Weed, Seed or Mulch to Improve Woodland at The Fair – 19 October
Wallaby Grass and other native grass seeds like these will be scattered on bare soil patches at The Fair, to improve the habitat for wildlife on the morning of the third Sunday in October.
Assist nature – join the Friends of Mt Majura working party and help spreading grass seeds in the nature reserve east of The Fair.
We will loosen the soil at selected sites to make it receptive for the seeds, remove any competitive weeds such as Paterson’s Curse, and scatter light mulch on top of direct-seeded sites to hold the seeds in place.
Choose your pet activity: weed, seed or mulch.
When: Sunday, 19 October 2025, 9 am – 12 noon.
Where: meet at the nature park entry Tay / Ian Nicol Streets, The Fair North Watson; view this map.
Bring: Sun protection, garden gloves if you have them; we provide seeds, buckets for collecting mulch, tools and gloves and a delicious home-made cake for morning tea.
More information secretary@majura.org
Wildflower Walk Sunday 12 October 2-4 pm
Common Fringe-lily Thysanotus tuberosus one of the beautiful wildflowers you may see when walking on Mount Majura this spring.
Photo courtesy Canberra NatureMapr.
Join plant ecologist Michael Doherty for an information-packed walk, through grassy woodlands on the lower slopes of Mt Majura.
Meet: at Mt Majura Nature Reserve entrance carpark, Mackenzie St near Grayson St, Hackett. For details and map: www.majura.org
Bring: sun protection, water, sturdy boots, camera and a gold coin donation for an updated list of plant species for Mt Majura. The updated list is now available here.
One of the new additions to the Flora list is the beautiful orchid, Yellow Hyacinth Orchid Dipodium hamiltonianum, previously called Dipodium interaneum, found on Mt Ainslie and pictured in our May newsletter.
Stop Press – Good News!
Suzanne Orr MLA, Minister for Climate Change, Environment, Energy and Water?has advised that FoMM has been successful in obtaining a 2025-26 Environment Grant: ENV2025_2600003 Supporting the Fair Weed Management Plan 2024-2029.
The funds will enable us to continue to follow up on weed control of St John’s Wort and the four worst grassy weeds as outlined inthe Weed Management Plan for the 60 Ha Fair site.
Reports
Spring Bird Walk with Peter Miller – Report from Jenni Marsh
Peter Miller leads the group of bird watchers up the road on 14 September.
It was a perfect morning for a walk and for spotting birds. Our diverse group of 24 people of all ages including a young keen photographer and her dad, and new arrivals from America and Argentina.
During the last few weeks, a lot of birds have arrived back in Canberra after spending winter in warmer places. They were all quite chatty, especially the parrots, which were investigating and defending tree hollows for potential nesting sites.
We practised the art of stopping everything to listen for bird calls, which is an important skill for birding. We heard several Laughing Kookaburras, many Crimson and Eastern Rosellas, Sulphur-crested Cockatoos, a few King Parrots, melodious Magpies, Red Wattlebirds, and Butcher Birds.
Our leader Peter Miller helped us to patiently watch and listen, and to know where to look for birds we would normally hear and not see: Blue Wrens hopped out of dense shrubbery into patches of sunshine on logs and grass. Tiny Weebills and Striated Pardalotes foraged high in the Eucalyptus canopy, a White-eared Honeyeater moved among the foliage, and a Grey Fantail pecked insects off branches. Kookaburras sat very still, patiently watching and waiting for prey such as a lizard to move.
Our next birdwalk will be in autumn when birds are preparing to migrate out of Canberra.
Sheep Camp Clean Up – What a View!
Weeding on the ridge at the old sheep camp site. Look at that view! All the way to the Brindabellas.
Photo by Jenni Marsh.
On a chilly Sunday 21 September thirteen people, including some local teenagers and three uni students, climbed up to the ridge to pull up young Horehound, Verbascum and Buchan Weed. Where the weeds were removed, Waltraud spread seeds of Speargrasses. Everyone ate Liese’s tasty gingerbread while admiring the splendid views to both east and west. Thank you to everyone who came, to Waltraud who mapped with FieldMaps and to Jenni for photos.
Cake time for some of the volunteers at the old sheep camp site on the ridge.
Photo by Jenni Marsh
And Max disturbed two colourful skinks when pulling out some Horehound.
