Mayor4Unley

We have lost so many big trees across the #Unley suburbs. So much lost green tree canopy! As #Mayor of Unley I will do whatever and explore every option, to reverse the decline. The major issue is a lack of real control of big trees on private properties. We need State Government support to increase Council's control and help stop the senseless felling of trees that get in the way of high density  development. It doesn't need to be draconian control, rather it needs a common sense approach. I want to see more Council funding of conservation grants to fund pruning and maintenance of these magnificent big trees. The annual budget for this activity is inadequate . I want to see trees given realistic values to deter them from being cut down. Not $50, not $100, not $500 ... they deserve a more realistic value to reflect their contribution to filtering the environment over their lifetime. Experts are suggesting values of $50,000 to $100,000 for the old and big trees. I...

It can be difficult selecting a plant for that special spot at home. You may want a tree or a shrub, something for the shade or a sunny location. To make the decision much easier, the Botanic Gardens has a plant selector website. You can refine your search to postcode, height, aspect, soil type etc. Give it a try. Here’s the link to the website

There has been recent public comment about the decline in tree canopy across Unley. It is claimed there has been a 20% loss. Blame is being attributed to residents and developers felling trees on private property. But, what is reality? What is actually factual? Back in 2016 Unley Council implemented a regeneration  tree program as part of a 2016-19 tree strategy. The target was renewal of 2,000 Street trees in 5 years with many trees removed to be replaced by 2 trees. At the time, Council clearly understood that the canopy cover would decline and then rapidly rise. So - in 4 years we will have a far greater tree canopy than we had 2 years ago. I’m so annoyed that an operational activity designed to increase tree canopy has been so unfairly attacked. It would be unfortunate to have the street tree renewal program stopped. I supported the tree renewal program back in 2016 and I will continue to support it over the next 2 years. It just makes sense! Vote 1 Bob Schnel...

Tonight #Unley Council is holding a workshop to discuss options to promote retention of large and significant trees on private property. This is an issue dear to my heart. It’s sad to see so many large trees being removed across the suburbs. Hopefully some viable options will emerge; options that we can pursue. But, regulation of trees and their removal rests with the SA Government. So, it might be like flogging a dead horse; but we need to try to influence the new Government.

Major felling of trees at Parkside ... There has been a major uproar by residents about the felling of so many trees at 186 Greenhill Road, Parkside just before Christmas ... and 4-5 more trees are planned to be removed. Residents are just so annoyed by what has happened. It happened without any warning and Council had no prior knowledge of the planned activity. A review has revealed that all the the trees felled were what is classed as 'non-regulated' and the property owner had a legal right to remove them. This is a legal right imposed by the State Government. What was a forest is now just 5 trees. One is scheduled to be removed soon. The other 4 trees are what is classed as 'regulated' and they require planning approval. I understand that approval will be considered in January/February 2018 by the Council Assessment Panel. I am sure that this meeting will be well attended by local residents.

A rain garden has appeared on the NW corner of Second Avenue and Everard Terrace @ Forestville ... much to the surprise of the locals. An SA Government grant of $6k partially funded the project. 2 street trees were removed as part of the construction. No trees will be planted in the rain garden. It should be 'blooming' by Christmas. There has been a mostly positive reaction by the locals. Residents in nearby streets are considering asking for one in their street.

A fantastic good news story from Unley Council ... Unley has a number of strategically placed Wildlife Boxes at various locations within the City to support the breeding and habitat survival of our local fauna. A total of 28 Artificial Hollows/Boxes were installed in June 2009. They were erected in Ridge and Heywood Parks, with a single box installed on Windsor St. Over the years Council has built up the number of boxes to where we now have 121 located across all part of the City on Council parks, reserves or verges (106), schools (12) and private property (3). Each year, as part of an environmental initiative, Council is provided with a report on the outcomes, success or otherwise of fauna use. As part of this monitoring process, each box is assessed for any changes that have taken place and to determine whether possible maintenance issues have arisen. This process is required to ensure that the wildlife value of the boxes are maintained and that public safety is observed. Tow...

