The Friends of
Shenton Bushland
Inc.
How will we find our wild hearts inside this city;
How will we find the deep peace?
A. Stevens
Bushland Activities page (blog)
Bushland Management Strategies
Individual Management Strategies:
Management Strategy for Freesia (Freesia sp)
Risk: Freesia is considered a high risk weed species in Shenton Bushland. It is very difficult to control in natural bushland and can spread quickly. It competes with small native herbs and bulbs. Can seed prolifically.
Distribution: The distribution of Freesia in Shenton Bushland was first mapped in 1998. At that time it was found in four large areas - the degraded area in the north, an area of good bushland in the south, along paths in the west, and in health department land in the east.
Strategy for control
The priorities for control are:
- Remove isolated small infestations - especially where they occur in areas of good bushland.
- Work around the perimeter of larger infestations to reduce their size.
Methods for control:
- Hand removal (ensuring that bulbs are taken out) where plants are isolated
- Chemical control for dense infestations
- Seed head removal - where other opportunities for control have been missed
Hand removal is best done when soil is moist. A knife of narrow tool for removing bulbs is required - taking care to minimize soil disturbance. Do not continue hand removal once cormels form along underground part of stem.
Chemical control is best done by spot spraying at (or
just before) flowering time (late August).
Chemical used: Glyphosate
Concentration: 1:100 water
Seed head removal is done in October.
Currently Friends of Shenton Bushland have obtained funding for spot spraying by contractors of Freesia throughout the bushland
Spraying in 2002 - $9500 was spent on Freesia spraying:
In 2003 a further $4015 was spent on Freesia and Lachenalia control:
Monitoring:
- Updating distribution map - should be done annually if possible
- Freesia transect
Distribution of Freesia was mapped in 2003:
