Making friends with the creek

At the Cardinia Creek conservation working bee were, standing, from left: Gayle Savige, Ralph Smith, Lorraine Devine, Lisa Loulier, Linda and Greg McLaren, Ken Curtis, Carol Ward, John Morgan, Grazie and Rudi Oost, Jonathan Richardello. Crouching: Judy Smith. At the Cardinia Creek conservation working bee were, standing, from left: Gayle Savige, Ralph Smith, Lorraine Devine, Lisa Loulier, Linda and Greg McLaren, Ken Curtis, Carol Ward, John Morgan, Grazie and Rudi Oost, Jonathan Richardello. Crouching: Judy Smith.

BERWICK and District Bushwalking Club and joined forces on Sunday to hold a joint conservation working bee at Cardinia Creek.
The bushwalkers’ vicepresident Clio Curtis said: “We appreciate the wonderful times we have walking every weekend in local parks and reserves.
“Helping the friends was a great way to open communication with a likeminded group and their president is also a Berwick bushwalker.”
President of the Friends of Cardinia Creek Sanctuary Judy Smith told the bushwalkers that nine of the 10 people who joined her at the at the sanctuary seven years ago were still on the job.
Small groups set out to pull forgetmenots and cut and poison solanum and pittosporum undulatum.
The weather was perfect and conversation turned to the antechinus, a small marsupial, spotted down at the creek crossing that morning and there were pauses to watch the tree creeper birds.
The friends meet one morning a month to restore the creek to natural indigenous bushland. Morning tea is provided by the friends.
At the noon knockoff time a large pile of pulled weeds and many hundreds more poisoned was their reward.
Readers interested in becoming a Friend of Cardinia Sanctuary should contact Judy Smith 9707 1402. The Berwick and District Bushwalkers contact is Len Bell, phone 9704 2340.