Green Space Our Place - Volunteers Voice - Issue 14 - March 2017

Green Space Our Place

Our Volunteers Voice

Issue 14 March 2017

New faces for a new year

Botanic Garden news

Volunteers recognised & celebrated

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Our Volunteers Voice

Front Page: Volunteer Morning Lee with a Crinoline Stinkhorn fungus.

Back Page: Stoney Creek frog in the Watkins Munro Martin Conservatory.

In this issue: • From the Editor, Louisa Grandy - Page 2 • Volunteer Profile, Jude Friesen - Page 3 • Photo spread - Pages 4-5 • Around the Gardens with Curator, David Warmington Page 6 • Friends of Cairns Botanic Garden News - Pages 6-7 • Volunteers recognised and celebrated - Pages 8-9 • Birds’ beak (bill) shape adaptations to exploit food sources, Jennifer Muir Pages 10-11 • Your plants will survive and thrive in wet or dry - Page 12 • Resident volunteers enhance McGregor Road - Page 13 • Feathered Friends - Page 13 • Plant Information Mycorrhizal Fungi, Barry Muir - Page 14 • Volunteers Voice newsletters and where to find them on the Net - Page 15 • Back Page - What’s On.

This newsletter is published quarterly, showcasing articles and photographs of volunteer activities throughout Council’s green areas.

From the Editor Welcome, Our programs began in a wet week with our volunteers enjoying the damp conditions - our nature enthusiasts love to see the benefits these rains bring to the tropics with everything growing at a phenomenal rate including the weeds!

Volunteers numbers continue to grow with the phone ringing throughout January and February despite the very hot weather! All groups are being supported with another 12 new volunteers registered already this year.

One of our new members, Morning Lee, is pictured on the front page with one of the Crinoline Stinkhorn fungi that has come up since the rain. Keep an eye out for interesting fungi and send in your photos (including the underside) with a date and location - there is plenty of interest among the volunteers.

In this issue I talk with Jude Friesen, who has been a Friend of Cairns Botanic Gardens since 1992, and volunteering her time to input plant data on the Cairns Botanic Gardens Plant Collection Database for the past three years.

Thanks Jude for taking time out to share your enthusiasm for the environment.

As usual the newsletter is full of photos of happy volunteers enjoying their time in Cairns ‘Green Spaces’. There is also plenty of information about flora and fauna with Barry Muir contributing an interesting article about Mycorrhizal Fungi. Jennifer Muir has submitted an article on Bird Beaks after speaking at last year’s Volunteer Information sessions. Thank you to you both for your ongoing support of this magazine. I’d also like to thank our proof readers Sandy Long and Jennifer Muir.

We have a new column ‘Around the Gardens’, where Curator David Warmington will share interesting news happening in our beautiful Cairns Botanic Gardens. David has a fascinating story to tell in this issue.

Check out Page15 showcasing all our newsletters since its inception - we have come a long way in layout and style with the aim to continually promote all that you do.

Louisa

Our Volunteers Voice

Nature lover at heart Jude Friesen lives and breathes the environment both in her career and free time.

After leaving school Jude trained as a horticulturalist in Perth where her family migrated to from Canada in 1974.

Following her studies she spent six years in the horticulture industry in a variety of fields.

“My first job was working in a hydroponics nursery for a plant rental company for six months.

“I then got a position with Perth’s Agricultural Department breeding apples. It takes 15 years to breed a new variety and I was employed during the time the Pink Lady and Sundowners were introduced to the market.”

Jude was also employed as a gardener and lab technician at the Tafe Institute and travelled throughout Western Australia to collect seed for the purpose of creating specialised gardens, representing places such as Broome, and Carnarvon.

“I was also an apprentice under Percy Pleskus, the original Queen’s gardener. We restored heritage gardens and I was the official rose pruner and flower planter for five years.”

After several yesrs working as a horticulturist, Jude decided to change her career path to naturopathy for better financial security.

“I was a self-taught herbalist and decided I wanted to be qualified. However I soon realised I knew more than the trainer, which sounds a bit conceited but I had spent years training myself prior to enrolling. After attending my first lesson in Homeopathy I realised this was my calling.”

Although she changed her career Jude continued to support the environment, becoming involved with many conservation projects such as sand dune restoration at Rottnest Island, and tree growing and planting on salt devastated areas.