I have received questions from residents about street trees and the process for their replacement when they become end of life, unhealthy or are severely damaging infrastructure eg. the kerb, footpath and underground services. In particular, concerns are being raised by residents in Charles Street, Forestville. The street (particularly the southern end) is bird city with the big native gums full of bird attracting blossom. I put some questions to Unley Council and here are the responses (with my minor edit). Hopefully this will help to provide clarity. Question: Is there a reference on the website about the selection of street trees? Answer: No. Most streets have a nominated preferred replacement species which is based on the dominant species in the street. Question: Does Council offer residents a choice and take a vote in the street? (Like what used to happen several years ago.) Answer: This only occurs when we undertake a detailed review of a street as part o...

It's Autumn and that means Quince season. Actually it's still a bit early; at least for my Champion variety Quince; it'll be another month or so before they are ripe. I bought the Champion because it has a big fruit with a brilliant dark red coloured fruit when cooked; some of the Quince varieties are a bit dull and only a pale pink. It's a young tree; the first year with a decent crop. Maybe the fruit is larger because my young dog pruned all the fruit trees of fruit up to a height on 1 metre; nothing like a green chewy ball to pick and play with; and then pick another one. How to use quinces: Paste to enjoy with cheese; freeze for serving over the year; my fav :) Jelly or Jam; can be a bit running Poach with a vanilla bean Stew; have with muesli Add it to a Middle Eastern stew Endless possibilities ... More information about quinces

That magnificent Morton Bay Fig tree at Goodwood Oval has suffered limb loss. Unley Council's arborist has assessed that the tree is in good health and will survive. Further technical examination will occur in a week, just to be sure. This is a magnificent tree. Most of us have enjoyed a picnic under the tree; sheltered from the sun; perhaps whilst watching the cricket. For a more detailed assessment read Cr Don Palmer's blog

At times, a tree must be cut down eg. when it was planted in the wrong place or a house was built too close to the tree. Care must be taken when felling a tree near a house. Watch the video to see the care that needs to be taken and the precision that can be achieved. The video features two Canadian rednecks who have a lot of experience in felling a tree; exactly where they want it to fall. Enjoy Click here to see the video

Last year I bought a quince tree. I went to a nursery in a wine region; a region where there are numerous local homegrown, home baked food companies; one a bit bigger than the rest. Talking to the nursery man about quinces and local crops, I was shocked to learn that a well known local producer had imported quinces from Asia to increase the output of local quince products. The products were still labelled as made in Australia. I made a mental note to not buy any more products from that company. A pity given the magnificent range. After the contaminated berry issue last year, my stance on food labelling has increased. Food must be labelled to show where it was grown, where it was processed and there must be a list of all preservatives and additives. To help fix our economy and reduce unemployment we must be prepared to pay a little bit more for local Aussie produce. If it's grown in Asia there is a high risk of contamination. The berry bad problem was due to poor sanitary...

It’s wonderful to see a council at work. If a tree needs moving to a new place, then with today’s technology it’s not too much trouble. View this video to see a tree get a new home There’s potential to save many trees that would otherwise get the chop. Trees that were planted in the wrong spot years ago can now go to a new home.

I blogged earlier about the approaching prune/slash of street trees across Unley. This will be performed by SA Power Networks (SAPN) in accordance with legislation to minimise the risk of fire starting due to tree branches contacting the low and high voltage wires. They are meant to do this every 3 years. It is now 5 years since the last prune and consequently the effect will be more evident. Councils can do nothing to prevent the prune. However, Unley Council will provide arborists who will guide the pruning teams in difficult situations. In some cases, when a tree is deemed to to be irreparably damaged (by heavy pruning) the tree will be immediately removed. There will be a lot of concern and anger expressed by residents. Council can do nothing to reduce the pruning. Absolutely nothing! Please direct concern to your local MP eg. Steph Key and David Pisoni. (To be fair, they too can do nothing as the pruning is governed by legislation and regulation.) Below are 2 maps showing ...

