Date: 14th January 2025
The Government is looking for partners to plant trees on Crown-owned land that has low conservation and farming value. The intended purpose is that it will contribute to climate change targets, spur economic growth…
Date: 14th January 2025
The Upper Clutha Wilding Tree Group (UCWTG) are a community-led, not-for-profit organisation with the goal of protecting the outstanding natural landscapes and indigenous biodiversity of the Upper Clutha region from the threat of key…
Date: 9th December 2024
The success of the national collaboration that is the wilding pine management network is based on the “carrot approach” – good relationships where landowners, agencies and communities agree that wilding pine control is necessary,…
Date: 13th November 2024
A great article published recently in Country Wide magazine celebrated how great the rural community are at stepping up and helping out well beyond the farm gate. Thake very much to Jo Grigg, a…
Date: 13th November 2024
The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) has completed a review of the Biosecurity Act 1993. They have a developed a range of proposals to update and modernise the Act. Submissions from stakeholders are essential…
Date: 13th November 2024
Miles Anderson, National MP for Waitaki is a tireless campaigner for wilding pine management. He has put a bill in the “tin”. Every bill is given a housie token, and that token goes into…
Date: 13th November 2024
Scion and Manaaki Whenua-Landcare Research are conducting a survey to understand how perceptions of wilding conifers differ across regions of Aotearoa New Zealand, and between professions and stakeholders. They are also interested in understanding how these…
Date: 11th September 2024
The enemy of my enemy…. Invasive mammals as seed predators of wilding conifers. Tom Carlin from Scion recently completed our second webinar with a great presentation. You can watch this on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1cizVVDmoc Tom along…
Date: 17th August 2024
First webinar successfully done The first test of the 2024 Wilding Conifer Action Webinar Series run by the Wilding Pine Network, Scion and the National Wilding Conifer Control Programme webinar was very well received….
Date: 18th July 2024
If you are interested in how the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) works and what role it plays in New Zealand’s climate change response take a look at https://consult.environment.govt.nz/climate/second-emissions-reduction-plan/. The Ministry for the Environment is…
Date: 14th June 2024
DoC will pull back from some areas but focus more keenly on others, the minister says, while seeking external partners and investors Minister foreshadows hard choices for Conservation Department (msn.com) This article provides an…
Date: 12th June 2024
The IVL is a $35 levy that is charged to most international visitors to New Zealand. The IVL aims to address current challenges in the tourism and conservation systems. The introduction of the IVL…
Date: 19th May 2024
Think rats Think conifer seeds as a tasty morsel for their sharp little teeth and high energy lifestyle. Tom Carlin from Scion and a group of science partners from Scion and Lincoln University have…
Date: 14th May 2024
On a chilly day in May complete with even colder rain the wilding programme Technical Advisory Group (TAG) visited Flock Hill Station in Canterbury. We were accompanied by scientists from Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research,…
Date: 3rd May 2024
A good article from Radio New Zealand about the impacts of reduced funding in Southland: https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/ldr/515194/wilding-pine-work-will-go-backwards-with-reduced-funding The issue was highlighted in a recent Environment Southland chief executive report which said the Ministry for Primary…
Date: 3rd May 2024
Nick Ledgard one of our most experienced practitioners and scientists shares his knowledge about where wilding sources came from around New Zealand. He worked as a forester and scientist for over 40 years, and…
Date: 25th April 2024
16th to 18th October is the date booked for this year’s conference in Taupo. Yep, people North Island this time. By the end of May, we will have a theme confirmed and will start…
Date: 23rd April 2024
Hand saws are a key weapon of choice for many on the front line of wilding control. Now thanks to a partnership with Silky Saws https://silkystore.co.nz/ you can purchase your tools of choice at…
Date: 16th April 2024