“I also volunteered at the WA Herbarium doing data entry, inputting information from plant specimen sheets. It was a privilege to hold the specimens that Joseph Banks pressed himself!”

When Jude completed her homeopathy studies she travelled to India for post grad studies for a few months and fell in love with the tropics.

“This is one of the reasons I came to Cairns as well as to join my sister who was living here.

“I began my own naturopathy business here with gardening as my hobby. I love permaculture and I grow plants for revegetation and am constantly giving them away.”

The freedom of her career allows Jude to spend time with her other joys in life such as exploring the environment.

Jude is an avid birdwatcher and bushwalker.

“I was 15 when I got my first bird book and three years ago I joined John Seale’s birdwatching group. I’ve always loved bushwalking and birdwatching gave it a whole new

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dimension. It tunes all your senses to every sight and sound.

“I love both the cameraderie of the bird group and also spending time on my own birdwatching; it is such a peaceful pastime. It is like meditation and creates a strong connection with nature. Due to becoming in tune with the environment I have built a deep intuition.

I often get an inner knowing to attend a place to see a particular bird at a certain time.

“My involvment with Cattana Wetlands is an extension of my love for birding, restoration and connection with the community. I saw a need for someone to represent the birds and assist Council and the Jabiru volunteers with the correct habitat to encourage more bird visitations.”

Jude has been a member of the Friends of Botanic Gardens, Cairns since 1992 and has been volunteering to work on the Cairns Botanic Gardens Plant Collection Database for the past three years.

“I was a part of the first Friends committee as the street theatre organiser for the Botanic Gardens Festival (now known as Carnival on Collins).

“It was all free in those days and I have fond memories of those performers such as the Three Dollies,” she laughs.

“In three years this committee was able to transform the Friends into a fundraising organisation for the Gardens. We began to spend money to make money and hired Walisuma, the panflutes group as a part of our street theatre.

“We also introduced ‘Jazz under the Stars’ which was a great fundraiser, proving very popular with Cairns,” she recalls.

Jude continues to donate her time supporting the Gardens and Cattana Wetlands.

“The Plant Collection Database is a way for me to support the Gardens on a different level as well as increase my tropical plant knowledge.

“My latest project of studying grasses for Cattana is another thing I’m passionate about,” she says enthusiastically.

Pictured right: at the launch of the Birds of Cattana Wetlands sign, an initative by Jude, BirdLife Australia and Council.

Supervised groups

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1. Down ‘n’ Dirty volunteers lived up to their name on their first day of 2017 in soggy conditions; 2. New faces Christina Storm and Aude Meiffredi at Cairns Botanic Gardens; 3. Down ‘n’ Dirty volunteers Peter and Diana Tuke snacking on some Blood Bananas - Musa zebrina; 4. Cairns Botanic Gardens’ horticulturalist Chris Thompson has been a great support to the Down ‘n’ Dirty volunteer program; 5. Jabirus and Conservation Volunteers Australia (CVA) take cover during a heavy downpour at Cattana Wetlands 6. Thang Mana Ling weeding at ‘Salties’.

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Hot and wet conditions don’t deter our volunteers with new faces appearing on a regular basis

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7. New Down ‘n’ Dirty volunteers Brad Munro and 8. Kane Sherrin 9. Olivia Pearse weeding at Saltwater Creek; 10. Jabiru Trevor Parsons pleased to have finished burying the smelly Tilapia found on the banks at Cattana; 11. Cleaning up after transforming a Bromeliad bed, Down ‘n’ Dirty volunteers (from left) Sandy Long, Aude Meiffredi and Leonie Sequeira; Stratford Nursery volunteers weeding - 12. Sharren Wong and Nursery Team member Andrew McInnes, 13. Jeff Pretty, 14. Volunteers Support Officer Sarah Gosling; Saltwater Creek ‘Salties’ taking a break from weeding; 15. Saltwater Creek ‘Salties’ at the end of a very wet morning of planting;

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Our Volunteers Voice

Around the Gardens Curator David Warmington

Friends fund visit from Lae

The Friends of the Botanic Gardens were pleased to assist in bringing the curator of the Lae National Botanic Gardens, Mr Michael Lovave, to Cairns for a two-week study tour late last year.

