A ‘greendot’ is a native planting of a defined size and shape, with the purpose of recreating a natural habitat stepping stone as part of an indigenous wildlife corridor.
We work with landowners and community groups to create greendots on public and private land.
One of our key drivers is attempting to increase the less than 1% of indigenous vegetation remaining on the Canterbury Plains. By facilitating the creation of greendots, we are establishing a corridor of plantings and building community awareness of biodiversity.
Greendot projects range from dry land habitats with a large radius, to stream or wetland projects that are fenced off from farm animals. They may be one off plantings, or multi-year projects. Our support is not limited to just the initial planting, as we monitor the progress of the greendot and work together with landowners and other organisations to ensure the long-term success of each site.
Our greendot philosophy is based on research by Meurk and Hall (2006) that examined the possibilities of integrating forest ecosystems into exotic dominated urban and rural landscapes. It concluded that using a greenspace planning option of patches and linear linked native plantings (at 2 – 3km spacings) could improve biodiversity and would not be incompatible with land use and economic constraints in these managed landscapes. Further research by Lincoln University master’s student Catriona Blum identified an optimum corridor within the Selwyn District in close proximity to the Waikirikiri Selwyn River.
Legacy sites are significantly larger areas than our regular greendots, covering multiple hectares.
This creates a bigger core, with sheltered damp conditions which are not found near the forest edges. A more diverse variety of plant and wildlife species can survive in this environment.
Te Ara Kākāriki planted two Legacy sites through the Jobs for Nature programme between 2021 and 2024 and will plant more as funding and suitable locations become available.
These sites add incredible value to the Te Ara Kākāriki greenway and will provide much needed habitat for our indigenous birdlife.
Click on the markers below to see our current Greendot network across the Canterbury region
We are in the process of setting criteria for self-planted steppingstones to be added to the Te Ara Kākāriki Greenway. Once this is complete landowners will be able to register their restoration site and we will have signage available to purchase so your project can be recognised as part of our greenway linking the mountains to the sea.
We know we are not the only ones doing great restoration work in Selwyn and would like to map other restoration projects to show the physical and community connections being made with plants and people across the plains. It will also help us identify where the gaps in the greenway are.
Te Ara Kākāriki Greenway Canterbury Trust is an incorporated Charitable Trust with the goal of increasing biodiversity in Canterbury.
Our mission is to create a ‘Greenway’ – a corridor of native biodiversity Greendots between the Waimakiriri and Rakaia rivers, linking the mountains to the sea Ki uta ki tai.
We’ll send you regular updates on planting days and other useful news (we will not share your details with third parties)
