Restoring our whenua with original Tāmaki Makaurau plants

On Thursday the 31st of July WasteWise, Kaitiaki and the trappers got their gloves on and their shoes dirty to plant 200 native trees along the northern boundary of our school.  We planted 10 different kinds of trees, including mahoe, akeake, mānuka, kawakawa, māpou, harakeke, karo, black matipo, five finger and hebe.

To protect the longevity of the trees we gave each one a fertilizer tablet. Plant guards were also necessary to protect against the naughty pukekos and rabbits  that live around Western Springs. Finally, we covered the surrounding area in mulch, safeguarding against weeds and keeping the ground moist for the baby trees. It took us both period 1 and period 2 to plant all 200 plants, thankfully we had plenty of enthusiastic volunteer help from the students, Ms Hickey, Paula Marx, Whaea Stacey and Whaea Alice. 

Huge thank-you to Auckland Council Sustainable Schools team who supplied all the native plants. They have also been generous enough to offer another 200 plants next year, which we will plant continuing along the boundary.  We look forward to watching our Ngāhere grow.

Kway Hardy – Wastewise