IN 1923 Cecil Mary Barker illustrated and wrote the flower fairy book of poems. Each flower was represented as a joyful little fairy which personified the plant’s growing habits. However, what often happens is that when these plants are taken out of their natural conditions and ecosystems, they lose their tame fairy-like qualities and become rampant monsters!

These invader species cause immense damage to the local environment; they block waterways, deplete precious underground water supplies, and compete with native plant species, pushing many to the brink of extinction; and invade agricultural lands, poisoning wildlife and spoiling crops.

“Invasive plants species are becoming an increasingly serious problem in the Upper Highway Area, they are expensive and incredibly labour intensive to remove,” says Nicholas Liebenberg, an Environmental Officer at the Springside Nature Reserve.

Hillcrest Conservancy’s Barry Lang said another problem is that a number of people do not know that some of the plants in their gardens are invasive species.

“It is difficult to convince people to remove the invasive species in their gardens because the plants are often very attractive,” said Lang.

George Victor, also from the Conservancy, said invasive plants tend to grow on vacant land.

“If we are going to win the battle against invasive plant species we need a strategic approach of intervention and greater community awareness and action. The problem is too overwhelming for a few dedicated people to tackle,” said Victor.

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This year the Hillcrest Conservancy in partnership with Steppingstones4Nature started a very vibrant and active Eco-Club. Invasive Species forms part of the curriculum and it was decided that as part of the conservancy’s educational outreach this particular event would be opened up to the greater community.

Monster Alley will run over October 3 and 4 and it will be suitable for all ages. There will be an interactive talk on each day outlining what invasive plant species are; why they are problematic and how they can be controlled. There will be a ‘treasure hunt’ around the Springside Nature Reserve to find artworks depicting these plants as monsters. These artworks have been created by several prominent local artists and school children.

“Cyan-Eyez and I were happy to collaborate with this project because invasive species have a terrible impact on our wild spaces. Since the youth are the next custodians of our wild places, we owe it to them to equip them with the knowledge they will need,” said mural artist Giffy.

There is no need to book for the Treasure Hunt but the conservancy requests that interested parties book for the talks because there is limited space available. Donations will go towards alien invader eradication and environmental education.

 “I firmly believe that if people have fun learning about nature they will be inspired to love, respect and nurture the world around us. The battle will be won,” said the eco-club’s facilitator Dawn Booth.

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