Euroa Arboretum

pre 1800 the nira balug clan of the taungurung aborigines are the traditional owners of this land.  from long before the arrival of white people, until 1838 when the first squatters arrived, the nira balug were the custodians (keepers) of this land. 1824 hume and hovell pass through what would become euroa in december 1824.  often referred to in william hovell's diary as a ?gentleman's park?.  yellow box, grey box and river red gums would have dominated the plains ? interspersed with casuarinas and callitrix. 1834 – 1840 early squatters? licencesseven creeks station      a.j.templeton 1850’s cobb and co. pass through euroa en route to longwood and violet town.  gold mining leads to increased population, vegetation clearing and waterway degradation. 1860’s rabbits and environmental weeds move through victoria 1870’s high wool prices lead to increased flock sizes and over-grazing 1878 kelly gang rob the old national bank in euroa 1903 licences granted to graze crown frontages on waterways 1929 superphosphate introduced into the environment via government subsidies 1930’s large scale clearing and ploughing lead to fragmented landscape in high production areas 1950’s wool prices boom resulting in further land clearing and increased use of introduced pastures and fertilizers. myxomatosis introduced reducing the impact of rabbits. 1960’s pinus radiata forests planted in strathbogies.  clearing continues but attitudes towards the environment are beginning to change. 1967 electricity connected to ruffy and strathbogie 1970’s land conservation council established to identify areas for nature reserves 1972 trust for nature established to permanently protect native habitat held on private land 1972 trust for nature established to permanently protect native habitat held on private land 1980’s lifestyle properties in the strathbogies become popular. revegetation on farms begins to reverse past trends of exploitation. 1981 land for wildlife established in victoria to support private landholders/managers who voluntarily contribute to the maintenance and restoration of wildlife habitat on their land. 1986 landcare first established in victoria by premier joan kirner.  warrenbayne boho land management group formed ? 2nd in the world.  whitehead creek landcare group formed ? 3rd in the world 1986 – 1992 site of arboretum used by vicroads as a depot during construction of the hume freeway bypass.  the site office was situated where the current nursery stands. excavations for materials to construct the freeway overpass embankments create the 43 mega litre dam. 1993 the 27 hectare property, at the suggestion of john liddell, vicroads project engineer, is donated to the people of euroa as a public reserve.  lyle jeffery, euroa shire engineer suggests the site become an arboretum and this idea is adopted by the euroa community after several public meetings. 1994 the euroa arboretum committee of management is formed.  the first major plantings were an eclectic mix of australian native plants and were not specifically from the local area.  the island car park near the picnic shelter is a relic of these earliest plantings. these initial works, including the construction of the toilets and picnic pavilion were undertaken by participants in the leap program, a joint federal / local government funding initiative. 1996 the arboretum was officially opened on october 27 by local state mp and deputy premier, pat mcnamara. the original grass-trees ( xanthorrhoea australis ) near the picnic shelter were planted to celebrate the official opening. 1997 arboretum charter completed after extensive community consultation. the conservation, restoration and expansion of existing woodlands and wetlands now recognised as the primary focus for development. arboretum planting policy changed from general australian natives to locally indigenous plants representing the vegetation types of the region. 1997 – 1998 on-site propagation nursery established with parks victoria funding.  tube-stock grown from local seed is incorporated into local revegetation projects. 1999 first master plan produced for arboretum, by landscape designer paul thomson, key designer of the ?australian garden? at the royal botanic garden at cranbourne. 2000 first major funding received from federal government's nht (natural heritage trust) fund for establishment of the on-site seed orchard, to provide an accessible/ sustainable source of indigenous seed for regional revegetation projects. 2000 – onwards arboretum begins to generate income from plant and seed sales, growing approx. 60,000 indigenous seedlings per annum and providing seed to the goulburn broken indigenous seed bank at dookie. 2000’s longest dry period on record. in 2005 the euroa town water supply runs dry. fires in 2006 and 2009 burn half the woody native vegetation in goulburn-broken catchment. 2003 chain of ponds created from drainage line cut to divert water flow off the hume freeway to the on-site dam.  after excavation, the ponds were planted to represent the local creek and river systems. 2004 in consultation with strathbogie anglers club recreational fishing is encouraged and the arboretum dam is stocked with rainbow trout and redfin. 2005 – 2006 first intensive seed production area created, facilitating the mass harvesting of seed from smaller plants whose seed is difficult to collect in the wild. this seed production model, based on a concept developed by the arboretum's project manager, sally mann, is the first of its kind in victoria. 2007 banksia marginata (silver banksia) seed orchard planted. 2009 the ?arts? come to the arboretum.  steel sculpture panels created by local artists are installed near the main visitor car-park area. 2011 second intensive seed production area constructed, increasing seed production and harvesting. the future we aim for the arboretum to continue to develop partnerships with local environment groups and be a local showcase for revegetation.  we will continue to work towards protecting threatened species, strengthen our connection to the indigenous community and develop our educational role in local schools and community.