Toitū te whenua, whatungarongaro te tangata
This went through my mind this morning during our mahi as kaitiaki of the sand dunes at Cooks Beach. While removing a range of taru kino weeds, I thought about how the whenua is slowly healing from past harm. A neighbour walked past and said how great it was looking; a skink scuttled under a log and tūī were feasting on harakeke flax flowers.
Our group enjoys chatting about our week and praising each other’s prowess at hunting down and digging out garden escapees. Cotoneaster seeds are spread by birds; gazania flower seeds fly on the wind; sweet pea shrub seeds are spread in soil and water; yucca roots can float by sea; red hot pokers and freesias were likely planted here by people. We’ll occasionally find dumped garden waste: succulents, agapanthus and kikuyu that will readily continue to grow. I can see a nearby garden with hardy coastal banksia and phoenix palms, all capable of starting a silent invasion of our nearby ngahere coastal forest. Who will remove them? How can I stay positive in the face of an apparent onslaught by alien invaders?
We dream of a native dune ecosystem that blends effortlessly with privately owned gardens nearby, where the plants all belong, are unique to here, and come with their own whakapapa stories. Where the land, wildlife and people thrive. These ecosystems are home to animals, plants, fungi, and invertebrates found nowhere else on the planet.
They are our local places to connect with te taiao, the natural world, where there’s a peacefulness, a synergy, harmony, whānau and a unique wairua. Picture golden and silver sand grasses flowing in the sea breeze, native butterflies fluttering in the vines, and tūturiwhatu dotterels nesting nearby. Weird fungi emerge, native bees pollinate tiny orchids, scarab beetles burrow under sand daphne and miniature snails feast on slime.
We dream of more people joining us as tiaki takutai coastal guardians who will help protect the place we love and call home. There are passionate Coastcare groups on many of our beaches in the Coromandel who’d love to show you all the different native species to be found here, share their experiences, and teach and support you to become part of the whānau community. We have local experts who can give specific information relating to your garden ecosystem, including what are taru kino weeds, how to remove them and safely dispose of them – and what to plant in their place.
Manaaki whenua, manaaki tangata, haere whakamua.
Care for the land, care for the people, go forward.
Words by Adele Smaill – Cooks Beachcare Coordinator
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