Update on NELP-funded tree planting (October 2024)
The North East Link Project (NELP) will provide funding for us to plant 137 trees in Columba Street Reserve in 2025.
Columba Street Reserve was originally part of Freeway Golf Course and the original greens and tees are still visible. The park is very exposed to northerly winds, the soil is heavily compacted and some of the existing trees require pruning or removal due to limited life expectancy.
We engaged a soil scientist to assess the soil and advise on how best to improve it. The Tree Company has been engaged to undertake site preparation and tree planting at Columba Street Reserve. They will be working in the park over the next few months to prepare mulched beds for tree planting and undertake soil remediation.
Trees will be planted from May 2025 to September 2025. We’ve selected native tree species that’ll develop into beautiful canopy trees and provide habitat for native birds and insects. Tree species have also been selected based on their tolerances to climate change impacts such as increased temperatures and more variable rainfall patterns.
Species to be planted will complement the existing character of the park and won’t impact on resident views to the north. Tree species include:
- various bird-attracting Eucalypt species
- Native pines (Callitris)
- Kurrajong trees (Brachychiton)
- She-oaks (Allocasuarina species)
- various species of wattles
- Kanooka (Tristaniopsis species).
We’ll provide a planting map and species list in an update to residents in March 2025.
Columbia Street Reserve where 137 new trees will be planted.
Tree Canopy Replacement Plan
The construction of (NELP) is expected to remove at least 4,000 trees in Boroondara.
Our Tree Canopy Replacement Plan has been developed to help guide the replacement of amenity tree plantings being removed from Boroondara as a result of the project. This includes native exotic trees.
The plan aims to maintain and enhance our City’s leafy green environment by planting up to 4,000 new canopy trees to provide more shade in open spaces and along shared use paths as the new trees grow.
It also provides an opportunity for a planned approach to canopy tree planting, using appropriate species in well-designed and remediated sites that will thrive in future climate conditions.
So far, NELP has provided funding to us to plant trees in Hyde Park and Freeway Golf Course.
More information
For more information, please call (03) 9278 4444 or email [email protected]