Southland Farm Becomes Greener With Every Tree Planted

What began as one mother’s vision for a bare Southland block is now a multi-decade planting and fencing project – one creek, one paddock, one tree and one generation at a time.

For Eastern Bush farmers Peter and Lynley Cassels, planting and fencing isn’t just about ticking regulatory boxes. It’s a legacy that has been woven into the fabric of the farm since 1986.

Their 488-hectare property is predominantly flat, with 40ha of hill country adding contour and character to the landscape.

Peter winters 1600 ewes, grazes about 380 heifers and plants 130ha of feed cereals, 40ha of winter brassicas, and 40ha of cover crop that is planted after autumn barley each year.

When the Cassels family bought the farm in 1986, the land was virtually bare.

But it was Peter’s mother, Barbara, who saw its potential. “She had a love of gardening and trees, and that passion spilled out into the wider farm,” Lynley said.

Long before environmental regulations came into play, the family was fencing waterways and planting for erosion control, biodiversity and shelter.

Since 2008 they have received funding for this work through a habitat enhancement agreement (HEA) with the Waiau Fisheries and Wildlife Habitat Enhancement Trust, a charitable trust working to improve recreational access and ecosystem health across the Waiau catchment.

Under the HEA, the Cassels have access to funding to support fencing, wetland restoration, fish passage and habitat work, and vegetation management.

Depending on the ecological value of the site, grants are generally in the vicinity of 25% to 50% of project costs.

The trust also partners with QEII and currently supports about 100 projects in the region. This model boosts the percentage of funding available, covering project costs of up to 75%.

Peter said that ongoing commitment has put the family in a strong position ahead of the compliance curve, as freshwater compliance standards continue to evolve.

Besides aesthetics and stewardship, there were practical benefits too.

“One block of native bush was fenced and placed under a QEII covenant in the early 2000s when I was in partnership with my mother and brother,” Peter said.

That move not only protected the land but also made stock handling easier, as sheep could no longer vanish into the bush while being moved.

Today, much of the farm’s riparian margins and wet areas have already been planted. “On an estimate we have fenced and planted 6 to 7 hectares of tree lanes and wet areas.”

Peter and Lynley now take on one creek a year, fencing and planting as part of their ongoing stewardship.

Roger Hodson, a consultant for the Waiau trust, said the Cassels’ love for trees and drive to add natural capital to the property was clear.

“They don’t do it because they have to – they genuinely enjoy it,” he said.

“Once they realised the benefits of shade on reduced weed growth in stream, reduced maintenance costs and the increase in aquatic habitat diversity within stream, they knew they were making a difference.”

Peter and Lynley both agreed. “We enjoy watching trees grow. We do it because we love it.”

Lynley said that once the trust saw how successful their tree establishment was, it started to support their annual HEA work programme with advice about the right species for different parts of their habitat enhancement areas and by providing some trees as part of the partnership.

Lynley recalls that when she and Peter first met, she and her children would help him by spending weekends planting young trees.

“Every tree is part of a plan. We think carefully about the layout, the types we plant. We think about function in addition to a mature look.”

With most creeks now protected and many native areas restored, the couple is looking to the future. A duck pond might be the next addition, or perhaps that will be left for the next generation.

The trust can also help, with a constructed wetland concept being developed by the Waiau trust to detain hill runoff and provide enhanced fine sediment retention.