Shelterbelts are an essential tool in exposed landscapes to protect property, get a garden or crops to grow as well as protect stock. Conifers in the form of pines, firs and cedars were found…
Date: 16th April 2024
The MacKenzie basin in Canterbury is the largest and least modified intermontane basin in New Zealand but it’s under siege from wilding pines. Endless and vast landscapes endure the relentless march of wildings. They…
Date: 16th April 2024
Well-deserved congratulations to Otago Regional Council, Whakatipu Wilding Conifer Group and landowners involved with the almost 67,000-hectare Shotover Management Area. The area is located to the northwest of Queenstown and is a stunning landscape…
Date: 20th December 2023
Management units are the administrative boundaries that New Zealand has been divided into forthe National Wilding Conifer Control Programme (NWCCP) administered by MPI. There is a total of 129 management units. They cover private…
Date: 12th December 2023
The go to guide for Cantabrians This comprehensive handbook developed by ECAN (Environment Canterbury) is for landholders wanting to remove planted and/or wilding pines and prevent their spread. It combines resources from across the…
Date: 8th December 2023
Congratulations to Carol Rolando from SCION who won the front-page competition for the above article (also see link to article below) in the Weed Society of America journal. https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/EC888894C5B7A927AD5E5A3E0C06CD8D/S1939729123000202a.pdf/persistence-of-triclopyr-dicamba-and-picloram-in-the-environment-following-aerial-spraying-for-control-of-dense-pine-invasion.pdf Management implications from the study…
Date: 8th December 2023
Please read the article in the link below. https://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/133063759/concern-as-carbon-offset-partnership-plants-pines-in-biodiversity-hotspots It covers a conundrum that is occurring all over Aotearoa. This one in South Marlborough occurred prior to the changes to the NES-PF (National Environmental…
Date: 3rd November 2023
Scion is one of the lead providers for the science that helps wilding control work. The goal for Vive la résistance (VLR) is to achieve one important impact for New Zealand: To optimise wilding…
Date: 3rd November 2023
The extra funding was announced by MPI at the 2023 Wilding Pine conference heled in October in Queenstown. It has been provided by the Department of Conservation. The extra funding will be prioritised to…
Date: 27th October 2023
Thank you to everyone (around 160 of you, an all-time record!) who attended our recent conference in Queenstown either in person or online. The conference included a keynote from Simon Upton the Parliamentary Commissioner…
Date: 6th October 2023
The National Environmental Standards for Commercial Forestry (NES-CF), formerly the National Environmental Standard for Plantation Forestry (NES-PF), are for managing the environmental effects of plantation and exotic continuous-cover forestry (sometimes called carbon forestry). A…
Date: 6th October 2023
A big thanks to Lauren Prebble from Marketellingenz in Cromwell who manages our social media. She canvassed all the political parties to get their position on wilding pines. Hirakimata – Mount Hobson summit looking…
Date: 2nd October 2023
Smoke drifting across Lake Pukaki from the large blaze at Pukaki Downs (in mid-September). Photo: RNZ / Nathan McKinnon Listen to a good interview from 27th September with Kathryn Ryan from RNZ – Clint Miles from…
Date: 22nd September 2023
Otago Regional Council chairwoman Gretchen Robertson has written an opinion piece in the Otago Daily Times and describes wilding pines around Central Otago as ticking biological timebomb. Her piece is reproduced below or read it direct in…
Date: 18th September 2023
A really good interview with Steve Satterthwaite from Muller station in Marlborough. https://www.rexonline.co.nz/home/podcasts.html. Scroll down and look for this podcast: Steve talks about his perspective as a large high-country landowner but also as a…
Date: 14th September 2023
Biological invasions cost the global community an estimated USD$423 billion in 2019, and those costs have quadrupled every decade since 1970. The Assessment Report on Invasive Alien Species and their Control https://www.ipbes.net/IASmediarelease is a new…
Date: 13th September 2023
The damaging consequences of cutting funding for environmental regeneration. Pioneering wilding pines on the march across iconic Central Otago landscape Alexa Forbes, an Otago Regional Councillor has written a thought-provoking story on her blog…
