Grass Roots Giving Project
Banking our native grasslands
Our Grass Roots Giving Appeal ran in mid-2023 seeking community support to fund a grasslands conservation project.
Over $5,500 was raised thanks to public donations, including generous contributions from Wild Country Fund and The Council of Heads of Australian Botanic Gardens.
This funding will help the Tasmanian Orchid Conservation and Research Program, hosted by the Tasmanian Seed Conservation Centre, to conserve the Critically Endangered Midlands Greenhood Orchid (Pterostylis commutata).
This grassland orchid is endemic to the Tasmanian Midlands and is found in low numbers across severely fragmented sub-populations. It is threatened by altered fire regimes, grazing and slashing, and weed invasion.
In 2022-23 a new sub-population was located within the significant native grasslands at Kingston Farm, a property which is managed for both wool production and biodiversity conservation with the support of M.J. Bale and the Midlands Conservation Partnership.
This sub-population is now the largest known for the species and has provided a crucial opportunity to collect and bank precious seed.
Our Grass Roots Giving Project will enable us to continue work with the landowner to improve conservation efforts for this imperilled orchid.
Project Aims
Funds raised will help our partner at the Tasmanian Seed Conservation Centre to:
- Cage and hand pollinate the orchids to protect them and encourage seed production.
- Secure seed to improve the diversity of banked collections and enable future translocation efforts.
- Secure collections of the symbiotic mycorrhizal fungi partner that helps the orchid to grow and survive.
- Germinate the orchid using seed and fungus collections.
Project outcomes
This project will run from December 2023 to June 2025, so check back later to see how we are tracking!