Cairns Regional Council, James Cook University, the Australian Tropical Herbarium and the PNG Forest Research Institute also supported the visit.

During his stay Mr Lovave informed Friends members of the actions taken in the last couple of years to re-open the Lae Botanic Gardens and explored ways that volunteers might assist in enhancing the gardens.

Assisting Chemical Weapons Institute While the Cairns Botanic Gardens are not in a position to engage in scientific research projects, we are able to assist other organisations as the caretakers of this amazing collection of tropical plants.

Many requests for seed or plant material come through the Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) organisation.

Recently we received a request from the University of Helsinki for seeds of Abrus precatorius, GideeGidee or Crab’s Eye Vine. I have always known these seeds to be deadly poisonous if crushed and ingested. The active ingredient Abrin is one of the most deadly toxins known to man.

Upon enquiring about what they were doing with the seed I was informed they would go to VERIFIN, the Finnish Institute of Chemical Weapons. My initial fears were quickly allayed when I learnt VERIFIN supports the disarmament of chemical weapons by the development of identification methods for chemical warfare agents.

Their research is working on the ricin toxin from the Castor Oil plant which is listed as a prohibited toxin by the Chemical Weapons Convention. Abrin is similar to ricin and their research is to investigate the differences between the two potent toxins and the associated antibodies raised against each poison.

Curators Michael Lovave (Lae Botanic Gardens) and David Warmington (Cairns Botanic Gardens) discussing the identification of a rare Canarium.

Mr Lovave presented an overview of the Lae Botanic Gardens advancement program at the Cairns Botanic Gardens Visitor Centre, the Australian Tropical Herbarium and the Australian Institute of Horticulture’s international symposium.

More than 24 public and private sector organisations contributed approximately 750,000 kina of in-kind support toward the regeneration of the botanic gardens in Lae; however, they do not have an organisation like the Friends of Botanic Gardens Cairns who volunteer on a weekly basis in the gardens.

Peter Hitchcock (consultant), Fanie Venter (consultant), Frank Zich (curator, Australian Tropical Herbarium), Michael Lovave (curator, Lae Botanic Gardens), Gerry Turpin (ethnobotanist, Australian Tropical Herbarium), David Warmington (curator, Cairns Botanic Gardens), Darren Crayn (director, Australian Tropical Herbarium), Janet Gagul (PhD student, Australian Tropical Herbarium), Gary Wilson (associate, Australian Tropical Herbarium), Peter Shanahan (Volunteer Education Guide, Cairns Botanic Garden).

Our Volunteers Voice

Gardeneers’ trolley plant sales every Wednesday

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Catching up with Friends

by President Val Schier Fabulous Fundraising We were delighted when Jazz under the Stars and the Carnival on Collins Plant sale on the first weekend last September raised over $10,000. The December annual Christmas plant sale brought in another $4,000 and our partnership with End Credits to deliver Starry Nights cinema yielded almost $5,000. A wonderful effort by the Gardeneers, committee members and other helpers.

Review of the Gardens

The Friends’ Gardeneers hold trolley plant sales every Wednesday morning from 9.30-11.30am outside the Friends House. Member Lois Hayes pictured above.

Guided tours underway

John Siemon, the Curator/Manager of the Australian Botanic Garden in Sydney, was in Cairns in September conducting a review of the Gardens for Cairns Regional Council. Friends members were amongst the various stakeholders who met with the reviewer to discuss ways we thought could improve our Gardens and raise them to the next level as a significant tropical Botanic Gardens.

Native bees Committee member Odette Aspinall’s proposal that the Friends purchase a hive of native bees for educational purposes in the Gardens was accepted enthusiastically by the Curator. The hive will be located in the Aboriginal Garden.

Big thank you Norma Norma Wright has resigned from the Committee. and stocking product for the Friends House shop. I’m sure all members will join with the committee in thanking Norma for the many efforts she has made over the years. I noticed she is still doing her bit in the Wednesday morning Down n Dirty group. It’s good to see that she is continuing an involvement with the Friends and Gardens.

Is there a member who would like to take over Norma’s role in the shop? It is an interesting one sourcing products that will sell well to visitors. Norma is prepared to assist in handing over this responsibility.

