Setup (9) Second Plant Survey – 2024 (How are we tracking?)

On June 11th 2024, almost a year after the first (winter 2023) plant survey, Dr. David Tucker and Dr. Gab Lebbink undertook the second botanical survey on site – using three established transects that crossed the passive regeneration artwork site, and one end of the newly named wetland artwork site. The vegetation types had now shifted from a recently mowed winter site back in 2023 (following a dry season and pre-burn) to a now actively regenerating area after extensive rain – which had also long recovered from its winter 2023 burning.

We surveyed the site along the three prior transects – with each of the 5 sites along each transect marked by a ground peg installed in 2023.

Plant transects and quadrat sites for botanical survey (approx.) (Image Keith Armstrong)

Botanical Survey transect (with tape measure on the ground) running across survey site, June 11th, 2024 (Image Keith Armstrong)

An ecologists’ quadrat (1x 1m) was laid at each pegged point (see diagram above) and estimates of ground cover (% ) and lists of species recorded. As before the agreement on the floristic content was negotiated through a wonderful, gentle dialogue between the two ecologists – a soundtrack I again recorded a part of for use in a future artwork – just as I had used it the artwork Analog Intelligence. Next a 5x5m square, originating from that quadrat point at each peg was surveyed for tree growth – with species names, counts and heights recorded. These figures therefore gave us an estimate across the entire site of vegetation type, quality and mix.

Typical bare plot from initial survey in June 2023 – with young trees marked with tape (Image Gabrielle Lebbink)

Typical rich plot from second survey in June 2024 – Dr. Gabrielle Lebbink laying down a quadrat at the second site plant survey, June 11th, 2024 (Image Keith Armstrong)

A plethora of life in the renewing forest/grassland (Image Keith Armstrong)

As a result, the plots were each quite dense and broadly speaking the number of trees had generally grown well (although some had been lost in the 2023 burn, the very wet summer – or possibly were also hidden in the long grasses and forbs).

Re-growth of trees now evident everywhere at the site, Botanical survey day, 11/6/24 (Image Keith Armstrong)

Dr. David Tucker and Dr. Gabrielle Lebbink working in the field at the second site plant survey, June 11th, 2024

Dr. Gabrielle Lebbink at the second site plant survey, June 11th, 2024 (Image Keith Armstrong)

A plethora of life in the renewing forest/grassland, June 2024 (Image Keith Armstrong)

In due course, the results of the survey will be collated and compared – which will tell us about the practical progression of the project’s science/ecological meta-aims – i.e. to regrow a native forest from a cleared block – whilst allowing the natural intelligence of the forest and all its constituent species to direct that progress, and with minimal intervention.

Scene from the artwork ‘Analog Intelligence, 2024’ that suggests the nascent forest returning to the artwork site (Image Keith Armstrong)

Comparative Surveys

Here is how the site had progressed ny 11/6/24 (or regressed in some cases since the initial survey – which was followed by a burn). There had certainly been some significant changes with some problematic weeds decreased ) e.g. Paspalum urvillei – and at that stage the field still had end of the epic native Fimbristylis spp. crop!

Life Form Key (Perrenial/Annual P/A Graminoid/Forb G/F. Shrub/Climber S/C)
#	Species	Provenance	Life Form	1707 23	1106 24
1	Cynodon dactylon	Exotic	PG	Y	Y
2	Digitaria spp.	Exotic	PG	Y (*1)	Y
3	Centella asiatica	Native	PF	Y	Y
4	Hypochaeris radiata	Exotic	PF	Y	Y
5	Imperata cylindrica	Native	PG	Y	Y
6	Fimbristylis spp.		PG	Y	N
7	Ageratum houstonianum	Exotic	PF	Y	Y
8	Sporobolus spp creber	Native	PG	Y	Y
9	Bidens pilosa	Exotic	AF	Y	Y
10	Polygala paniculata	Exotic	AF	Y	Y
11	Eragrostis brownii	Native	PG	Y	Y
12	Arundinella nepalensis	Native	PG	Y	Y
13	Alloteropsis semialata	Native	PG	Y	N
14	Lobelia purpurascens	Native	PF	Y	Y
15	Sonchus oleraceus	Exotic	AF	Y	Y
16	Paspalum notatum	Exotic	PG	Y	Y
17	Eremochloa bimaculata	Native	PG	Y	Y
18	Wahlenbergia gracilis	Native	AF	Y	N
19	Epaltes australis	Native	PF	Y	N
20	Schenkia australis	Native	AF	Y	N
21	Melinis repens	Exotic	PG	Y	Y
22	Velleia spathulata	Native	PF	Y	Y
23	Polygala spp	Native		Y	N
24	Phyllanthus virgatus	Native	AF	Y	Y
25	Cheilanthes sieberi	Native	PF	Y	Y
26	Paspalum urvillei	Exotic	PG	Y	N *2
27	Apiaceae spp	Exotic	PF	Y*3	Y
28	Cymbopogon refractus	Native	PG	Y	Y
29	Phyllanthus spp big			Y	N
30	Lantana camara	Exotic	S	Y	Y
31	Dianella caerulea	Native	PG	Y	Y
32	Parsonsia straminea	Native	C	Y	Y
33	Passiflora suberosa	Exotic	C	Y	N
34	Senna pendula	Exotic	S	Y	Y
35	Lomandra multiflora	Native	PG	Y	N
36	Drosera spathulata	Native	AF	Y	Y
37	Aristida queenslandicum	Native	PG	Y	N
38	Leucopogon juniperinus	Native	S	Y	N
39	Gomphrena celesoides	Exotic	PF	Y	N
40	Setaria sphacelata	Exotic	PG	N	Y
41	Sauropus hirtellus	Native	PF	N	Y
42	Scleria sp.	Native	PG	N	Y
43	Schoenus sp.	Native	PG	N	Y
44	Cyanthillium cinereum	Native	PF	N	Y
45	Cyperus sp.		PG	N	Y
46	Desmodium sp.	Native	PF	N	Y
47	Hypericum gramineum			N	Y*4
48	Panicum repens	Exotic	PG	N/Y	Y*5