Botanical Society

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ROTORUA BOTANICAL SOCIETY 2013 TRIP PROGRAMME

**Please note: We would like intending participants to give the leader a call during the week before the trip. This will give the leader an idea of the party, and enable them to give you any last minute information. If the leader is not available contact Paul Cashmore 07 348-4421 (hm) or 07 349-7432 (wk), 027 650 7264.

The meeting place for all trips, unless otherwise stated, is the carpark between the Convention Centre and the Police Station, Fenton Street, Rotorua (hereinafter called "the Rotorua carpark"). We will carpool with a donation for petrol expenses for cars/boats to drivers please.

Reminder to trip leaders
Please remember to collect the first aid kit and PLB (Personal Locator Beacon) from John Hobbs or supply your own.  You are also responsible for delegating the writing up of the trip report or writing it yourself and getting it to the editor within 4 weeks of the trip.  A very brief report is much better than no report! If you have email send the report to:   This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.    (Note: IBM compatible Word 2007 preferred).

Friday 25 January - Tuesday 29 January 2013 - Lake Waikeremorana (Auckland Anniversary Botanical Society Anniversary Weekend Trip)
Leader : Leslie Haines by email at  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 09 815 1126 or 0212 092779
Meet : Contact trip leader
Grade : Medium 
Accomodation : staying at Camp Kaitawa on Lake Wherowhero.  It includes a confidence course, canoes and tennis courts - if there's time after botanising.
Costs : $20.00 per night - 4 nights.  Food will be provided as usual.  All costs will be tallied up at the end of camp.
The main vegetation types are:  red or silver beech forest, rimu-broadleaf forest, mixed beech/rimu-broadleaf forest, secondary growth forest, herbfield turfs, wetland tarns, "tundras" and subalpine shrubland.
Rare plants ngutukaka (kaka beak), Dactylanthus, Kirk's tree daisy, raukawa, mistletoes, Carex cirrhosa, swamp orchid (Spiranthes novae-zelandiae) and Urtica linearifolia grow naturally here. 


Saturday 23 February - Erua, National Park
Leader : Phillip Smith 07 378 0571 (a/h) email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Meet : The carpark Rotorua 8:00am or Taupo Police Station at 9:00am
Grade :  Medium
Bring : Gumboots
Visit to Erua south of National Park.  A botanially interesting area with a range of habitats including wetlands, forest margins and frost flats.  Highlights include populations of threatened species, Pittosporum turneri and Melicytus flexuosus and many more.


Sunday 10 March - Galaxy Road North Wetland (Combined with Waikato Botanical Society) 
Leader : Paul Cashmore 07 348 4421 (hm), 07 349 7432 (wk) This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  
Meet : The carpark Rotorua at 8:30am  or end of SH5 - Galaxy Road junction 9:00am
Grade : Medium
Bring : Gumboots
A walk through this extensive wetland/mire - beech forest complex on the Mamaku plateau.  This wetland and forest complex  has an interesting history having been used for forest research by FRI in the past and more recently acquired by the Nature Heritage Fund and now managed by DOC.  We will see Gahnia rigida near its northern limits, a range of tomos and wetland vegetation typical of mires in this northern part of the Mamaku plateau. 


Sunday 7 April – Carter Block, Rerewhakaaitu 
Leader : John Hobbs 07 348 6620 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Meet : The carpark Rotorua at 8:30am or by arrangement
Grade : Easy
We will examine the vegetation succession on the southern flank of Mount Tarawera with emphasis on the effects of washout pumice build up in kanuka forest.  Of particular interest in this area is the occurrence of Helichrysum lanceolatum and the invasion of the exotic fern Dryopteris filix-mas.  


Saturday 13 April – Okareka Mistletoe Restoration Project Weed Control Work Day
Leader : Paul Cashmore ph 07 348-4421 (hm), 07 349-7432 (wk)   This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Meet : Cnr Summit and Loop Roads (lake end) at 08:45am.
Grade : Medium-Hard - Activities suitable for all ages and abilities will be provided.  This will include releasing our plantings and weed control elsewhere in the reserve.


Sunday 12 May - Tarawera Trail to Hot Water Beach
Leader : Chris Bycroft 07 346-3647 (hm) This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Meet : The carpark Rotorua at 8:30am
Chris will need to know the probable numbers Thursday, 2 May so that boat options to Hot Water Beach can be organised. 
Grade : Medium (possibly c.8km (estimate only) walking on a formed track).
Come and try part of the new track around Lake Tarawera.  If we get enough people I will organise a boat (cost to come) to Te Rata Bay (Hot Water Beach).  From there we will walk back to the car park (Punaromia) along the new track, which offically opens summer 2002-13.  Hot Water Beach has some geothermal vegetation. We will walk back through vegetation that has regenerated since the Tarawera eruption.  Good view over the lake and Mt Tarawerea can be expected.


Mid May - Rotorua Botanical Society Lecture - Dr Matt Buys - A botanical safari through iKhapa, and beyond. 
Venue and time : To be announced.
A talk aimed at taking the listerer on a botanical journey though the Cape Floristic Kingdom, South Africa.  Roughly coincident with the Fynbos Biome, I will sketch the history, boundaries, topograpy, geology, vegetation and flora of this area with reference to endemism, species richness and some of the plant taxonomic research projects that I have been involved with.


