Introduction to Nursery
Hi there and welcome!
Let’s start your training by identifying what the key purpose of the Wonthaggi Seed Bank and Nursery is:
There is a very important difference between native and indigenous plant species. So what is the difference? Native means that the plant species is found growing naturally somewhere in Australia, not necessarily our local area. Indigenous means that the plant species is found growing naturally in a specific area such as the Bass Coast and South Gippsland Shire. Our Nursery only propagates plant species that are indigenous to these Shires.
The Nursery Yard, located at the rear of the Wonthaggi State Coal Mine in Wonthaggi.
Let’s get started…
Training Pods
Represented by the graphic below, this training is clustered into ‘Pods’ of information on the six core (Pod 1 -6) activities undertaken at the Nursey. Volunteers will undertake or assist Team Leaders with these activities. Record keeping is a fundamental activity and within each of the core activity areas of operations record keeping is a component. Volunteers new to the Nursery are unlikely to undertake the stock record keeping duties however you are required to follow the protocols for writing up the daily propagation activity you undertake and ensuring that the propagated trays/racks are labelled correctly. This information is in the training Pod 7!
A meeting is held at the start of each Nursery session
The plant species and their propagation method and other Yard tasks are discussed with health and safety protocols flagged at this time.
What to wear
- Clothing that offers good protection for environmental conditions (sun and inclement weather – layers are great).
- Hat (brimmed for the sun and beanies for the cold).
- Gloves – bring along your own if you prefer otherwise we have the disposable kind available.
- Sturdy footwear with covered toes.
Where to wash your hands, etc
Outside the Nursery shed is a sink and tap. This is a good location to wash your hands as an alternative to the sink inside the shed where we wash our morning tea dishes. Any time you would like to take a turn to tidy-up after morning tea is welcomed. There is also a toilet and washbasin located a short walk away from the Nursery shed towards the Cafe car park and another block at the actual Cafe. A hand dispenser for antibacterial/virus protection is located in the Nursery shed and everyone is encouraged to use this for community safety.
After our morning briefing… it is all hands on deck!
Select ‘Pod #1 – Seeds‘ below to continue learning.
Shortcuts to the other Nursery Pods…