The Ararat and Stawell Archery Club is located in the Great Western Racing and Recreation Reserve, which has a hidden gem – a wildflower rich, native grassland! Over the last 30 years, club members have nurtured the site by planting trees. Now they are teaming up with Project Platypus to improve the understory. This will create habitat for wildlife as well as better conditions for an ‘obstacle course’ style target shooting, where archers move through vegetated areas – a win-win for the club and for nature!
This project aims to create a partnership with recreational land users to ensure ongoing stewardship of one of our region’s rare remnant grassy woodland sites.
We are so lucky to have such a beautiful outdoor site to enjoy our sport every weekend. Our club grounds have some of the prettiest wildflowers you'll find around the area! We are proud to maintain this site and see it looking even better every year. (Elia speaking in her capacity as a club member)
Elia Pirtle - Landcare Facilitator and Communications Officer
The site
The Great Western Archery club, and surrounding Racecourse reserve, lies on Plains Grassy Woodland habitat, which is endangered in Victoria. The Racecourse reserve grounds had been historically cleared, and thus the archery club site lacked much of the canopy and understory layers. However, as the site did not experience significant grazing, cropping or fertilization, a good quality grassland still exists within the archery club grounds. About 25 years ago, the archery club did considerable amounts of tree planting around the grounds to recreate canopy layers and provide wind breaking for the archery field. As a result, today there is good tree cover over the area. However, there is still a noticeable lack of mid and understory.
What we are doing
Community engagement
The Great Western community will be invited to an Informational session when grassland herbs and wildflowers are in peak bloom. We will walk the remnant grassland area, led by an ecologist who explains the history and current state of critically endangered native grasslands and grassy woodlands in Victoria.
Weed control
Invasive weeds will be controlled at the site, to prevent them from encroaching on the native grassland species. These weeds include briar, Phalaris, Cootamundra wattle, Bridal creeper. Follow up control works will occur after one year.
Revegetation
A community plant out day will be held, led by the Archery club. 300 native understory plants will be planted on club grounds surrounding the grassland, to bring the site in line with appropriate mid and understory characteristics of grassy woodland habitat benchmarks.
Project partners
