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There are definitely worse places to work than Shakespear Open Sanctuary Society’s (SOSSI) nursery, with its views of bush, fields of grazing lambs and the ocean.
Keen gardener Julie Land has been volunteering there for a decade, along with husband Roger who heads the “crack track team”.
Julie became nursery manager this year – a volunteer role that requires overseeing a team of six other volunteers who source seed, germinate it (which, in the case of kowhai, means chipping each individual seed with nail clippers) and grow it on for planting in the open sanctuary.
Some plants can be as much as 12 years old before they are big enough to plant out – some grow a lot faster than that.
Battling a pest that has been decimating the nursery by eating seeds, means watering is crucial – Julie hand waters several times a week.
She is also on hand every Tuesday to organise tasks for the volunteers, who are all women.
She says keeping volunteers happy means giving them jobs they enjoy and that suit their capabilities. Less popular tasks are spread out among the more enjoyable ones.
Seeing the results grow up around you is very satisfying. Some of the trees Julie grew from seed are now taller than she is – “a small forest”.
“It’s great to go and stand out there and see what you’ve done,” she says.
