Opuatia Peat Bog Management Plan - Waikato Regional Council

There are a number of pest plants present in this vegetation type. They include
yellow flag iris (Iris pseudacorus), reed sweetgrass, reed canary grass and alder.
Most of the tall crack willow (Salix fragilis) and grey willow are dead, but some
isolated individuals are regenerating, and grey willow saplings are common.
4. Indigenous vegetation plantings
In 2006, WRC, with funding from the Waikato Catchment Ecological
Enhancement Trust, began a three-year project to revegetate some of the
wetland margins on the south-western side of the wetland. A range of species
were planted and these are listed below:
cabbage tree karamu (Coprosma robusta)
Carex sp. (no seed heads to identify) manuka
Carex virgata mingimingi (Coprosma propinquum)
Coprosma ×cunninghamii poataniwha (Melicope simplex)
Coprosma rhamnoides pokaka (Elaeocarpus hookerianus)
flax (Phormium tenax) swamp astelia (Astelia grandis)
Gahnia sp. (no seed heads) swamp coprosma (Coprosma tenuicaulis)
kahikatea matai (Prumnopitys taxifolia)
Most of the plantings are well established and canopy closure has occurred in
some parts of the re-vegetation area. The species that have grown the least are
kahikatea and matai. The area is mostly absent of pest plants with the exception
of several grey willow saplings that were observed within it.
5. Grey willow shrubland
Aerial application of herbicide to control willow in the wetland in 2007 was
largely successful. However there are some small areas on the eastern margin
where clusters of grey willow have regenerated. These areas have a dense grey
willow canopy with an understorey of mainly introduced herbs and grasses.
Fen Vegetation Types
Fens are wetlands with a predominantly peat substrate that receive some nutrient
inputs. The water table is usually close to, or just below the peat surface, and
relatively constant (Johnson and Gerbeaux 2004).
6. Manuka-Coprosma spp.-flax shrubland
Before the willow control operation in 2007, grey willow dominated the canopy
of this vegetation type. Grey willow has been reduced to