11/10/2026
Saving ancient River-Oaks, Casuarina cunninghamiana, from Cats Claw vine! 🌿💪
Organic Landcare INC has been working in Tenterfield Shire since 2025, within the upper Clarence River catchment, under our Coolamon Gift Fund project, taking on one of the toughest environmental w**ds for bush regenerators: Cat's Claw creeper, Dolichandra unguis-cati. We started this project in 2021 when we were Byron Shire Chemical Free Landcare. If you are working on the Clarence River with Cat's Claw management, we would love to hear from you, so we can share knowledge regarding its management.
Five years ago, we started cutting the massive climbing vines wrapping hundreds of native trees, mainly to protect their canopy and safeguard the native seed bank. While the vine has shot up nearly 10 metres since, our primary mission succeeded—it didn't flower, and consequently it didn't set seed again! The two main native species along the rivers that we are working towards protecting are: River oak, Casuarina cunninghamiana and Water gum, Tristaniopsis laurina.
Alongside our strategic manual approach, we also applied, for 3 years, a pest control approach from biodynamic agriculture, peppering. The vision is to trigger infertility on the Cat's Claw vine. Does it work? We are observing signs of disease on the leaves and tuber of Cat's Claw, and OLI is in the process of scientifically identifying what is affecting the vine leaves and tubers.
Synthetic herbicides only offer moderate, temporary control on mature Cat's Claw, so real chemical-free restoration comes down to persistent, strategic on-ground work: cutting ground runners, damaging underground tubers where we can, and freeing the natives every 18 months.
We love taking care of this country, and every native seed bank saved is a victory for our rivers. 💚
Support our chemical-free mission and help us heal vital riparian zones—link in bio to donate!
