Australian Ecosystems state of the art nursery is at the Eastern Treatment
Plant on Thompson Road, Carrum Downs, on land leased from Melbourne Water
Corporation.

Features of our nursery include:

• Using recycled effluent water from the E.T.P to grow indigenous aquatic and terrestrial plants. This effluent is a valuable resource as its nutrients promote strong plant growth. Its year-round availability guarantees our productive capability during times of water restrictions.
• Several million indigenous plants grown annually
• Capacity to produce up to six million plants per annum
• Comprehensive range of locally indigenous plants including trees, shrubs, grasses, sedges, herbs and aquatic plants
• Dual irrigation system - fresh and recycled effluent water
• Seed collected from plants of local provenance and grown on contract to suit specific requirements, over 300 plant species
• Climate controlled Seedbank including seed processing and storage
• Staff highly skilled in plant identification and seed collection

Propagation at the nursery is focused on:

• Customised production techniques and facilities for indigenous plants
• Hygiene and OH&S standards
• Quality Assurance systems

With proper site preparation and appropriate timing of planting we generally achieve plant survival rates of over 97%.

Cutting and Seed Collection

It is our policy to collect genetic material for plant propagation (i.e. seed, cuttings or divisions) from remnant vegetation as close to each planting site as possible.

Features of our cutting and seed collection are:

• Licensed seed collection and storage facilities
• Project specific seed collection to ensure local provenance
• Database tracking system and labelling

Growing Formats – Multi-pak Trays

• Suits rhizomatous and stoloniferous plants
• Improved root development
• Increased establishment rate in the field

Growing Formats – Hiko cells (V93 – 93 cm3)

• Suit large scale production
• Cost effective and reusable
• Cell volume enables more mature growth and resilient plants
• OH&S benefits in the nursery and on site

Using local genetic stock ensures that plants are well adapted to local soil and climatic conditions. To prevent cross-pollination between stock at the nursery, plants are either deflowered or isolated within polyhouses during flowering. For seven years we have been developing a comprehensive seed bank, covering most of the aquatic species local to the Melbourne area and containing enough quantities to produce large numbers of plants.

All seeds, cuttings and divisions are collected under permit number 10002368 granted by the Department of Natural Resources and Environment.

Contact the nursery

nursery@australianecosystems.com.au

Phone: 03 9775 0612

Fax: 03 9775 0614