Kieran Read helps penguins

A limited number of native trees, grasses and plants are now for sale, with proceeds going to help save yellow-eyed penguins. The Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust’s not for profit and community based nursery has exceeded their planting production this year and have approx. 500 native plants and shrubs to off load by Friday December 9, 2011. Many of the natives were potted by Trust Ambassador and NZ rugby icon Kieran Read, on a visit to the nursery earlier this year.

Nursery Manager, Anita Pillai says the natives, grown from seedlings at the nursery by Trust volunteers are perfect ‘carbon suckers’ for planting before Christmas or into the New Year. We’ve planted a huge number of these natives to establish and enhance our penguin habitats, however this year we have ended up with a surplus.

“I can’t bear to throw out or compost these ‘babies’ which we have nurtured from seed to this stage, so would love to find good homes for them”, says Anita.

The trees have been grown from eco-sourced seeds gathered in the Otago coastal region, so suitable for any of our local properties. The native trees and plants are on offer from $5.00 each. The natives would benefit farmers restoring riparian areas, lifestyle block owners or anyone restoring native habitats for birds or lizards in their back gardens.

All the funds from the sale of these natives will go directly back to support the Trust’s conservation activity to help endangered yellow-eyed penguins.

The Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust has a year round programme of conservation activity to establish and enhance penguin habitats using trees from its own nursery. The Trust nursery staff and volunteers produce approximately 15,000 trees each year and this year planted with 3500-4000 plants into Trust owned reserves.

Sue Murray, General Manager of the Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust says the remainder of the native trees and plants are also used to restore habitats and coastal areas from Oamaru to as far south as the Catlins.

“The restoration of these riparian strips provide ecological and environmental benefits for integrated land-use practices and is the way forward for conservation,” says Sue.

The native trees and plants are available from the Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust Nursery, McTaggart Street, Company Bay between 9-2pm, Monday to Friday. Please email yeptrust@gmail.com to make an arrangement to collect.

Payment can be made online via the Trust website donation page or by cash on collection.

ENDS

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