samantha in the press

Taking firm grip on ivy
Mail Newspapers
15 Dec 2013

Maccas are in the frame
Mail Newspapers
by Rebecca Bills
13 Dec 2013

deck the town with boughs of ivy

Today saw the last of the activities planned as part of Wacky Weed Month, with the judging of the Ivy Plait competition.

Oscar from Friends of Heathfield Creek receives
a certificate for their 29.4 metre long ivy plait.

The entries were impressive with locals and those further afield participating.

The entries all got measured, the coil of ivy plait in
the foreground was a whopping 361.4 metres long,
which means more than 1 kilometer of ivy was used
to create this amazing plait.

The competition was open to individuals, schools and community groups with cash prizes for the winners. The idea was to enter a continuous plait of ivy as a way to weed out one of our most pesky weeds and be a little bit creative at the same time.

Everyone who participated got some free plants (from the Southern Dandenongs Community Nursery) and a certificate of thanks with the winning plaits displayed on the high side fence in Belgrave.

Passers by weren't sure if the ivy plaits were Christmas decorations or not, but they received a great reception. They'll stay up for a short while to raise awareness about weeds in the environment.

The winners were:
Individual - Sue from Belgrave South with an impressive 361.4 metre long plait. Sue is a basketweaver and the competition inspired her to remove all the ivy from her embankment, all up it took her 23 hours to weave her plait. Well done Sue, you've certainly set a high benchmark for next year's competition.
Community Group - Upwey Girl Guides, their plait totaled 62.3 metres.
School - Sassafras Primary School, their plait was 40.4 metres long.
 

It's terrific to know that there's now a whole lot less ivy in our environment. Ivy is ranked our number 2 worst environmental weed in Yarra Ranges. It's highly invasive and aggressive weed in the Dandenongs, if left to climb up trees, its sheer weight can topple them. You can read about how to control and remove ivy here. You can also read up on other Yarra Ranges Environmental weeds and their removal here.

samantha in the press

Residents left to get rid of weeds as critical point reached in Yarra Ranges 
Free Press Leader
by Therese Allaoui
14 Nov 2013

wacky weed month is here

Wacky Weed month has kicked off and is a month of weed awareness raising activities, including the Longest Ivy Plait competition.  

The Longest Ivy Plait competition aims to educate schools, community groups and residents on the damage that Ivy does and just how widespread it is in the Yarra Ranges.

Prize money on offer for the longest Community Group Entry will be $500, School Entry $300 and Individual Entry $200

Ivy is a highly invasive and aggressive
weed in the Dandenongs, if left to climb
up trees it's sheer weight can topple them.
You can read more about ivy here.

The challenge will be to remove large intact ivy strands and plait three together. The strands may be joined to made them longer however only by using ivy to bind them. Judging will occur on the 6th December for schools and on the 8th December for Community Groups and Individuals from 10am – 12pm, Hayes Carpark, Burwood Highway, Belgrave

The first 50 entries to arrive on the day will receive a coffee voucher for a local Belgrave Café.  All children attending on the day will receive a token gift and free face painting will be available. Ivy Plaits will be hung from the footpath fence along Belgrave Main Street for passing traffic to awe at the volume.

More events planned for Wacky Wipe Out Weeds Month include:

Saturday 16^th Nov 9am-3pm  - Weed Blitz – Free environmental weed tipping day (skips at Kallista Community House)

Saturday 23^rd Nov 3pm – 8pm - Upwey Grassroots Market - Ruccus junior circus troope performing 'weeds'

Sunday 1^st Dec 10:30 to 2pm - Landcare for Singles - Do you plant here often? at Birdsland

Saturday 7th December - Kallista Market – Southern Dandenong Landcare  Group weed info display and guest appearance from “The Connies”

Saturday 8th December - the ivy plait competition (see above for more info)

Look out for static weed information displays at our Community Links, Libraries and Community Houses in the Dandenongs.

Wandering Trad, another weed nasty, was the weed
of choice at our last Kallista Weed Blitz event.
It's ranked number 10 in terms of worst weed in
Yarra Ranges, you can find out more about it here.

Wacky Weed month is sponsored and supported by the Urban Fringe Weed Management Initiative – Dandenong Ranges, Yarra Ranges Council and the Community Weed Alliance of the Dandenongs as well as our marvelous and dedicated network of environmental volunteers.