SA’s Yankalilla Community Nursery one of Australia’s first Bushfire Recovery Nurseries

The Foundation for National Parks & Wildlife has awarded one of three Bushfire Recovery Nursery grants to Yankalilla Community Nursery in South Australia.

In partnership with global non-profit, One Tree Planted and French beauty brand, L’OCCITANE, this is the first stage in FNPW’s mission to plant one million trees over the next five years in response to the horrendous 2019/20 bushfires.

The grant awarded to the District Council of Yankalilla will extend the capacity of its current nursery by 25,000 seedlings, to plant a total of 40,000 trees. This will be a major step in supporting the recovery of the Mount Lofty to Kangaroo Island Connection. The funding will also provide essential resources such as fencing, nursery benches, hygiene and plumbing and potting structures.

Corey Jackson, the Coastal Conservation Officer at the District Council of Yankalilla, said “It’s a privilege to support FNPW’s mission to plant one million trees over the next five years. Our ultimate goal has always been to plant and restore native vegetation and this grant will ensure we can expand our scope to regenerate even more land affected by the bushfires.”

The Yankalilla Community Nursery was established to grow local native plants for coastal community projects and species recovery, with a separate compound provided by the District Council of Yankalilla for volunteers from the Normanville Natural Resource Centre to expand vegetation growth.

A key focus for the community nursery will be to grow the Drooping She-oak and associated plants as part of the habitat and food source recovery for the Glossy Black Cockatoo. Once common on the Fleurieu Peninsula, the cockatoos are now found only on Kangaroo Island and were heavily impacted by the recent bushfires.

Mr. Ian Darbyshire, Chief Executive Officer for the Foundation for National Parks & Wildlife.said: “Yankalilla Community Nursery will play a significant role in our mission to restore our national ecosystem. Tree planting is essential for the regeneration of our future and plays a vital role in restoring natural habitats, native vegetation and wildlife rehabilitation efforts across Australia.”

FNPW has awarded grant funding to three nursery locations to date including Yankalilla Community Nursery, SA, Greening Australia, ACT, and Hawkesbury Community Nursery, NSW. Trees will be planted in national parks across Australia, as well as other public and private lands affected by bushfires

Since 2015, FNPW has also worked on its initiative “Plant a Tree For Me’ in response to the progressively degrading environment. A donation of $10 will plant and maintain one tree in a Bushfire Recovery Nursery.