Over the next few months, 7,000 trees across Unley will be heavily pruned. They will be pruned by SA Power Networks (SAPN, formerly ETSA). It is a legislative program about which Unley Council has no control. From past experience there will be heavy pruning and disfigurement of the trees. Some trees may not survive the pruning. It has to be done and we can't intervene. Here is an extract from a memo sent by the Administration to Unley Councillors ... SAPN plan to undertake a legislative vegetation clearance program across Unley in coming weeks. In some areas significant impact to the visual amenity of the city’s trees is likely. Administration is working with SAPN to mitigate impacts as much as possible, including in field monitoring of the works. However, it is still expected that in the order of 7000 trees will be pruned. These works will occur between mid-April and end of June 2015. Before the work commences we will be notifying residents via a variety of media forms.

I visited Forestville Reserve last night. There were a few families out walking and visiting the newly developed area on the East side. Someone jogged past. A lot of bikes zoomed through. It's looking good. The culvert entrance to the creek has been improved with the top layer of stones removed - my suggestion - it was too high, over engineered and served no purpose. Skaters were using the newly surfaced concrete. Some kids were shooting hoops at the basketball/netball court. The new lawn is coming on nicely. The weather is perfect to get it started. There is a mass of new plants and trees. I would have planted more medium sized trees on the boundary. Perhaps they will go in later, but I suspect not. All of this is in stark contrast to the ongoing vandalism of the long mural on the support wall for the tram overpass. Back in November I sat on the wall of the skate park and watched the spray can artists at work creating a fantastic mural. Their work was repeatedly vandalise...

I was devastated. The weather had been alternating between hot and raining. I probably had not been giving the fruit trees enough water. A large branch (half the tree) of my peacharine tree snapped and fell to the ground. It was loaded with good sized fruit that would have ripened in 1-2 weeks. It was looking like a good season for stone fruit. Last year was a poor crop across Adelaide. I left the branch where it had fallen. After 2 days I decided to pick the best of the fallen fruit and make a batch of spicey chutney. I used the same recipe as for my green tomato chutney, just much less brown sugar. Despite the fruit being green inside the chutney brewed into a golden peachy colour. That's how I spent last Sunday afternoon; helped along by a beer beside the cutting board and the cricket on the TV in the background. If it weren't for that fallen branch I probably wouldn't have made peacharine chutney this year. It was an opportunity that had to be exp...

I have discovered a fantastic green-botanical-climatic online reference with excellent tools for researching: Life support for human habitats Carbon storage protocols Climate change Tree coverage over car parks Urban Heat Island effects and the list goes on and on ... There is an excellent plant selector tool to help you determine what tree will grow where. Just enter your postcode. I entered 5035 and got 491 trees recommended. On the top of the list was the Raspberry Jam Wattle tree. Block out some time and check out this site. There is so much to discover. Here are further details with the links ... Looking to a greener future with new online tools Two free online tools are now available from the Botanic Gardens of Adelaide to provide greater understanding of green space and its importance in urban environments. The Green Infrastructure Evidence Base and Plant Selector+ are resources that will help us grow healthier, greener, cleaner and cooler tow...

The International Day for Biological Diversity is to be celebrated on Thursday 22 May, 2014 @ Forestville Reserve. International Day for Biological Diversity Community Event Date: Thursday, 22 May 2014 Venue: Forestville Reserve Time: 10am – 2pm Activities on the day include nest box building, planting native plants and biodiversity talks. Register your interest in participating in the event by contacting Scott Douglas on 8372 5118 or sdouglas@unley.sa.gov.au

Great news ... The Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) at Ridge Park is now in operation. This is one of the water saving schemes initiated by Unley Council. What is a MAR? Basically, during wet periods you collect water and inject it into the water table below and then in the summer months pump it out there or elsewhere to help with irrigation. Benefits are: Potential to supply 60ML (megalitres) pa - that's enough water to fill 24 Olympic sized swimming pools Reduced risk of flooding Cheap supply of good water during peak watering season Reliable supply for Council's water trucks Here is information re the MAR @ Ridge Park Here is a map of the water retention scheme @ Ridge Park ps Why do people always compare large volumes of stuff to an Olympic pool? I couldn't help myself - it's easy to visualise.