It is estimated there is more than 15,000 ‘lifestyle properties’ in the Perth Metropolitan Region. If you own a small rural property, you are part of a group of land managers who can play an important role in maintain and improving the health of our natural environment. Your actions can mean the difference between maintaining a healthy, sustainable environment, or one that declines over time.
In recognition of the role landholders play in keeping our environment healthy, Perth NRM are pleased to be continuing work with small landholders in Perth’s important peri-urban region to facilitate on-farm workshops and field days focusing on regenerative natural resource management practices.
Topics such as soil health and testing, pasture management, protection of remnant vegetation and composting will be covered.
The workshops will answer your questions about land management and provide you with practical tips to start implementing on your property straight away. You will also join a group of like-minded people working towards improving wildlife corridors and waterways – creating a healthy environment for future generations.
You will have the opportunity to ask presenters questions and share experiences about your own property management.
If you own or lease a small rural property and would like to upskill on soil health, water use, biodiversity management, and fire management then please contact us to express your interest in participating in the project.
For further information on the Make your Hectare Count project please contact: Bonnie Jupp, RegenWA Program Manager at bonnie.jupp@perthnrm.com
Events delivered so far throughout this project include…
- Heavenly Hectares Kalamunda
- Perth NRM, Shire of Mundaring and City of Kalamunda partnered to bring back the beloved Heavenly Hectares event, on May 4 2024, at the Kalamunda Community Centre.
- An enriching half-day workshop led by the renowned landcare and sustainable gardens expert, Chris Ferreira, along with other engaging presenters passionate about creating thriving properties.
- Key takeaways included….
- Native Vegetation Preservation: Protect and conserve native vegetation on your property to maintain biodiversity and habitat for native wildlife. Chris also shared good planting tips
- Water Management: Implement water-saving techniques such as water-wise landscaping to conserve water resources
- Soil Health Maintenance: maintain good ground cover to protect the soil
- Pest and Weed Control: Take a holistic approach and use the tools available when appropriate
- Fire Management: implement fire-wise landscaping practices to reduce the risk of wildfire and protect property and biodiversity
- Livestock Grazing Management: Implement rotational grazing practices to prevent overgrazing, improve pasture health, and maintain soil fertility
- Community Engagement: Engage with local community groups, your shire, and government organisations to collaborate on land stewardship initiatives and share knowledge and resources
- Kadina Brook Field Walk – Kalamunda
- PerthNRM partnered with the City of Kalamunda to support and promote work undertaken by the Friends of Kadina Brook group on restoring Kadina Brook Nature Reserve.
- The Friends Of group kickstarted a community project funded by DBCA to create leaky weirs (which involved manually moving 7 tonnes of rocks!), plant 5000 trees, and perform regular upkeep at the reserve.
- The field day involved a tour of the works at the reserve as well as a visit to Andy Farrant’s property to see his impressive efforts in restoring soil health, enhancing wildlife habitat, and improving water retention
- Key takeaway…
- If you’re planning a community project, consult your local government or landcare group for support, track your progress, and celebrate your achievements together.
Gidgegannup Farmer Field Day
- Held on May 26 2024, this annual field day was a great opportunity to discuss regenerative agriculture; how to get involved and how to support sustainable food production and land management.
Landcare in Action: Property Tour
- Held on October 20, 2024, hosts Simon and Rebecca Bell were joined by Chris Ferreira to lead a group of around 30 attendees on a tour of their property in Mundaring.
- Simon and Rebecca are working towards aligning their property with seasons, increasing perennial and multispecies pastures and optimising stock rotations to increase the health of their stock and therefore the health of those who consume their meat, restore and enhance bushlands, build more resilience to fire and climate change, and much more!
Keen to get involved? We have a bus tour in the making, several more farmer field days, and more workshops coming up soon! Head over to the events page for more details as they’re released. You can also sign up for our E-News to keep up-to-date with all the project’s happenings.