Date: 6th September 2023
Please find below a great article that featured in the Sunday Star Times on 3rd September and also in the Press. We are very grateful to Andrea Vance for a thorough story and to…
Date: 2nd September 2023
Pete Oswald, Project Manager for the Central Otago Wilding Conifer Group (https://www.centralwildingconifers.co.nz/about) did a late-night interview on Radio New Zealand. It’s a great interview as it is both a personal and professional perspective on…
Date: 2nd September 2023
A great story on Radio New Zealand recently featuring Grahame Sydney who is a champion of the Central Otago Wilding Conifer Group. The story is about declining funding for the environment and its effects…
Date: 24th August 2023
After nearly a year of waiting this invaluable document is now available. Now that funding for the national programme has been reduced by 75%, this cost benefit analysis is a critical document in our…
Date: 4th August 2023
Check out a great podcast on FEDSNEWS. https://fed-talks.simplecast.com/episodes/musing-on-the-future-of-wilding-control In January 2023 FEDSNEWS reported that the future of wilding pine control was uncertain – with funds signaled to reduce to a $10m annual baseline. On…
Date: 1st August 2023
http://Wilding Pines Conference 2023 – Wilding Pine Network NZ We look forward to seeing you at the 2023 conference from 18-20 October at the Memorial Hall in Queenstown. “Wildings in the…
Date: 18th July 2023
Our 2023 conference is being held in Queenstown at the Memorial Hall owned by the Queenstown Lakes District Council who have generously provided this venue free of charge. We are also grateful for their…
Date: 26th May 2023
26th May 2023 Mid Dome in Southland is a prominent landmark between Queenstown and Invercargill. It’s pretty much ground zero for wilding control work. Between the 1950s and 1980s Crown agencies (MWD, NZFS) and…
Date: 23rd May 2023
Yep, great job done -all those seed trees and their offspring removed but under the ground lies viable seed and/or over the hill are big trees with seed and prevailing winds that send those…
Date: 15th May 2023
https://horizonsrc.zoom.us/j/86328227087?pwd=aktiU0wzSDdsdW1qcGdqVUg5N3pTUT09 I write this post after 2 days of sunshine and now we are back to rain. The land on the farm that we live on in the Kaipara Hills is just sodden and…
Date: 15th May 2023
Last year I visited Motupohue/Bluff Hill at Bluff in the South Island. I am used to the fast-growing nature of our native plants in the Hauraki Gulf and Northland, and I find it hard…
Date: 10th May 2023
A really great insight into the work and challenges of the Whakatipu Wilding Conifer Control Group fronted by Will McBeth of DOC aired on Rural Delivery on Saturday 6th May. 2023 ” The cost…
Date: 9th May 2023
The National Wilding Conifer Control Programme have just released an updated id guide. You can download it here https://www.wildingpines.nz/spread-the-word/image-gallery/species-gallery/ There are approximately ten introduced conifer species that are responsible for most wilding conifers in…
Date: 28th April 2023
Water is the lifeforce that powers the land, whether it be pastoral or horticulture farming, forestry, hydro generation, towns and of course our natural environments. The presence of large wilding pine and conifer forests…
Date: 28th April 2023
A really informative report has just been jointly released by the NZ Farm Forestry Association, Forest Owners Association and Te Uru Rakau (NZ Forest Service). It’s well worth reading and is an easy read…
Date: 27th April 2023
We have recently confirmed the 2023 conference location as Queenstown. It will be in the Memorial Hall in Queenstown on the above dates. I would like to acknowledge Queenstown Lakes District Council for their…
Date: 26th April 2023
Our montane forests and sub alpine environments are spectacular natural places with many unique plant and animal species, but they are also highly vulnerable to modification from faster growing wilding pines and conifers. To…
Date: 26th April 2023
Funding is a constant challenge – the wilding pine space is no stranger to this as we face significant reductions in the 23/24 financial year which may last up to three years. We cannot…
Date: 7th February 2023
Welcome to 2023. We hope you had some time to refresh and revive over the weird and wonderful weather had by many over Xmas and New Year. The world of wildings has had a…
Date: 19th December 2022
