Bush care is where groups of volunteers meet to care for areas of bushland, removing weeds and rubbish to enable native plant communities and their associated fauna to continue to survive and thrive. Many local councils and national parks run bush care groups in their natural areas and parks, and are always welcoming of new members. There are several reasons why this is valuable work.

The first, and most important to my eyes, is that there are many patches of remnant bushland that’s incredibly valuable to wildlife. If we don’t clear these areas of weeds (and rubbish, etc) then they will disappear entirely. A lot of these bushland patches are also endangered plant communities, with all flora and fauna species within them worth saving.

For many people, land that can’t be used for housing, farming or any number of commercial enterprises appears worthless it seems. This is a rather miserable way of looking at the world. For many, any green space is a space to enjoy for many reasons. These bushland areas provide oxygen for us to breath, allow rainwater to be absorbed into the soil and the wider river catchment system (and doing so in the natural way) which takes pressure off the storm water systems we have (thus saves money) and looks a lot nicer than grey concrete. Also important is that, even though there may be no ‘financial’ value of such areas, wildlife should also have the space to exist, even if you have no interest in it whatsoever. The natural world is not ‘lesser’ than the human constructed urban world and I think it is worth keeping where it still exists.

There is a large financial pressure on organisations like councils and national parks. With the amount of work that councils have legal responsibility to carry out, they don’t always have the resources to care for small areas of bushland, even if the will is there to do it. That is why volunteers are a vital resource if caring for these areas of land.

In a different aspect to volunteering every month, there is the social aspect, which I enjoy. They other people in my group are people I would not have met otherwise and I enjoy catching up with them every month. Also, I get a sense of satisfaction from taking part every month as I can see the progress of our work. I spend time outside in the fresh air for a couple of hours one Saturday a month and enjoy doing some light work (you don’t have to work hard or fast at all).

If you want to take part in bush care, check your local council or national park website for more information and see what it is all about.

All photos are my own.