Victoria Cosford
There’s something about trees that makes people happy, that evokes a positive response. I’m standing at the newish ReForest Now stall at the markets observing this very thing, the woman who says, ‘I get excited about seedlings’; the other who, when asked by bubbly stall-holder Sophie if she needs help, replies that, ‘I’m just happy moseying around your trees!’
Based in Mullumbimby, ReForest Now has been running for six years with the aim of bush regeneration, seed collection, the planting of native, endangered tree species, and the reforestation of native sub-tropical rainforest. It is a beautifully bold and brilliant initiative which, according to CEO and co-founder Maximo Bottaro, has ‘far exceeded any realistic expectations we had. We certainly couldn’t have expected to attract around 100 business/corporate partnerships and individual supporters from over 45 countries in these first years.’
Having always run their nursery for internal use only, they realised that they wanted, says Maximo, ‘to provide trees by donation to the public, [and] the markets allows us to engage more local people and raise funds for our reforestation projects.’
And, of course heighten awareness that such an organisation exists, whereby everyone has the opportunity to contribute, as their website states, to reconnecting ‘remaining patches of the Big Scrub rainforest.’
The little trees, boxed up and ready to be borne away and planted, cost from $4.50 to $6.50 – and, according to Maximo, pretty much anyone can successfully grow them. ‘We find very few failures occur,’ he tells me, ‘even when landholders care for the trees themselves.’ Given the area’s ‘great soil and almost two metres of rain per year,’ he continues, ‘the only threat, 95% of the time, is simply weed overgrowth.’
‘Last year alone,’ Max concludes, ‘we added almost 20% total rainforest cover in the Big Scrub.’
ReForest Now is at Mullumbimby Farmers Market every Friday from 7 to 11am.
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