Conservation is very much on the agenda at the Webb’s farm. "Though our large south-eastern paddock is very visible from the road, over half our land area is remnant / regrowth forest. This is an interesting reflection of our priorities - we like agriculture and are happy to call our place “the farm” but equally we have a deep love and respect of how mother nature runs things in her area. We’re currently organising a title covenant with Trust for Nature that will protect these precious hills and valleys."
Quite a lot of that regrowth area has benefitted from decades of benign neglect and is thriving, with little weed incursion and abundant fora and fauna. Up until recently it has been shielded by a 16 acre wedge of impenetrable blackberries on our North-Western boundary, near the old Jam Tin dam and PMG track. A few years back they re-established access tracks and funded blackberry spraying along the Southern aspect of that valley. Thanks to the JARR project funding and generous help from Yarram Yarram Landcare they have further rehabilitated this large area with more spraying and will be revegetating with eucalyptus seedlings this spring to augment the blackwood and wattle, and hopefully thicken the forest canopy. They have excluded stock from this area for over a year now and their aim is to help it return to something resembling benchmark flora for it’s location and aspect. "We have HVP as neighbours on our Northern and Eastern boundaries. Northern is plantation Eucalypt and we have been advised it will be logged in 2014. We have approached them, asking for an extended buffer to be left along that boundary as it runs along ridges above some of our cool temperate rainforest valleys. They have expressed a willingness to do so and asked that we approach them again closer to the logging date, which we will do - armed with maps, documents and a risk assessment backing up our case. We feel it’s essential to maintain these buffers as we have seen a similar valley on our Eastern boundary dry out after the recent pine logging. " The Wonyip Landcare Group’s Quoll corridor (on HVP’s land) currently terminates right up against the Webb's Southern corner (next to Turton’s track at Woorarra road). "We’re currently cooking up a plan to fence and revegetate a corridor on our place along that South Western / Western border right up to our remnant bush. This would also connect the Quoll corridor to the HVP's eucalypt plantation at our rear which is part of Cores and Links ( a landmark decision between the Victorian Government and HVP to protect remnant rainforest) and should be revegetated after it’s logged in 2014. Our corridor plan will be prepared over the next few months and we plan to go hunting for some funding at that point." "Our land title has 8 acres on the high side of the Woorarra road (below the Spittles). That has sadly devolved progressively into a bit of a mess but thanks to much vocal encouragement from local landowner and fellow member of the Wonyip Landcare Group, John Kosta, we are planning on addressing the appalling blackberry problem there and revegetating that also. It could form a useful link with our neighbors, the Spittles, revegetation and therefore through to the Dingo Creek “gorge” on their western side." - Peter, Melissa and Keith Webb.-- BACK TO COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT - HOW WE DO IT |