if just to express your interest, so you can assess their stocks and species selection. Have as much of a plan as you can prior to making a call – this will increase your confidence and give the nursery more information.

Trees That Count supports eco- sourcing: plants should be grown from seeds collected from naturally occurring vegetation close to where they are to be planted. Not only does this help maintain your area’s natural uniqueness, but the plants will be suited to local conditions and more likely to survive.

New Plymouth:

Hawera:

Patea:

These nurseries may also stock plants from outside your region so you will need to ask specifically about their eco-sourced stock appropriate to your location.

Every site is different. Some may require several years of weed control prior to planting and others may only need a pre-plant spot spray or spot clearance with hand tools. There are a lot of tools available to make the job easier: mostly knowledge!

There’s plenty of expertise on hand to help you deal with weeds before and after planting.

Predator control is also important to consider. Check out Predator Free NZ’s resources and contact the Taranaki Regional Council about subsidised traps. The efforts each of us take on our own land make incredible cumulative impacts, so don’t overlook the importance of this!

Your nursery may be able to help with soil advice, if needed. Also think about mulch and weed mats; fencing and stakes; and labour for planting. If you have a big site, and many hundreds or thousands of trees planned for planting in a season, we can work together to plan a community planting day.

If you’d like to review further information, the following guides might be useful to you:

CONTACT SARAH:

Mobile 021 0820 4503

Email : [email protected]