Hantam NBG: Research into land management for flower displays

As part of our experiments and trials here at the Hantam National Botanical Garden we have burned, cut and grazed certain sections of our Garden. These sections are all old lands that had been ploughed or heavily grazed in the past. We invite all visitors to our area during the flowering season to come and share in the knowledge we gain. The piece of land that was burned is on your left as you enter the Garden.

Why did we burn, cut and graze? We are busy with experiments to see what will give the best results for triggering the annual flower display on the old lands. Certain sections of the Garden have been grazed by sheep, others cut with a brush cutter to imitate intensive grazing and another section has been burned. We are hoping that over the next couple of years we will be able to tell which method is most effective.

Regular visits to our Garden during the flowering season will keep the interested tourist and visitor informed about what we are achieving, or not achieving. Maybe some of you are landowners interested in ecotourism, wanting to do the same. Maybe you can even supply us with some advice on what worked best on your piece of land, or maybe you can learn from us.