Copper-tailed Skink Ctenotus taeniolatus one of two discovered under a Horehound bush.
Photo courtesy of Canberra NatureMapr.
Mondays @ The Fair (M@F)
Jodie and Karin walk past the dam, now full, carrying wattle blossom to take home, cut from a despatched Knife Leaf Wattle Acacia cultriformis.
Photo by Jenni Marsh.
Spring is a good time to tackle invasive wattles, non-local species which have spread into the reserve from adjoining areas. Some are easy to spot as they advertise their presence with beautiful blossoms. The M@F group of volunteers have been on patrol through the wider area of endangered box gum woodland surrounding the 10 Ha planted rehabilitation site, and have taken out many Cootamundra Wattles, Snowy River Wattles, and Knife Leaf Wattles. They also tackled deciduous exotics now coming into leaf, like Sweet Briar, and manually removed isolated plants of small weeds such as Paterson’s Curse or Serrated Tussock. Patches of these with more plants are mapped for later follow up with herbicide spraying.
Earlier in the year a contractor was engaged to take out the planted non-local wattles growing just outside the reserve fence along the Federal Highway. There are noticeably fewer wattles on the Mount Majura side of the highway now, than on the other side of the highway or in the central strip. What a pity truly local species were not chosen for planting there when the highway upgrade occurred many years ago. “Duplication of the Federal Hwy was begun in the 1990’s and completed in December 2002 when the last section between Antill St and the NSW Border was duplicated.“ Quote from ozroads here.
As we have had some spring rainfall and even a thunderstorm the Fair dam is now full, so there will be some tidying up to do – some tree guards were knocked off the Tall Sedge planted in the gully and the black plastic which was solarising the weed Umbrella Sedge is now under water! The same rainfall is promoting growth, greening the landscape and helping the wild flowers, including orchids seen along the track by the M@F group.
All are welcome to join in the spring offensive against weeds, and enjoy the company, the wildflowers and wildlife. Turn up at the Tay St, North Watson gate to the reserve on a Monday at 9:30 and become one of the team!
Callery Pear
Hasn’t the spring blossom been lovely this year? We all admire our street trees as they put on their show. One of the most striking is the Callery Pear, with masses of pure white blossoms in clusters. And you will notice them everywhere in Canberra, by Lake Burley Griffin, around Yerrabi Pond, at the Arboretum, and especially in street plantings in newer suburbs, like The Fair at North Watson. This tree is a horticulturist’s dream, beautiful in spring, shady in summer, and with spectacular colours in autumn. There is a choice of cultivars with slightly different flowering times and tree shapes, developed in the USA, grown at the Yarralumla government nursery and recommended for street verge planting with no restrictions.
Unfortunately, it is also a nightmare for nature, an invasive species par excellence.
FoMM has close-at-hand experience with the Callery Pear at The Fair and is witnessing the start of its invasion. Read this webpage to see more about Callery Pear and what FoMM is doing about it.
The Conifer Cubby is Kaput
Two local lads came on bikes and constructed an elaborate cubby under the big conifers using found materials such as FoMM’s pink tree guards, tree branches which were meant to control erosion, rocks. Displayed a lot of skill – great if it was in an urban green space – but not wanted in the reserve. Also put their talents into making bike jumps nearby.
Rangers have dismantled the structure and put up a sign to explain the situation. Let’shope the message is understood.
The cubby that was under the conifers and the sign that is there now.
Photos by B. Read and M. Pouwer.
TSRs in NSW
Travelling Stock Reserves (TSRs) are little gems of bushland or grassland, generally surrounded by rural properties used for grazing or cropping. They were set up long ago as overnight campsites for when livestock travelled under the control of drovers on horseback along stock routes, so they were not far apart. These days they rarely see stock and their usefulness is mainly for conservation. As TSRs are largely uncleared they often contain the highest quality and most interconnected remnants of native vegetation in the rural landscape. Local Land Services actively monitors conservation values with the aim to maintain or improve the conservation values of TSRs over time.
There is an interactive map which you can use to show the locations of nearby TSRs. Some of them like Lerida TSR have good records of sightings on Canberra NatureMapr – put Lerida in the Search bar.
The sign at the gate of Lerida TSR, a grassy woodland at a higher elevation than the woodland at Mount Majura.
Photo by B. Read.
