Tanekaha Ridge
The tanekaha/kanuka forest of which Gahnia Grove forms about 100m of the Eastern, ridge-top, margin has been surveyed from Gahnia Grove down to the Upper Forest path, from the boardwalk below the Flame Tree Zone, to the forest path's entry at the lower recreational grassed area referred to as the "Glade", "field" or "paddock".
This area was found to hold a diverse kauri ridge community vegetation, very weedy only at its margin at the lower end of the Top field, and from the boardwalk up to the roadside, but largely free of weeds within the forest, other than several mature radiata and black pine, a dense infestation of Bulbil Watsonia in the manuka canopy along the Glade margin, and abundant infestations of Aristea ecklonii, whose seedlings currently occur in thousands under canopy in light to moderate shade.
This area has now been hand-weeded and included in the Restoration Methodology Trial, creating a herbicide-free area from the Glenfield Rd margin down to the forest path, from the Glade to the boardwalk.
In addition to the widespread Aristea and Watsonia invasions near the outer margin, we found numerous scattered weed occurrences within this area of forest canopy, including seedlings of bangalow, phoenix, climbing asparagus, ivy, pampas, and exotic pine. A similar annual survey for these and other new invasions will be needed to head off significant future forest destruction which would not be manageable by current Council contracts.
A pigtail cordon has been placed from Gahnia Grove down to the end of the Top Field or Glade, and cut gorse has been used to help define the border from there down to the Top Forest Path.
Observations of Tanekaha Ridge are here.
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