Planting and landscaping
Landscaping started almost immediately after Burwood landfill opened. The site has been progressively restored during and as each area was completed.
Replanting has required experimentation and evaluation to find the plants which will survive the effects of landfill gas, limited rainfall, quality of cover material and exposure to salt spray.
Specialist advice has come from landscaper Kevin Ford who has worked on the Burwood site from the outset, planting screening trees around the area’s perimeter and then on restoration.
“It has required a lot of trial and error. Initially pine trees were planted. The tap roots of the trees were affected by the methane and we had 90 per cent failure. It was very disappointing,” Mr Ford says.
“We started over, brought in more organic cover and moved on to flaxes and cabbage trees. With their shallower root structure we have had 80 to 90 per cent success. It is new for native forests to be planted on a landfill and there are even fewer planted on a hill.”
“We have over 20 varieties of gum trees. The swamp gum is surviving very well. Our aim is to provide shade and shelter so that walkers and mountain bikers can come off the tracks and have a break under the gums,” Mr Ford says.
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