Climate, Conservation and Citizen Science News
Did you know there is a Cloud Appreciation Society? Clouds have a critical role in regulating Earth’s climate. Get a free Cloud Spotter app from the Society’s website.
A lot of news and commentary lately about the approval for Woodside to continue gas operations on the north-west shelf until 2070, the National Climate Risk Assessment, and Australia’s 2035 climate targets, 62% to 70% reduction on 2005 emissions. Here are just a couple of examples:
Alan Kohler questions the achievability of the climate targets in this article from the ABC.
Climateworks Centre address to the Press Club on Harnessing nature’s power for net zero and biodiversity and an article from The Conversation on 7 Things We Can Do Today to meet Australia’s new climate goal.
Wilderness Society wins court case to hold government to account for its responsibilities for threatened species. See the details here.
Pollinators are vital for our native ecosystems and agriculture, and spring is a the time to see them on flowers, in the bush and in your garden. Honey bees do a great job but are under threat not just from the spreading menace of Varroa Mite but also from how Varroa interacts with the Small Hive Beetle Aethina tumida, another invasive species. These two pests do not affect native bees.
Native bees and other native pollinators can be encouraged by planting native plants – simple really. Exotic flowers might suit European honey bees but for many native insects they just do not provide the habitat the natives need. So next time you are choosing a plant for your garden make sure it is a local native one, preferably one on the Mount Majura and Mount Ainslie Flora list of local natives. From Acacia to Zornia there are over 350 of them! Not all available at your local nursery, but some are, so hunt them out.
Citizen scientists can help improve our knowledge of native pollinators by recording sightings on NatureMapr or iNaturalist.
The Great Southern Bioblitz (for the southern hemisphere) is coming up – it is in October each year. It’s a great opportunityto get started as a citizen scientist and see just what is in your environment. Some groups such Murrumbidgee Landcare are participating as a group, and you can see about it here, with a video about using iNaturalist.
Events and Exhibitions
Until 19 October Shared Spaces: The Wildlife Next Door Artist Kahli McLeod exhibits painting of wildlife that share her home near Braidwood. See here for details about opening hours and location of Rusten House, Queanbeyan.
Until 19 October Ghosts in the Snow paintings by artist Judith Tokley also at Rusten House Art Centre 87 Collett Street, Queanbeyan.
1– 31 October National Threatened Species Day Open Photographic Exhibition at Wildbark, Throsby.
3– 9 October Bugs Alive Exhibition at Australian National Botanic Gardens, adults $15, children $10. More info and book here.
Thursday 9 October 6 – 7 pm, Logging and Bushfire Risk: An Online Conversation with Professor David Lindenmayer AO organised by the Nature Conservation Council, NSW. Book here.
11-19 October Nature Book Week will be celebrated with the winners of both the Karajia and Environment Awards for Children’s Literature to be announced then! See here to buy books and help support the Wilderness Society.
Thursday 16 October 8 pm Click on Webinar to register and for more information on Bogong Watch: Conserving the Bogong Moth Migration.
Saturday 18 October 8:30 am start Australian Native Plant Society Plant Sale at the Australian National Botanic Gardens (ANBG) – download the plant list from the linked page. LOCAL species are indicated if sourced within 50 km of Canberra CBD. Some local species such as Acacia pycnantha and Bulbine bulbosa are not given a LOCAL label, so the seed may have been sourced from far away. And be aware that Grevillea rosmarinifolia and Hakea salicifolia, both invasive species on Mt Majura, are included on the list. Choose carefully!
Saturday, 25 October 2025 – 9:00am to 11:30am ANBG Friends Plant Sale for ANBG Friends, Volunteers and Staff only. See here for details if you are eligible.
24– 27 October Time to take sightings for the Great Southern Bioblitz on iNaturalist.
October and November –Conservation Council ACT Region events including Western Edge Guided Walks –see here for more information and tobook.
Saturday 8 November 5-7:30pm Celebrating Our Wonderful Western Edge – End of Year Celebration! Conservation Council ACT Region is organising a BYO picnic with live music at the Arboretum at Forest 21. More information and tickets are available here.
Final Photo
Another new native plant added to the Flora for Mount Majura is a striking water plant Water Millfoil Myriophyllum crispatum.
Photo by JaneR, courtesy of Canberra NatureMapr.
