Contact: David Cooney – Manager of Open Space and Environment for the District Council of Mount Barker
Project: Annual community planting program (e.g. National Tree Planting Day)
David Cooney, Manager of Open Space and Environment for the District Council of Mount Barker has been utilising Corflute tree guards from Arborgreen for community planting programs and local revegetation projects over several years.
The National Tree Planting Day in particular, is a popular annual event in which the council encourages and supports. It is an event relished by local schools and community groups in Mount Barker and its surrounding areas as it teaches children about the importance of trees within their community and encourages them to be involved by looking after their local environment, being active and enjoying the outdoors.
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David said that the children in particular like to use the Corflute tree guards because they are easy to install, don’t require much to assemble and are not easily damaged when handled.
“We teach kids how to hold the guards and hammer in the stake. You don’t have to be an adult to install the guards.”
He said the key benefits of using the Corflute tree guards include:
- Reusability – The corflute guards can be removed after they have done their job and reused time and time again. Their simple design allows for easy storage through to the next season.
- Protection for the plants – The rigid design with straight edged base ensures foraging animals cannot access the young seedlings giving them the best opportunity to flourish
- Providing greater opportunity for the plants to grow – The corflute guard provides additional protection from the wind and frost which is inevitable in the Adelaide Hills regions during planting season
- Allowing for grounds maintenance to continue – The impermeable, solid structure of the corflute guard ensures protection to the seedling from whipper snipping and weed spraying around its locality enabling regular grounds maintenance to continue even when planting young stock
The council uses the Corflute tree guards for multiple sites (8-10) each year. Their experience over the years is that the survival rate is high amongst the plants that are protected with the guards compared to those that are not.
David believes that “The survival rate of their plants when protected by the Corflute guard has to be at least double than not using guards.”
With easy installation and the cost effectiveness, the Corflute Tree Guards ensure that the time and resources invested into planting projects in the council area are not lost. David and his council colleagues will definitely continue using the guards for all planting projects including National Tree Planting Day.
