Victoria's Gippsland, located on Boonwurrung Country, has excellent climatic conditions when it comes to native reforestation. Since 1997, Greenfleet has planted a number of native forests in this region which are growing to restore ecosystems and create habitat for wildlife, including our iconic koalas.
One such property, Ness Creek was originally cleared for cattle and sheep grazing in the early twentieth century. The property is now home to a productive free-range egg farm with parts of the property being revegetated with native tree species. The farm owners contacted Greenfleet with an interest in reforesting the vast areas that were no longer needed for grazing. Now, a biodiverse forest is growing across unused parts of their land.
First planted in 2016, Greenfleet has revegetated 35 hectares with 30,000 native trees planted along the side of the creek, on the hills, and shelterbelts of the property.
While providing a habitat for the animal species native to this area, the forest at Ness Creek is also helping to improve water quality by providing water-filtration benefits. The site sits adjacent to a reservoir and the plantings on the steep hillside of the property will assist in securing the slope and limiting run-off into the reservoir.
Another forest growing in this region is called Wurneet Laang Laang. Located on a 66-hectare property, we began revegetating this area in 2016 and have now planted more than 50,000 native trees across the land. Some of the young trees are already growing metres into the sky and wildlife such as Strzelecki Koalas have already began calling them home.
Across these two properties, more than thirty native species have been planted including Mountain Grey Gum (Eucalyptus cypellocarpa), Hop Goodenia (Goodenia ovata) and Swamp Paperbark (Melaleuca ericafolia). Some of these trees have already grown an impressive 8 metres in their 4 years and the forests are already home to wallabies and countless birds and will continue providing a much-needed habitat for wildlife such as koalas and sugar gliders.
Both of these forests are protected for 100 years meaning they will continue providing environmental benefits beyond this century and for generations to come.
