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nafex - Re: [nafex]was Blue Understory Now Gorse

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  • From: PermacultureNo1@aol.com
  • To: nafex@egroups.com
  • Subject: Re: [nafex]was Blue Understory Now Gorse
  • Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 13:16:52 EST

What you saw is gorse. Another great plant I probably set out at my place!
Gorse in New Zealand is trying to undo the damage cause by greed and
indiference to the natural resource base. The really criminal action was
introducing sheep and cattle. These destroy native vegatation mainly by the
compaction of their hooves on the fragil surface roots. (New Zealand is a
natural bird habitat--there are no native mammals and so the ecosystem has no
defence against them.) Gorse nicely closes out these ruminant pests, holds
soil (subsidance is a major problem there), and rebuilds fertility. Native
pioneer species come up through gorse, so the restoration to a sustainable
and sustaining (for the land) ecosystem is underway. The main problem with
gorse is that, like the pestiferous eucalyptus, it promotes short fire
cycles. However if one abandandons the NZ practice of piling gorse slash in
windrows up and down slopes and piles it instead in bands on contour,
potential for rapid spread of fire is reduced by orders of magnitude and the
slash provides additional erosion control benefit. Left alone, though,the
native bush will restore through gorse, as will selected exotics such as
blackwalnut, etc. (People DO need cash crops of course.) Suddenly into my
mind come memories of visiting the beef farm of Ben and Bev Worsfield on the
North Island. By improved grazing technique (strip grazing + increased
shelter, mainly with native vegetation fromwhich cattle were fenced), they
increased production while maintaining reserves of native bush in which
cattle are now never allowed. There was no gorse though it is in the farms
all about, because there was no niche for it. It likes bare soil, eg.
overgrazed, slipping soil.)

Dan Hemenway
Barking Frogs Permaculture Center
http://barkingfrogspc.tripod.com/frames.html
or
http://www.permaculture.net/~EPTA/Hemenway.htm

The protocol for our Annual Permaculture Design Course Online is at
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-----------
In a message dated 1/12/01 9:57:07 AM, longdistshtr@shtc.net writes:

<< A mention of English Ivy, Tree of Heaven, and other unwanteds reminds me
of Scots/Scotch Broom in New Zealand. I was there year before last. I
didn't see the fruit trees mentioned lately but did see thousands of
sheep (couldn't count them, kept going asleep) and hectares upon
hectares of beautiful hills covered with Scotch Broom. Another mistake
made by man of mis-locating a plant. Doc >>







  • Re: [nafex]was Blue Understory Now Gorse, PermacultureNo1, 01/16/2001

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