Gold Coast City Council IVM trials

The objective of these trials was to investigate alternative strategies that might help to overcome some specific operational difficulties with relation to vegetation management activities in Gold Coast City Council. The effectiveness of these alternative strategies was compared to current practices in order to determine the potential benefits of the implementation of such Integrated Vegetation Management strategies into typical GCCC operations.

Vegetation management issues currently absorbing a disproportionate amount of the funds in GCCC include:

• objects that are difficult to mow around in parks and other public open spaces (e.g. trees, bollards, telegraph poles, fence lines, etc.),
• weeds growing on hardstand areas along roadsides (e.g. under armcos, in gaps in concrete and paved areas), and
• weeds growing in amenity gardens along roadsides and landscaped areas in parks.

Objects in parks are currently mown around using a hand mower, or sprayed around with Glyphosate. However, hand mowing has to be done often and spraying with Glyphosate encourages the growth of dicot weeds.

Weeds growing in hardstand areas and amenity gardens are currently controlled with Glyphosate. While this gives excellent short-term control, its effect is relatively short-lived and it needs to be repeated often.

In the first two experiments, plant growth regulators were evaluated for their potential to reduce the growth of vegetation surrounding furniture in open space environments (i.e. along fence lines and bollards). It was found that these plant growth regulators could significantly reduce grass growth and delay the requirement for hand mowing activities. The results also suggest that application of a selective herbicide in combination with the plant growth regulator would be advantageous in some circumstances.

In the final three experiments, pre-emergent herbicides were evaluated for their potential to provide longer-term control of weeds in hardstand areas (i.e. under armcos and in paved areas) and amenity gardens. When pre-emergent herbicides were applied in combination with Glyphosate they provided longer-term control of weeds, and the time period between interventions was likely to have been significantly increased.

These studies have demonstrated that IVM strategies have the potential to save money for GCCC vegetation managers and improve the quality of the managed areas. Some of these strategies will be further investigated in a series of pilot programs during the coming year, and if successful, they may be implemented into regular GCCC management activities in the future.

Trees and bollards in parks are difficult to mow around and the vegetation that grows next to them is costly to manage.

Weeds growing on a paved hardstand area in a centre median. Control of such weeds is expensive due to safety issues (i.e. traffic control requirements)

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