Visitor Guides, from left: Del Van Mierlo, Trevor Morris, Jenn Muir, Barry Muir, Norma Wright and Colin Batch.

Friends’ Visitor Guides are underway for the year with free tours for small or family groups leaving the Friends House at 10am Monday to Friday. Larger groups of 16 (or more) are required to book ahead. These larger tours have a minimum charge of $80, catering for 16 guests with extras at $5 per person. These tours can be tailored to the group's requirements and timing. To enquire phone 4032 3900 or email fobgcairns@bigpond.com.

Wednesday Evening Talks A really good turnout of members and visitors enjoyed Gary Wilson’s talk about his experiences in Malaysia over the past couple of years. Barry Muir’s talk on fungi also attracted a lot of interest as did Paul Richardson’s talk on coconuts. Watch out for the 2017 series of talks.

Membership renewal time The cost has actually gone down!!

You will be pleased to know that the membership fee has been reduced to $15 so get your memberships in.

Our current membership is 196.

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Our Volunteers Voice

Volunteers recognised and celebrated

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Recognising our volunteers each year is important to us at Green Space Our Place with an annual Christmas celebration.

1. Peter and Charles; 2. Alex (centre) with Olivia, Judy and Sofia; 3. Del and Donna; 4. Diana, Jenn, Evelyn (raffle winner) and Bill; 5. Sharren, Diana and Colin; 6. Guest speaker Cr Cathy Zeiger gave a passionate speech; 7. & 8.

Celebrations in full swing;

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9. Volunteers Supervisor Louisa presents Jenny Martin with a 25 Years of Service certificate; 10. Friends patron Dr David Rentz receiving his 10 Years of Service certificate; 11. From left, Sanswhe, U Win, Peter, Charles, Esplanade Sandpipers supervisor Brad and Bill; 12. guest speakers volunteers Pat and Lee and 13. horticulturalist Dean gave praise for the Green Space Our Place volunteer program.

Our Volunteers Voice

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Our Volunteers Voice

Birds’ beak (bill) shape - adaptations to Down ‘n’ Dirty volunteer Jennifer Muir gave an interesting presentation for our volunteers at the October Volunteers Information Session last year. This article is Part 1 from that presentation.

Birds have evolved to exploit almost every food source available. They’ve adapted to reduce competition with other species, thereby occupying their own niche in their (and our) shared ‘big wide world’.

One of these adaptations is bill shape.

Birds’ bills, which comprise horny upper and lower mandibles paired together, vary greatly in size and shape as can be seen in these drawings.

This considerable variation enables birds to take different foods from within their habitats. Thus bill size and shape is a good indicator of feeding method, food type and, quite in the mid and upper strata of eucalypt and paperbark forests and woodlands. often, habitat preference.

Using the drawings as a guide, lets look at some of the Surface skimming – Skimmers (three species varieties of bills. In this edition of Green Space Our worldwide, Africa, North and South America, India) Space I will explain the first eight groups shown in the There are no skimmers in Australia. Skimmers are the drawings. In the next edition I will write about the last only group of birds with a lower mandible longer than the upper mandible. They fly close to water with the lower two sets of drawings. mandible cutting the surface. When the lower mandible Generalist – crows, currawongs, butcherbirds strikes a small fish or shrimp, the upper mandible clamps (naming some of our North Queensland examples) down tightly. The bird then flips the prey out of the Generalists, such as crows (Torresian Crow) and water and swallows it without missing a wingbeat. It then currawongs (Pied Currawong) scavenge for carrion. lowers its lower mandible into the water again for more.

And like the butcherbirds (Black Butcherbird), they have bills adapted for an ominivorous lifestyle, thus they eat Mud ‘probing’ – Avocets fruits and seeds, and take insects and other small animals In Australia, we have the Red-necked Avocet, but it is not including reptiles, frogs, crustaceans, birds and eggs. generally found in the wet tropics. Closely related to the They have powerful bills to enable them to make short stilts, it has long legs enabling it to wade in deeper water, if desired, than some other waders, thereby increasing work of their prey. its feeding opportunities. Avocets feed mainly by wading Insect catching (insectivorous) – flycatchers, and sweeping their part-opened bills from side to side swallows, woodswallows through water or soft mud. Sometimes they will stir with Among our NQ insect catching birds are the Satin, the bill.

