Learn more about your garden ecology
Ever wanted to know more about the ecology of your garden? Or even just what some of the plants are?
We live in the midst of thousands of species of plants, and that's just the ones that are big enough to see!
Many are frequently mistaken for other, better-known species. "Dark nightshade" and "American nightshade" are both native to NZ and a valuable part of sunlit forest margin revegetation, attracting honeybees. Both these native species are usually mistaken for the common weed "Black nightshade", which itself is often mistakenly referred to as "Deadly nightshade", causing needless worry.
Once recognised, native grasses, sedges and mosses that emerge wild in our gardens can be nurtured to form a beautiful self-maintaining ground cover, keeping out the true weeds. This is especially effective between tiles and in cracked paving.
Near streams or runoff channels, conserving these wild plants is often the fastest and cheapest way to prevent erosion and improving water quality, as is well-recognised in stormwater policies.
Weed tree seedlings can be identified at 2cm high and uprooted in a second, rather than growing up to become troublesome and expensive pest plants, taking over the garden, some even needing to be felled by arborists. Brush wattles can grow to several metres high in a very few years.
Moth plant seedlings quickly become deep-rooted vines with toxic sap, invisibly sneaking behind and through shrubbery, hedges, trees and fences until removal becomes a big job.
As part of restoring local gardens, forests, streams and wetlands, we have learned to use the scientific plant identification process and the "Citizen Science" community to identify any plants, and many insects, we don't recognise.
We recognise the challenges faced by busy homeowners trying to manage weeds in the soil conditions commonly encountered in North Shore neighbourhoods.
In a one-hour visit we will identify your native and weed plants, assess your soil quality and weed control strategies, and offer new, chemical-free solutions if needed.
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️
Poll: Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?
Just a bit of a fun poll to get you thinking.
If you had to live out your Christmas days, would you prefer it was a summer Christmas or a winter Christmas?
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62.2% Summer
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36.3% Winter
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1.5% Other - I'll share below
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