Living Desert Heirlooms:
Conserving Watarrka’s unique plant heritage
Some of Watarrka National Park’s most remarkable treasures are its plants. Hidden among its sandstone cliffs, gorges, springs and rock holes is an extraordinary botanical diversity, including rare, endemic and culturally significant species. This landscape provides important refuges, supporting hundreds of native flora, including many found nowhere else on the planet. These outstanding values lead to the Park being listed on the National Heritage List in 2024.
Now, a new project is helping safeguard this unique plant heritage for the future. We are pleased to announce our Living Desert Heirlooms Project, supported by the Australian Government’s Heritage Grants Program.
Living Desert Heirlooms will run over two years, bringing together the Alice Springs Desert Park, the Northern Territory Herbarium, the National Seed Bank, and Aṉangu ngurraritja through the Park’s Joint Management Committee.
The project will begin with listening, planning and co-design to identify priority plants and establish appropriate cultural protocols for the work. Field surveys will then help locate populations and understand when conditions are right for seed collection. Seed from priority species will be collected and conserved in long-term seed banks, alongside herbarium documentation and research into seed germination and viability.
Seed banks can provide an important conservation safeguard when plants and their habitats are facing increasing pressures. By securing seed while healthy populations remain, we can preserve options for future research, restoration and recovery.
The project will also provide opportunities for Indigenous Ranger and nursery staff to build skills in seed collection, processing and conservation. This on Country work will strengthen knowledge and capacity, and help ensure Watarrka’s unique plant heritage can continue to be valued and cared for into the future.
Visit the Living Desert Heirlooms project page to explore the project, and learn how we’re working to conserve Watarrka’s unique flora.