Shining, and Leaden Flycatchers. With similar bill shape, Grain eating (granivorous) birds – finches, these birds take similar foods (insects), but occupy mannikins, introduced sparrows different niches. For example, the Satin Flycatcher Birds that feed on grains, such as finches and sparrows, mainly feeds in the upper strata of tall forests. Shining generally have simple, cone-shaped bills adapted for Flycatchers feed in the lower strata of shrubberies, gathering or splitting seeds. In North Queensland, we rainforests and mangroves; and Leaden Flycatchers feed

Our Volunteers Voice

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exploit food sources - an introduction by Jennifer Muir have several native finches, including Star, Crimson, Redbrowed, Double-barred, Black-throated and the related Chestnut-breasted Mannikin, as well as the introduced Nutmeg Mannikin.

Coniferous-seed eating – Crossbills (several species in North America, Europe, Africa, Asia) Crossbills, of the finch family, have similar sized upper and lower mandibles, the tips of which extend and cross each other, hence the English name for the group. The birds use these extended crossed bill tips to prise seeds from pine cones, moving from one coniferous forest to another to find the cones.

Probing – ibis, curlew, whimbrel, sandpipers, godwits, stilts and many other waders Probing bills come in many shapes and sizes on birds of many shapes and sizes. Some bills are long and down- or up-curved. Some are fine and straight. Some are short.

Some are thick. Some are only slightly up or downcurved.

These variations enable numerous species to feed successfully in the same wetland habitat, be it tidal mudflats, shallow water, saltwater inlets, freshwater creek or lakes. All probing bills probe, but to different depths depending on habitat and length of the bill.

The Australian White and Glossy Ibises have sensitive, long down-curved bills which they probe into water and mud to find aquatic insects, crustaceans and frogs.

Straw-necked Ibises probe for insects in both wet and dry pasture.

Filter feeding – flamingos Birds living in unusual environments and limited to a specialised diet, often develop unusual bill shapes and other adaptations to fit into their particular environment.

Flamingos have done this with their unusual filtering bills with specialised, thin horny ‘lamellae’, long necks and legs, and a unique feeding style. Their bills are hooked and they feed with head upside down, the upper mandible bottom-most and the lower mandible pumping the stirred-up mud into the mouth. The lamellae sieve the water pumped from the mouth by the fleshy sensitive tongue, enabling the birds to feed on minute diatoms and algae.

Although there are no flamingos in Australia, several Australian waterfowl, such as Radjah Shelduck and the Australasian Shoveler also obtain their food by sieving, but not upside down like Flamingos.

Photographs by Jennifer Muir, from top: Insect catching, Shining Flycatcher; Mud ‘probing’, Red-necked Avocet; Grain eating, Crimson Finch; Probing, Eastern Curlew

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Our Volunteers Voice

Your plants will survive and thrive in wet or dry Better water management message

“In order to achieve this, we are working with commercial premises to reduce their water consumption and we’re auditing our own infrastructure to identify leaks and wastage, as well as taking the Thrive message The Thrive advertising campaign was rolled out as a part to households. of Cairns Regional Council’s strategy to reduce water “There are little things that all of us can do every day demand in line with Council’s long term Water Security to reduce water wastage,” Cr Manning said. “If we can accurately track our water usage, we’re likely to be more Strategy. thoughtful about how much we use.”

The television commercials feature Ginger and her backup singers belting out a rendition of the Gloria Gaynor hit “I Will Survive”, spreading the message that plants can thrive “in the wet and in the dry” without excessive watering.

Most Cairns residents will have seen the tropical plants and flowers breaking into song and dance to educate Cairns residents about outdoor water use since the end of last year.

thrive.cairns.qld.gov.au

Although Cairns has been receiving some much needed rain over the past month it doesn’t always fall in the catchment. Council continues to advertise the Thrive message to ensure residents are educated in better water management throughout the wet and dry seasons.

Mayor Bob Manning said: Thrive follows on from the successful Green Sponge campaign and is backed up by an informative website and free mobile app.

“The previous campaign had been running for a decade and a lot has changed in that time,” Cr Manning said.

“The Thrive campaign specifically targets water use in the garden, as that is where a lot of water wastage occurs.

“People often underestimate just how resilient native plants are to the changing seasons. In most cases, they need less watering than you think.

