Regular as clockwork, two lots of students from Melbourne and Federation universities visited in February and March this year. Each uni brought out about 40 students to check on our unique combination of habitat creation combined with farm forestry.

Steve Murphy played his interactive animist games whereby the students channel how much the critters love the biorich habitat. Lachie explained the process of making the drop slab hut. This always seems to be a highlight: something to do with the resources made real. Roger and I play support roles, which involves answering queries from curious students as we move from the hut to the top of the hill and back again. In one heartening sign, the number of students curious about the biorich model seems to be increasing.

We've had good rain and the callitris on top of the hill was looking particularly splendid.

It's pretty bare on the ground at the ImLal biorich plantation – a combination of winter cold and kangaroo grazing. But there were still some surprises. Some of the trees planted with Rowan Reid's fibreglass poles to escape roo damage are now well and truly established. And the few sequoias left are finally getting up there after almost 15 years growth! As for the hakeas on the mullock heap, they're in glorious full bloom and emitting a strong honey smell. Sweet!

Steve Murphy presented at our two university visits that fell in the first part of 2025. Federation University has come for 15 years straight as lecturer Singarayer  Florentine noted (and he's been with them all that time!). Florry remarked that it gives his mine and land rehabilitation students a totally different perspective than the 'economic' driver behind most forestry plantations.

Both field days had about 20-30 students. Steve  played his animist game again, where he shanghais students into playing a range of animals declaring what sort of habitat they like. Most of the students are enthusiastic, getting into their role by deploying funny voices.

Lachie presented at his drop slab hut. He has developed a range of props now that demonstrate the mortise and tenon process used.

The site is very dry but holding up well. The Lal Lal Falls have dried up as you can see below.

Windy but we still saw (mainly heard) 38 bird species as spring breeding activity picked up.

Ornithologist lecturer from Federation University, Grant Palmer, led five of us, with three new participants, two of them, Sue and Glen, being new Lal Lal residents who wanted to learn what was in their patch. Jodie from Mollongghip also joined us for the first time.

Despite the wind, a rufous whistler gave a long and strong display. Gary had, once again, cleared a path through the gorse on the west bank.

Fantails out in force in the north block, which is really starting to open out to become more like a natural forest. Surprisingly, the grey everlasting bushes there seemed to have escaped the hammering of their cousins in ImLal South by roos. 

A fan tailed cuckoo topped a bare stag branch in the north. No noisy miners were sighted. The surviving sequoias are at last undergoing a growth spurt.
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​Grant has provided a fuller report, which you can read in the Monitoring menu – visit Bird surveys at ImLal

Amazing what a group can achieve and the camaraderie generated.

​A dozen of us worked for for a couple of hours on a cloudy morning, followed by a latish lunch in the drop slab hut clearing. As dessert, we listened to Steve Murphy talk about his biorich design principles and new book. 

 Field Day activities included:

• Banksia seed orchard planting – we had about 100 tubestock from local provenances to plant and guard under the guidance of Roger MacRaild. Plant crew included Jodie Goldring, Gayl Morrow and Steve & Lina Murphy. Planting in the clay next to the dam has not proven a success.

 

• Plant ID signage  repaired and new ones added –  Roger with Steve's help found where the tree violets were. We found a koala up what was supposedly a yellow gum

 

• Checking nest boxes for spring action – Roger used a camera to peer into boxes. No-one home, but evidence of occupation 

 

• Oiling of drop slab hut – Susan Meyer set to with tung oil to refresh the exterior

 

• Thinning dense tree clumps of silver wattle  invading casuarina and  swamp gum overwhelming shrub growth – led by Lachie Park, with Barry Dimond and Gib

 

• Slashing of gorse and spraying on either side of the track around the west side of the dam in order to keep the bird survey transect open – Gary Featherston took this on

 

• Barbecue lunch, with talk by ecologist Steve Murphy about his biorich design principles – Moorabool Shire councillor, Moira Berry arrived just before lunch as did the 'Gorsinator' Gavin Shell, who handed out business cards spruiking his business extracting gorse.

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