The University of Otago is embarking on a really interesting project exploring the current and future management of invasive species, and people’s values associated with contentious species. Their study will help understand how attitudes…
Date: 16th December 2022
This is a topic regularly in the media and a land use that is gaining in popularity around New Zealand. Carbon forestry or carbon farming as it is also called is the planting of…
Date: 9th December 2022
The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment released a report in October 2022 – entitled Environmental reporting, research and investment – Do we know if we’re making a difference? It’s a big read but pages…
Date: 2nd December 2022
A Recent visit to Southland reminded me about the beauty and vulnerability of our alpine ecosystems which are dominated by small natives -plants and animals especially skinks. Wilding pines and conifers decimate and completely…
Date: 1st December 2022
As you know we are building our profile in the media with our campaign to retain sufficient funding for the national programme. It is critical that this resourcing is maintained at a level which…
Date: 29th November 2022
A recent article in Friday Offcuts, the weekly electronic newsletter for Australasian Forest products companies gives a warning about marketing a product based on something it is not. Pinus radiata x attenuata hybrid has…
Date: 25th November 2022
Check out a great story featuring Steve Palmer from ECAN on Episode 2 on Stuff’s new podcast True Story delves into a curious tale of evil pine trees, shy wallabies, and more. It’s entertaining,…
Date: 22nd November 2022
Two funds are now open for applications. We encourage you to get cracking with applications. If you need help, please let Jo know jo@wildingpinenetwork.org.nz – part of WPN’s job is to help with these…
Date: 1st November 2022
I recently had the pleasure of going to a propagation workshop held by Wilding Free MacKenzie. Propagation of native species that is – not those marching green trees we saw extending right up to…
Date: 1st November 2022
Great excitement at the New Zealand Biosecurity Awards last night at Auckland Museum. We are thrilled to announce that our two nominations succeeded in their categories. Congratulations to the Whakatipu Wilding Control Group who…
Date: 21st October 2022
Richard Bowman WPN Chair and our coordinator presented to the NETS (national biosecurity) conference in Christchurch in August 2022. The presentation was on the role of advocacy in a landscape scale biosecurity response but…
Date: 20th October 2022
Take the time to listen to this interview with Ross Ivey, Chair of the McKenzie Wilding Trust and Rachel Smalley from Today FM. Dated 13/10/22 it was done to advertise upcoming volunteer days. In…
Date: 19th October 2022
https://mailchi.mp/331486178670/autumn-newsletter-from-the-wilding-pine-network-9089417 In this newsletter – information on our advocacy programme ” Sustaining the Gains” to address the 2023 funding reduction and how you can help, a new member on our management committee, the recently…
Date: 19th October 2022
We have broken new ground and entered a new age! Thanks to Lauren Prebble our social media specialist we have established a social media profile. www.facebook.com/WildingPineNetwork Social media helps amplify advocacy efforts by potentially reaching…
Date: 19th October 2022
Effective wilding control is all about keeping the pressure on -catching trees when they are small and before they get a chance to cone and send their winged progeny out to create more problems…
Date: 18th October 2022
An advocacy campaign to address the 2023 national programme funding reduction. The significant gains made by the National Wilding Conifer Control Programme is at risk due to a reduction of funding to the programme…
Date: 18th October 2022
12308A A5 Booklet Wilding Pine Aug 2022 WEB These Guidelines were originally written in 2009 by…
Date: 8th April 2022
The WPN has recently released a report about the gaps and limitations in policy and legislation.
Date: 16th November 2021
The Wilding Pine Network endorses the PCE’s report on weeds titled “Space invaders: A review of how New Zealand manages weeds that threaten native ecosystems”. Weeds are a significant threat to Aotearoa’s native ecosystems…
Date: 12th November 2021
The Wilding Pine Network’s 2020-21 Annual Report is now available. In this past year, the Wilding Pine Network (formerly the NZ Wilding Conifer Group) has continued to establish itself as an independent advocacy and…