“The free mobile app will help people work out how much water their garden really needs and to choose plants that are less reliant on watering.”

The campaign stems from the recommendations of the Cairns Water Security Advisory Group, which was formed in 2014 to investigate options for increased water supply and better water management.

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The group provided a series of recommendations based on short, medium and long-term actions, including the implementation of a Water Demand Strategy.

“On average, our daily water consumption is nearly 420 To find out more about the campaign and how much litres per person,” Cr Manning said. “We are aiming to water your plants need to survive, visit thrive.cairns.qld. reduce that by 10 per cent over 10 years. gov.au (note: no www) or download the free mobile app.

Our Volunteers Voice

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Feathered Friends

Buff-breasted Paradise-Kingfisher Carolyn Scott and Nick Mauger planting on a rainy day in January

Resident volunteers enhance McGregor Road Resident volunteers have transformed a section along McGregor Road, Mooroolbool.

Trees on this verge have had to be continuously pruned by Ergon over the years due to overhead power lines, leaving many trees in bad shape (poor structures and regrowth and rot).

Resident Carolyn Scott (pictured above in the raincoat) contacted Green Space Our Place in 2016 with the idea to improve this street verge in front of her home. This inspired a second

resident to become involved, Nick Mauger (pictured in the orange vest) a supervisor with the Conservation Volunteers Australia Green Army.

Some of the poorly structured and diseased trees were tagged and removed by contractors organised by Council.

Volunteers have replanted with suitable plants provided

by Council, and weeded and mulched the area.

Well done and thank you to Carolyn and Nick and Conservation Volunteers Australia staff. Fantastic effort!

Conservation Volunteers Australia (CVA) ‘Green Army’ lend a hand to replant sections along McGregor Road.

Termite mounds are home to more than just termites.

Dotting the landscape across much of northern Australia, these features are home to a dazzling array of wildlife, but few are more spectacular than the Buffbreasted ParadiseKingfisher.

Jennifer H Muir

These colourful birds with long, white tail-streamers nest almost exclusively in termite mounds in northeastern Queensland’s rainforests. They excavate a tunnel into the side of the structure, with both birds of a pair taking turns at digging. The female is even said to sweep out the dirt with her tail!

Up to four eggs are laid in a chamber at the end of the tunnel, straight onto the bare dirt. Like most birds that nest in hollows, the eggs are always white.

Away from their nests, Buff-breasted ParadiseKingfishers are usually heard more often than they’re seen. Their call is a loud, piping chop-chop-chop, given as they perch inconspicuously among the dense foliage of the rainforest.

They also forage in the canopy, sometimes hovering like hummingbirds as they snatch insects and other invertebrates, as well as frogs and small lizards, from among the leaves. It has also been suggested that they may sometimes dig for worms among the leaf litter on the forest floor, as they’ve been seen with soil stuck on their beaks.

After the breeding season, usually around the end of February, they migrate north to spend the dry season in New Guinea, sometimes stopping for a break on islands in the Torres Strait. They generally do not return to Queensland until October or November, when breeding starts almost straight away.

John Peter

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Our Volunteers Voice

Plant Information: Mycorrhizal Fungi

Importance of fungi to our plant life

By Barry Muir

There are basically three types of fungi: Saprophytes which decompose organic matter and turn it into food for plants and animals; Parasites/pathogens that grow on plants or animals and cause diseases; Mycorrhizae (from the Greek mykos = fungus and riza = root) are a close association between a fungus and a plant to which the mutual benefit of both.

It is believed the plant and fungi associations have been around for at least 400 million years and that the presence of the fungi probably allowed the first plants to begin to colonise land. It is also thought that roots may have evolved to provide suitable accommodation for the fungi.

Evidence of growth with (left) and without mycorrhizal fungi. Source: Internet

flower earlier and produce higher yields; The association with plants is complex. Basically the • provide protection from attack by soil-borne fungus extracts minerals and water from the soil and pathogens; passes them to the plant, and the plant passes sugars that • buffer against toxic levels of elements on it has made using photosynthesis, back to the fungus. contaminated land; • increase a plant’s ability to tolerate environmental Fungi also store nitrogen and pass this to the plant during stresses; hard times. Both benefit from the arrangement and, although most plants will grow without the mycorrhizal • improve soil structure (particularly in degraded soils); • allow survival of many kinds of seedlings that would fungus, many struggle to survive. otherwise never compete, in effect increasing plant Mycorrhizae also play other roles. They: diversity.

