Land restoration is significant to many industries, from farming and landscaping to environmental consulting. This tree rehabilitation course is ideal for farmers, landscapers, environmental consultants, land managers, park managers and even gardeners, and it will teach you how to choose, manage and grow the best tree species for any situation.

In the Certificate of Tree Rehabilitation, you will gain insights into environmental systems and the rehabilitation of degraded landscapes. You will learn about ecology, tree cultivation, how to incorporate soil management, ecology and post-planting management. You will also study seed and plant collection, storage and germination, propagation, establishment techniques and how to control pests and disease after planting.

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking a tree rehabilitation course include:

• Learning about approaches to land rehabilitation, caring for the environment, biodiversity, the importance of trees and land management programs
• Exploring plants and plant identification
• Gaining an understanding of the types of soil degradation and the types of erosion — soil, water, wind, the human causes of erosion and how to control it
• Studying salinity, the sources of salt, control methods for salinity and soil acidification
• Examining compaction and chemical residues and rehabilitation
• Understanding the ecology of soils and plant health, biomass, the constituents of an ecosystem and abiotic and biotic components
• Attaining knowledge of ecological concepts, the web of life, the relationships between plants and animals and indigenous species
• Gaining insights into creating habitat corridors, design considerations, the “edge effect”, mechanical and chemical weathering, soil composition and microorganisms and mycorrhizae
• Learning about identifying soil types, soil chemical characteristics (soil pH), adjusting pH, buffering capacity, plant nutrition, macro and micronutrients and choosing the right fertiliser
• Exploring seed propagation techniques, seed sources, maintaining genetic identity in seeds, hybrid seed production and collecting and harvesting seeds
• Gaining an understanding of methods of collection, cleaning and storing seeds, germination treatments, soaking in boiling water and stratification
• Studying how and when to sow your seeds, leaching seeds, propagation media, the bog method and picking out or tubing seedlings
• Examining quality control, the UC System of soil mixes and the rules to maintaining sanitation
• Understanding the propagation, transplanting, growing and distribution stages
• Attaining knowledge of propagation and nursery stock and asexual propagation
• Gaining insights into how to propagate a cutting, the classification of cutting types — softwood, greenwood, hardwood and nodal cuttings basal cuttings root cuttings
• Learning about selecting and planting out stock plants, stock plants for root cuttings, hormone treatments and how to improve strike rate
• Exploring nursery hygiene, the spread of pests and diseases, populating and potting soil mixes and growing plants in pots
• Gaining an understanding of feeding, watering, ventilation, light and temperature
• Studying greenhouse structures, environmental factors and controls in the greenhouse, greenhouse irritation methods and problems with greenhouses
• Examining irrigation systems, cold frames and heated propagators and shade houses
• Understanding how to deal with chemical problems, soil and chemical contamination and foliage burn
• Attaining knowledge of rehabilitation methods, rehabilitating a garden and growing plants in contaminated soil
• Gaining insights into soil chemical composition and plant growth
• Learning about alkaline soils, dealing with soils that are lime contaminated and trees which grow in lime soils
• Exploring physical plant effects on degraded sites and how to rehabilitate a degraded site
• Gaining an understanding of pioneer plants, site protection and windbreak and shelter belt design
• Studying how to design and plant a firebreak, fire resistant plants and plants which are more likely to burn
• Examining drainage, stormwater, wet areas, water logging, drainage, how to improve drainage on heavy clay soils and how to create a bog garden in areas that sometimes dry out
• Understanding soil compaction and how to construct a sump

And more!

10 Facts About Deforestation in Australia

Australia is home to some of the most unique species of flora in the world. Our country has tropical rainforests, diverse woodlands, gum forests and vast grasslands that provide shelter to our most precious and threatened fauna species.

However, Australia is one of the worst developed countries in the world for broad scale deforestation. In fact, according to the Wilderness Society, we have cleared nearly half of our forest cover in the last 200 years. Here are 10 facts about deforestation that may give you some inspiration to undertake our tree rehabilitation course.

