Brushcutting: Western Sydney Parkland
Brushcutting is a quick and cost effective way of removing large amounts of biomass from an area. Hills Bushcare staff regularly use brush cutters to remove tall weedy grasses, thinning Bracken fern in Asset Protection Zones, slashing blackberry and dense small woody weeds such as Sida.
Brushcutting is mostly used for 3 agendas:
- Mobility on site: In 2013 Hills Bushcare began works on a Western Sydney Parkland Paddock that had dense areas of the small woody weed Sida. It was so dense that movement through the site was very difficult and regenerative works almost impossible. As a result brushcutters were used early on in the project to quickly create access to the areas of regenerative works.
- Space: At the Western Sydney Parkland site there were plans to install new plants into areas that was covered by tall grassy weeds and blackberry. Brushcutters were used early in the contract to quickly remove this matting of weeds and safely reduce the stands of blackberry briars. Regrowth from the blackberry was sprayed and treated early in the contract to enable space for planting.
- Light: Often an increase in light after biomass removal promotes native growth and seed germination. This was seen after the removal of Sida on the Western Sydney Parkland Paddock. Dormant native seed from the adjoining bushland germinated within weeks after the slashing, and natives quickly colonised the area.
