Seven years ago, Gwyneth Jones, an elder at St Stephen’s Presbyterian, Timaru, gathered with a group of her congregation’s keenest gardeners to discuss how they
might care for the environment.
About the same time, Gwyneth spotted an advertisement in the local paper by the Otipua Wetland Charitable Trust seeking volunteers “and ever since our church group has met on Saturday mornings at the Otipua Wetland just south of Timaru to plant natives and to weed so that the plantings get a good footing”.
Initially, Gwyneth says, the St Stephen’s group numbered just three “but we also had support from men in our church unable to come plant for health reasons; in the first year they made 12 stoat traps for us”.
By the third year, the St Stephen’s group had grown to 10. At the moment, there are seven who meet at the wetland from 9am to
11am every Saturday. Gwyneth says that numbers fluctuate “because we are all getting older; I will turn 80 this year”.
“Now that our parish is four churches combined [into the Timaru Presbyterian Parish], we hope more people will get involved in caring for the wetland. We would love to see a younger person come along who could be a leader to reach out to the community and get more people involved.”
Every year from September to May, the St Stephen’s group plants up to 1000 plants in the wetland’s 20 hectares, the plants
supplied by the Otipua Wetland Charitable Trust.
“Being close to the sea, the wetland is a tough environment and only certain natives will grow”, Gwyneth says. “The Trust employs a planter who marks out where we are to plant the natives that can cope with the wet conditions – flax, toitoi, cabbage trees. In the drier areas we plant kowhai and totara”.
Thanks to the group’s vigilant weed control, most of their plantings have survived, but weeding is an ongoing battle, Gwyneth says. “We weed the plants in the first year and also weed the previous season’s planting so they can get established. Our earliest plantings are so well established we have to let go; you get to a point where you have to know when to weed and when not to.”
An interest in gardening and the outdoors is what motivates the group. “We really enjoy the work, we like each other’s company and we gain much from contributing to the rehabilitation of
the area.”
The St Stephen’s group gets great satisfaction from the native bird life that has arrived in the wetland, attracted by the native plantings. “A wonderful variety of birds have been encouraged by natives. I saw a Royal Spoonbill the other day for the first time, there are also blue and white-faced heron, and we watch the black swans’ little cygnets riding along the lake. There are plenty of rewards to be seen for the work,” Gwyneth says.
Duck-shooting season creates an influx of ducks to the wetlands. “There are so many different kinds - shelducks, mallards, paradise ducks.”
Gwyneth says it is wonderful to see the community using and enjoying the wetland area. “There are picnic tables now, and you see cyclists, and people using the walking track around the lake.”
The St Stephen’s group are, Gwyneth says, keen to share the enjoyment of caring for the wetland. “New people are welcome and need just come along at 9am to the wetland on any Saturday in planting season. Bring a light spade or a grubber and your morning tea with you. There is no obligation to turn up every week. The two hours we work together is a wonderful way to deepen our understanding of each other and of nature.”
By Angela Singer