Leeuwkop gets rid of unwanted invasive species
LEEUWKOP – The fight against invasive species got a helping hand as 22 environmental ambassadors will be removing pompom weeds from the Leeuwkop prison grounds.
The fight against invasive species got a helping hand when a special project was recently launched to clear pompom weeds from the Leeuwkop prison grounds.
On 21 January the project, which aims to remove the weed from Leeuwkop land, officially started. Pompom weed is an alien species of flowering plants that quickly overtakes grasslands and which is classified as a Category 1 invasive species, meaning that it cannot be grown for any reason and must be removed according to South African law. This will be achieved by 22 environmental ambassadors, many of them employed from the nearby Diepsloot informal settlement, who will spend the next three months clearing the weed using approved methods.
Departments spearheading the work are the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries (DEFF, formerly the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries) and the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. The Greater Kyalami Conservancy (Gekco) helped inspire the project when they contacted relevant departments about an increase of pompom weed and asked for a possible solution.
“The growth is terrible here,” said chairperson of Gekco, Kristin Kallesen, who was present on 21 Jan when a meeting on the project was held at Leeuwkop. “It appeared in Pretoria a few years ago and has just taken over the grasslands in Kyalami.
“This weed is particularly dangerous because it is not palatable and no animals eat it. It also takes over the area where it grows, which means we lose biodiversity. The grasslands provide habitat for a number of animals, including grass owls.”
The environmental ambassadors will be tackling growth with a two-pronged approach – first, they will remove the flowers from the plant to prevent the spread of seeds (these will be burned, as simply throwing them away will result in the plants instead growing where they were disposed of), then they will treat the remaining plant with chemicals to kill them. The ambassadors have already been issued with personal protective equipment and will be working all around the Leeuwkop grounds because a survey has noted particularly problematic areas.
“This project will save water on the property [as less will be stolen by unwanted plants],” explained William Sejane, who is the manager of agriculture at the prison. “It also means that the pompoms will not overcrowd other plants and that the land is suitable for grazing animals that we keep here to eat, such as the cows.”
Details: www.gekco.co.za
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