Mahia he kai mō tau, mahia he wahie mō takurua – Provide subsistence for the whole year and get in firewood for the winter.
This is an old reminder to look ahead and prepare for future needs, which is what we’re doing in the face of the recent possum onslaught on the escarpment. This winter we ramped up possum control to protect the kaumātua on the station escarpment – mature kohekohe and tītoki – to act as shelter and a seed source into the future.
Ngā Uruora Kāpiti winners at the Wellington Airport Regional Community Awards
On 6th August, our Convenor Andy McKay and committee member Peter Kentish were pleased to accept the award for winner, Kāpiti Heritage and Environment Category, at the Wellington Airport Regional Community Awards. The aim of the award is to recognise the work of community groups in the wider Wellington area. Ngā Uruora will now represent Kāpiti in the Wellington regional awards in November.
The power of numbers at Waikākāriki Wetland
In March, we welcomed six volunteers from rural insurance company FMG to help clear weeds at the Waikākāriki Wetland. Then, in April, 29 volunteers from a Forest & Bird walking group joined us for a morning of weeding at Waikākāriki Wetland. The same volunteers have been coming for a few years now, and were amazed at the growth in the plantings since previous visits.
Between them, the volunteers made so much progress in clearing problem weeds from around our plantings that it noticeably reduced the work at our regular Waikākāriki working bees this Winter. We’re very grateful to all our volunteers and also welcome newcomers of all ages.
Forest & Bird volunteers receive a debrief ahead of their working bee, 26 April 2026. Photo: Peter Kentish.
Forest & Bird volunteers enjoying morning tea, 26 April 2026. Photo: Peter Kentish.
Roaming working bees and increasing the visibility of our volunteers
We recently invested in hi-vis vests for our volunteers with ‘Ngā Uruora volunteer’ printed on the back. The aim is to increase our profile as an organisation and also for health and safety purposes. See if you can spot committee members PK and Amelia modelling the new vests while clearing climbing asparagus in the Waikākāriki Gully on a roaming working bee in late August (photo below). Another successful roaming working bee this season was on the Kohekohe Loop Track, a popular walking track just south of Paekākāriki township, where we focused on track clearing.
Clearing climbing asparagus at Waikākāriki Gully, 30 August 2026. Photo credit: Paul Callister.
Some of the roaming working bee crew, Kohekohe loop track, April 2026. Photo credit: Andy McKay.
Track clearing, Kohekohe Loop Track, April 2026. Photo credit: Andy McKay.
View from the Kohekohe Loop Track, April 2026. Photo credit: Andy McKay.
Restoring the biodiversity of the Paekākāriki escarpment
Year-by-year, we are restoring some of the plant and tree species that would have once been common on the escarpment. This winter, we planted specimens of black maire (Notelaea cunninghamii) and northern rātā (Metrosideros robusta).
Black maire, a large broadleaf tree and a member of the olive family, was once widespread in North Island coastal and lowland forests south of Auckland, but was heavily logged by Pākehā settlers for its dense and durable wood. Māori also valued black maire for the construction of tools such as kō (digging sticks).
Northern rātā is one of Aotearoa’s tallest flowering trees and is found in the North Island and upper South Island. It usually starts life as an epiphyte in a host tree, often a rimu. Once established it is very long-lived: northern rātā can live up to 1,000 years old. Its crimson red flowers provide an important source of nectar for bees and birds such as tūī and korimako.
Flowering northern rātā at Remutaka Forest Park. Photo credit: Rebecca Jamieson/Pūkaha to Kawakawa Alliance.
Black maire berries. Photo credit: Tāne’s Trees Trust
Pest and trapping update
We have some great news – after discussions with Wellington Regional Council, they have agreed to take over the majority of the bait station work on the Escarpment. This will involve servicing the bait stations 3 or 4 times a year, using some of our old bait stations as well as some new ones. At the moment they are focusing on finalising the best placement for the bait stations. This is going to be a huge help as we have been struggling over recent years to keep servicing the network regularly, with a drop off in volunteers due to the demands of life, outside of pest control. However, we will carry on with the trapping network being looked after by our volunteers.
Possum numbers have been increasing on the station escarpment so we have increased the numbers of bait stations in the area. A big thank you to Rob McIntyre for catching big numbers in his flipping timmy traps – great work. We are also installing a AT220 automatic possum trap. This trap has battery power and an automatic lure dispenser. It only needs checking every 3 months and we will place it in a hard to reach area.
Thanks to all our trappers for their time and effort in keeping pest numbers down.
Volunteer opportunities with Ngā Uruora
Join us for our regular Waikākāriki working bees (second Sunday of the month, Waikākāriki wetland, 9am to noon). This is a fun and accessible opportunity for all ages.
We also hold a weekly Tuesday morning working bee. If you’re available to help, please contact Peter Kentish on 021 027 70520 or e-mail pk2003_595@hotmail.com.
We also hold periodic Sunday ‘roaming working bees’ at different locations on the Escarpment.
Keep in touch
To be notified of upcoming roaming bees, reminded of regular working bees or to receive general communications from Ngā Uruora, please subscribe to the mailing list on our website.
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Ngā Uruora Committee
Andy McKay – Convenor, Amelia Geary – Treasurer, Peter Kentish – Volunteer Coordinator, Peter McLaughlin – Pests and Trapping, Ollie Gibson, Paul Callister.
