Communities across the north coast are gearing up to plant thousands of trees to celebrate National Tree Day on 31 July.
In Lismore the focus will be on the ‘Duck Pond’, behind Union Street, where the local Landcare group has spent the past two years transforming the site from a weed-infested jungle into a community space.
Further north at Tumbulgum, the community will kick-off celebrating their town’s 150 year history with a community tree planting in Bluey Hill Park from 10am.
The Lismore planting is being supported by the South Lismore & Duckpond Landcare Group, the Wilsons River Landcare Group with support from Lismore Lions, Lismore City Council, Richmond Landcare Inc., the Northern Rivers Science Hub, Wetland Care Australia & Inspiring Australia.
The day will include music, food and information stalls, with more than a thousand trees ready to be planted by volunteers.
Access to the site will be from behind the Duckpond Café on Union Street, or from Ostrom Street.
The tree planting at Tumbulgum is being coordinated by the Tumbulgum Community Association and Planet Art .
Association president Jenny Kidd said the planting was about leaving ‘a lasting, growing legacy for future generations’.
“In years to come, participants will look back at the trees they planted and remember how they participated in the 150 Year celebrations.”
Bluey Hill Park, on Dulguigan Road opposite the Seventh Day Adventist Church, is located in an area significant in the history of Tumbulgum, which began as a settlement known as Tweed Junction.
‘The original Tweed Junction settlement was situated on the northern riverbank, opposite the site of today’s Tumbulgum village and close to where Bluey Hill Park now sits,’ she said.
Edward (Bluey) Hill was Tumbulgum’s ferryman for 30 years and much more, teaching children to swim and playing a leadership role in community activities.
The park restoration plans include a monument installation funded through a grant by Tweed Shire Council. Council’s Project Officer Waterways, Matthew Bloor, is working with the community on the planting of trees and other plants endemic to the area 150 years ago.
