From thousands of seeds, nurtured by a crew of dedicated volunteers, plants carefully crafted by Lithgow and District Community Nursery have become part of the local landscape.
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Plants are used by organisations including local councils, Roads and Maritime Services (RMS), Landcare, resorts, mines and quarries for revegetation projects and bush regeneration.
The nursery on Coalbrook Street, Lithgow, is something of a hidden treasure.
It turns over about 30,000 plants a year.
Not only does the team of volunteers tend their seedlings for projects, they also breed stock to be sold to the public.
And they are keen to raise the profile of this service, which offers native plants and flowers as a solution for everyday gardens in Lithgow.
“We have introduced a few more species recently that are suited to home gardens,” manager Alan Oliver said.
“We would like local residents to buy local native plants. You find that local plant species survive better, they are more suited to the climate and to hard frosts, which we certainly get.
“All the plants we grow are local and tough for the conditions.”
Among the attractive natives being sold for gardens are grevilleas, waratahs, bottlebrushes and tea trees.
The nursery is open for sales to the public from on Fridays, Mondays and Saturday mornings* and offers tube stock for sale for $2 each.
“We only sell natives.”
At the moment the team is planning for a large order for the RMS for regeneration of an area at Clarence following work on a bridge that will include 12.500 plants.
The mix of trees and shrubs required will have plenty of time to mature before they would be needed, even allowing for the very slow growth rates over the winter months.
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Seeds are gathered and carefully stored in large refrigerators, each packet carefully labelled not only with species but the exact location from which the seed came.
The aim is to make sure only species native to that particular area are returned during regeneration projects.
The site is staged to allow for the different needs of growing plants, including heat beds for winter and a series of polytunnels and shade houses before they are allowed to spend some time in the open “toughening up” before they are planted.
*NOTE: The nursery will be closed for two weeks over Christmas and will reopen January 7.
Kirsty Horton
A journalist with 15 years of experience, Kirsty Horton has been the editor of the Lithgow Mercury newspaper and a journalist for mastheads including the Great Lakes Advocate, Nambucca Guardian News and Moree Champion. She is now a member of ACM's features and special publications team.
A journalist with 15 years of experience, Kirsty Horton has been the editor of the Lithgow Mercury newspaper and a journalist for mastheads including the Great Lakes Advocate, Nambucca Guardian News and Moree Champion. She is now a member of ACM's features and special publications team.
