HELP REVIVE AN AREA DESTROYED BY GOVERNMENT CARPARK!

Join the Upfield Urban Foresters of Merlynston (Coburg North) who are attempting to do a little good in an area that’s been devastated by the good people at Vic Gov.

DETAILS: Sat May 13th 10am.
Meet at Dawson Reserve (see map below). Bring a spade! Tea provided during / after.
Closest train station is Merlynston Station, Upfield Line.

Last year the Victorian Government cut down many established trees and 200 young trees planted by community members in order build two giant asphalt cars parks down either side of Merlynston Train Station.

The Government project team told the community via letterbox drop that it would plant 45 new trees in the car park footprint. It has only planted 18 at the very southern end of the new section of shared path. It will only plant 8 more trees on the western side (total 26 trees) in the massive project area.

Some of the established trees and many young, community planted trees at Merlynston Station removed for the State Government car park project, which has only planted 18 new trees.

By way of ‘compensation’ the Vic Gov project team gave the Upfield Urban Forest some tubestock to plant in a park around the corner (Dawson Reserve). Community members planted these plants in Winter 2022, however some of the plants died due to large numbers of bugs in a wet year.

July 2022 planting in Dawson Reserve.

The Upfield Urban Forest will replant some plants this Saturday. If there is time, we’ll then move on to weeding and replanting next to the Up[field Shared Path at the corner of Shorts Road and Ararat Avenue (southern end of the Merlynston car park).

There used to be a lovely little community garden at this corner, as well as a highly significant and established Tassie Blue Gum and a stunning white-trunked Manna Gum (both destroyed for the car park). While the state government project team put in new plants at this corner, they were not planted deep enough and they also seem to have introduced a whole lot of weeds that they’re not maintaining. So yeah. There’s work to be done.

The red circled areas are where we will be planting this Saturday May 13th 2023! Bring a spade and join us!

Everyone pitches in in Merlynston!