Sunday 9 June - Papamoa Hills Regional Park 
Leader : Graeme Jane 07 570 3123 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  
Meet : The carpark, Rotorua at 8:30am or Papamoa Hills Regional Park entrance - end of Poplars Lane, Papamoa at 9:15am
Grade : Moderate to steep
The area is mainly farmland but within it are several pockets of residual forest in steep gullies.  Forst includes mangeao, tawa and kohekohe with several interesting ferns.  The pasture also contains a wide range of adventive and native herbs.  There are grand views of the coast and city. 


Monday 24 June - Annual General Meeting and Speaker 
Venue : DOC East Coast BOP Conservancy Office, 99 Sala Street, Rotorua.  Go in Scion (Forest Research) north enterance and turn left before the locked gates. 
Time : 6pm
Wine, juice, cheese and nibbles will be provided.
Following the AGM a speaker to be sorted.

Sunday 7 July - Waiotahi Spit/Huntress Creek 
Leader : Wayne O'Keefe 07 315 7556 or 021 02385608 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  
Meet : The carpark Rotorua 8:00am or corner of Ohiwa Beach Road and SH2 beside Waiotahi River at 9:30am.
Grade : Easy
Bring : Gumboots. Tides will be low.  
In the morning we will visit Waiotahi Spit and look at sand dune communities and puhutukawa forest along the spit including several regionally threatened plant species.  If time permits in the afternoon we will continue along to Waiotahi and visit Huntress Creek - an extensive area of estuarine saltmarsh communities near the Opotiki River mouth.



Saturday 7 September - Kaiangaroa Frost Flats - Rangitaiki Bog Pine forest (Combined with Waikato Botanical Society)
Leader : Sarah Beadel ph 07 345 5912 or 021 924 476
Meet : The carpark Rotorua 8:30am
Grade : Medium
An expedition to an area of bog pine forest in the heart fo Kaingaroa Forest.  Advance information of vehicle registration number, make and model, and a photocopy of drivers licence, is required, in order to get permits to enter the forest.  Please email me details a week in advance.  4WD required.  There will be spare seats available if you do not have 4WD, bu booking is advisable to secure your space!


Friday 4 October - Sunday 6 October (Sunday optional) - East Cape revisited #7
Leader : Tim Senior, ph 0800 368-288 extn 6010 or 07 315-7371   This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Meet : The carpark Rotorua at 7:30am or ex Opotiki DOC office (Cnr Elliot and St John Street) at 9:15am.  For those coming from a distance there is the option of going to Tim's bach on the Friday night.
Grade : Medium
Cost : $20 donation for accommodation for those staying Sat night.  
On Saturday we will botanise some coastal forest (site yet to be determined) with a possible visit to Haupoto wetland on Sunday.
 

Saturday 12 October - Okareka Mistletoe Restoration Project Weed Control/Plant Releasing Work Day
Leader : Paul Cashmore 07 348-4421 (hm), 07 349-7432 (wk)  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Meet : Cnr Summit and Loop Roads, Okareka (lake end) at 8:45am
Grade : Medium-Hard - Activities suitable for all ages and abilities will be provided. This will include releasing our plantings from weed growth and doing further weed control.

Saturday 9 November - Lake Arapuni or Lake Maretai
Leader : Willie Shaw 07 345-5912 (hm) 021 757 522 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Meet : The carpark Rotorua at 9:00am or Lake Atiamuri 10:00am.  This is a boat trip so you must tell the trip leader you are coming.
Grade : Easy
Cost : Donation for boat fuel


Saturday 16 November - Pterostylis hunt
Leader:  Sarah Beadel 07 345-5912 or 021-924-476 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Meet:  The carpark, Rotorua at 8:30am.
Grade:  Easy
Come on an expedition to a yet-to-be-announced Bay of Plenty wetland.  Perfect timing to see wetland Pterostylis orchids in flower such as P. micromega, P. paludosa, and P. graminea.  More details will be available closer to the time, please get in touch (email best) if you want to come.  Booking advisable so we can co-ordinate transport.


Saturday 30 November - Sunday 1 December -  Hauhungatahi, Tongariro National Park (combined with Waikato Botanical Society)
Leader:  Kerry Jones 07 855-9700 (home), 027-747-0733.  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Meet:  National Park Petrol Station 9:00am on the Saturday.
Grade:  Hard (the track is not maintained).
Accommodation:  Tents if you want to stay overnight.
Bring:  Camping gear for DOC campsite.
We will be staying at the Mangahuia Campsite on SH47 (6km from National Park) on Saturday night and some of us may stay there on Friday night.  Saturday, starting at Erua, we will climb up to Hauhangatahi and then head back down to the Mangahuia Campsite.  The track climbs through beech, kamahi and rimu.  Further up there is some kaikawaka forest.  On the Sunday will do another walk area possibly Tongariro forest.  Please contact Kerry if you wish to come on the trip.

SUGGESTED EQUIPMENT FOR DAY TRIPS
Lunch, drink, waterproof parka, warm hat, sturdy shoes or boots, sunblock, hand lens, note book, pen & pencil, first aid kit*, compass, GPS, map, whistle, aerial photos, species lists, money for drivers petrol expenses.
(* Ensure that there is at least one in your group.)