1. Australia is in the midst of a land clearing and deforestation crisis, with vast areas of bushland and forests destroyed every two minutes.
2. Only 50 per cent of Australia’s bushland and forests remain intact compared with pre-European arrival. The other 50 per cent has been either permanently destroyed and replaced with another land use or is classed as “degraded” forest and bushland. Most of this was previously cleared but is now regrowing vegetation of different ages.
3. Australia has lost 19 per cent of open forest, 11 per cent of woodland forest, 27 per cent of our rainforest and 28 percent of mallee forest since 1750.
4. Australia is the worst offending country in the world for mammal extinctions.
5. Over fifty-five wildlife species plus thirty-seven plant species have become extinct in Australia.
6. The greatest threat to koalas in Queensland and New South Wales is habitat loss.
7. A 2019 study found that 73 per cent of all land clearing and deforestation in Queensland is linked to beef production.
8. Over 275,000 hectares of likely koala habitat in Queensland was cleared between 2013 and 2018.
9. Carbon emissions released by land clearing across Australia are equivalent to about a third of the total emissions released by all of the coal-fired power stations in the country. Once native forest logging emissions are included, this is equivalent to at least half the carbon pollution of all Australian coal-fired power stations.
10. Globally, new corporate commitments and international agreements to deforestation-free commodity supply chains will place increasing demand on Australia’s soft commodity sectors to transition to sustainable practices.

Australia’s 2020 Tree Restoration Project

September 2020 marked the official launch of one of the largest-ever privately funded restoration projects in Australia. Launched by Greening Australia, the Global EverGreening Alliance and global pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, it aims to plant 25 million biodiverse and locally appropriate trees across Australia. The project will cover approximately 20,000 hectares of land and create habitat for dozens of endangered species, and represents a commitment by all partners to support Australia’s recovery following the devastation of the Black Summer bushfires.

The project will harness local knowledge and provide economic opportunities for rural communities and Traditional Owners through contracted works such as planting, seed collection and long-term stewardship. It is anticipated that the project could create over 800 jobs across regional locations over the next five years, engaging up to 150 nurseries, seed supplies and Indigenous and Non-Indigenous business sub-contractors.

It will create and preserve habitat for endangered species affected by the bushfires, prioritising the planting of fauna habitat species such as Eucalyptus melliodora and Eucalyptus punctata trees to increase access to food supply for koalas and Regent honeyeaters. She-oak trees will create an important food supply for the threatened glossy black cockatoo. Vital habitat will also be created for dozens of additional endangered species such as the mallee fowl, sandhill dunnart, black-gloved wallaby and the honey possum.

The project will begin with the planting of 20,000 trees at Arthursleigh in the NSW Southern Highlands, and five million trees will be planted per year from 2021 in locations across New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania to reach a total of 25 million trees by 2025. An extensive monitoring and maintenance process will be in place beyond the initial five-year planting period, with landholders ensuring ongoing stewardship, including tree rehabilitation.

According to the Global EverGreening Alliance’s CEO, Chris Armitage, “This unique collaboration represents a major change in the way organisations are able to create impact by working together. Across the country, hundreds of organisations are aligning their efforts to scale-up the most effective land restoration practices. Together, through AZ Forest and the Restore Australia program, we can build more sustainable and resilient farming systems and transform Australia’s degraded landscapes.”

Greening Australia CEO Brendan Foran says, “The devastation caused by the Black Summer bushfires … exemplifies the need for restoration and regeneration of our local land at scale.  This landmark initiative allows Greening Australia to accelerate our work replenishing native and biodiverse trees to create environmental, community and economic impact. Following on from the Federal Government’s 20 Million Trees program, we are thrilled to continue delivering restoration projects of this scale with the additional support of private sector investment.”

Minister for the Environment Sussan Ley said the scale of the privately funded project will complement Federal Government support for native habitat. “We all have a role to play in the environment and at a time when the Morrison Government is investing $200 million in wildlife and habitat bushfire protection, it is great to see AstraZeneca and partners stepping up. With Greening Australia, we are exceeding the Government’s previous 20 million trees target and 25 million more from this project will ensure even more precious habitat for our native species”.

Gain the foundational understanding required to maintain healthy rehabilitation systems with a tree rehabilitation course such as our Certificate of Tree Rehabilitation.