• reduce transplant shock when plants are moved; • extend the growing season and plants grow larger, Plants that use mycorrhizae include nearly all the rainforest trees and shrubs, eucalypts, melaleucas and acacias, timber trees, fruit and nut trees, grapes, almost all vegetables and salad plants, palms, most garden flowers, all cacti, cereal crops, ferns, and grasses including all forage grasses and sugarcane.

In fact, it is estimated that about 80 percent of all the plants on the planet are dependent on mycorrhizal fungi. Without mycorrhizal fungi, food production would drop dramatically in just a year or two.

Microscope photo of chemically stained mycorrhizal fungi growing inside a plant root. Source: Internet

Unfortunately over-fertilising, use of fungicides and pesticides, and overcultivation, destroy or damage the mycorrhizal fungi and usually do more harm than good in the long-run.

Green Space Our Place

Our Volunteers Voice

2014

ce a l P 2015 ur O e ac p m S o c n . e u e r su s G i . t w u o w b w a t l l a a rs d e a e e t R volun Basil growing with and without mycorrhizae. Photo from the Internet

2016 Cairns Regional Council - Parks & Leisure

Issue 11 - June 2016

Green Space Our Place

Green Space Our Place

Our Volunteers Voice

Green Space Our Place Our Volunteers Voice

Our Volunteers Voice

Award winning ‘Little Taccas’ New volunteer programs Become involved with your local park, reserve, trail or botanic garden Parks & Leisure Issue 12 - September 2016

Read all about Green Space Our Space volunteers at www.issuu.com

Machans Beach Park improvement plans

Issue 13 December 2016

Esplanade Success on ‘Sandpipers’ the Tracks begin ‘n’ Trails

Annual Field Day Pictorial

What’s On

• Bird Walks: John Seale’s free tours are held every Tuesday, leaving the Friends House at 8.30am.

• Friends’ ‘Gardeneers’ Trolley Plant Sales: every Wednesday morning from 9.30am-11.30am outside the Friends House.

Pre-Easter Sale on Sunday 9 April from 8am until 12noon in the amenities building behind Friends House.

• Garden Guided Tours are held Monday to Friday leaving from the Friends House from 10am. Contact the Friends House 4032 3900 for further details.

• Friends’ Wednesday Night Gardens Talks are held the 2nd Wednesday of the month from 6pm.

• See latest workshops and events on Cairns Botanic Gardens’ and Friends’ websites and Facebook pages.

Friends of the Botanic Gardens, Cairns Membership details email fobg@bigpond.com or telephone 4032 3900.

Newsletter Contributions: Please submit articles (must be volunteer or nature based) by May for the next quarterly publication in June.

Email: l.grandy@cairns.qld.gov.au. Please note articles are subject to editing.

Like us on Facebook to keep up to date with all events: - Green Space Our Place - Cairns Botanic Gardens - Friends of the Botanic Gardens

Interested in Volunteering?

There is something to suit everyone.

• Friends Visitor Guides.

• Public Relations & Shop assistance in the Friends House.

• Tuesdays - Cattana Wetlands Jabirus 9am-noon.

• Wednesdays - Botanic Gardens Down ’n’ Dirty Volunteers 9am-noon.

• Thursdays - Esplanade ‘Sandpipers’ 9am-noon.

• Thursdays - Stratford Nursery 9am-noon.

• Fridays - Saltwater Creek ‘Salties’ 9am-noon.

• Weekends - Botanic Gardens Visitor Enhancement volunteers • Children’s Nature Activities Program - Little Taccas

Green Space Our Place Interested in becoming involved with your local park, reserve or trail in your community? Contact us to register as a Council volunteer and be involved in beautifying your park (enhance planting, weed management, litter clean-up), reporting on issues (graffiti and vandalism, anti-social behaviour, maintenance issues) and building community participation (networking activities) with Council support.

If you are interested in supporting any of our weekly groups or volunteering in your local area please contact Volunteers Supervisor Louisa Grandy 4032 6648 or 0429 983 252.