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Robert's labour of love transforms boggy park into landscaped garden |
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Written by Administrator
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Friday, 02 September 2005 |
Robert Widin has worked four to 10 hours a week in the garden for the
past four years. But the remarkable thing is that Robert doesn't own
his garden. He's been pouring all that effort into council land at
Cedar Grove Park in Hakea Avenue. Robert has cleared, revegetated
and landscaped it into an impressive reserve.
For his back-breaking labour of love Robert was awarded Lake Baroon Catchment Care Group?s Landholder of
| Landholder of the Year Robert Widin with
LBCCG project office Susan Baggett Edols
and his award. |
the Year. It goes to the LBCCG grant recipient making the most outstanding contribution to catchment care. "We consider the work Robert has done is all the more remarkable because the land he has transformed belongs to Caloundra City Council," Lake Baroon Catchment Care Group project officer Susan Baggett Edols said. LBCCG provided seedlings for the replant, but Robert did all the work himself and for free.
"There was some erosion up here," he said surveying four years of hard work. "And there was a huge bank of lantana through here. I started clearing it myself and bought a few trees myself that I planted. And then a friend spoke to Caloundra City Council and Catchment Care and Barung Landcare and organised a meeting. Barung threw me a few seconds and stuff to start with and then Catchment Care started providing regular funding about four years ago now."
Robert said work in "his backyard" was very therapeutic and good for his health. "I'm a mental health nurse so this is a good
counter to my job," he laughed. "There's been minimum negotiation in this. I just wander out the back gate and start work myself and get some quiet time." Robert has even dug out what was a siltedover rocky stream and banked it with rock walls in an impressive landscaping feat. The trickle of water now gently fills the air as residents and visitors admire the scene from the bridge.
"I had a little bit of an inkling of how an archaeologist might feel as I kept uncovering the bedrock under the layers of mud in the stream," he joked. Lake Baroon Catchment Care Group president Peter Stevens said it was one of the best projects he had seen.
"It shows what can be done by an individual," Peter said. "Any revegetation project like this has an excellent outcome for water quality." "It's been surprising to me how much you can achieve over a period of time if you just put in regular work," Robert said. "I hope somebody might look at this and think they might adopt a little patch of their own. You can do even a couple of hours a month and it makes so much difference."
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 14 September 2006 )
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Range News 2005 - ON 
