"The work of the Lindis Pass Conservation Group is aimed at ridding the Lindis Pass Reserve of exotic weeds, so that the naturally occurring plants – most visibly Chionochloa rigida (snow tussock) – can be enjoyed in their full glory in the reserve.

The principle weed is Sweet Briar, and the control methods is to cut the stems of the briar plants and poison them with Vigilant. We tried dispersing prills around the base of briar bushes last year; however this method has proved unsuccessful so we have returned to the prickly job of physically cutting the bushes and dragging the cut stems clear before dabbing Vigilant on all of the stumps. We have found it is necessary to dab all stumps or re-growth occurs. We have thought a beneficial thing to do with the cut stems is to pile them together and provide a superstructure for the existing native Muehlenbeckia scrambler to climb over, providing good habitat for insects and skinks.

The effect of the briar clearance is now visible from the road, as the reserve is becoming a clean area in contrast to the surrounding briar-infested land. This also means that the programme and monitoring will have to continue indefinitely, as briar is readily spread by birds and will be redistributed into the reserve each year.

One broom bush has also been observed and will be removed on the next visit. Other weed species which will receive attention are lupins, thistles and St Johns Wort.

Transit New Zealand has supported the project, not only by its legal obligation of spraying the briar along the edges of the highway which bisects the reserve, but also by creating a barrier to prevent vehicles from driving off the highway and onto the remnant of the original coach road. This has prevented further degradation of the historic road area, and we intend to plant snow tussocks propagated from locally collected seed along its line to replace the weedy, degraded stretch formed in the past by off-road vehicles.

Since the work began two years ago, the group has planned a number of working days during the summer months, and during some of these work-days we have been able to include exploratory walks to several of the surrounding high points of the reserve. We hope that the Department of Conservation will form a looped walk from the highway, to take visitors onto a spur away from and above the road, so that they can enjoy the views and experience the peace of the tussock-clad hills.

The Lindis Pass Conservation Group was formed after the Department of Conservation’s Community liaison officer, based in Twizel, spoke to the Upper Clutha branch of the Forest & Bird Society, suggesting this as a possible activity for the branch. Since then both members and non-members of the Society have joined in the work of improving this treasured gateway between Otago and Canterbury. The worth of the project is repeatedly confirmed as travellers stop to ask what we are doing during our work-days, and then express their approval and appreciation of the improvements we are making to the reserve. An incorporated society is being formed, so that the group can apply for and receive funding from various agencies in order to continue the work.

The value of creating a community group to do this work is twofold. Not only does the group take pride in the reserve, to the extent of regularly collecting accumulated rubbish from the roadside and gaining a sense of satisfaction at the improved state of “our” reserve; but also in a small way we can support the Department of Conservation in its huge task of stewardship of New Zealand’s natural landscape."