Published Monday, 8 September 2025
The Port Saddle restoration site was buzzing with activity as volunteers gathered for site preparation and planting days on Friday, 29 August.
Volunteers from Lyttelton Port Company were joined by Christchurch International Airport to prepare the site for a community planting event on the Sunday.
LPC Environment and Sustainability Advisor, Charlotte Jones, says the team prepared 350 holes for the weekend’s plant-out, to create a thriving habitat by replanting with native species like tōtara, kōwhai, and harakeke.
A hardy group of community volunteers braved cold and wet conditions on the Sunday, to plant the native species which were grown from eco-source seeds collected from the Port Hills area.
“It’s really exciting to see how the plants have grown over the years and how they’re taking hold of the site,” said Charlotte.
The final day of the Port Saddle planting season was marked by the annual Enviroschools Day. 25 students from Lyttelton Primary and Governors Bay Primary took part in a day of nature-based learning at the site.
Charlotte says students used the iNaturalist app to monitor the invertebrates living among established plants.
“Future monitoring will help further our understanding of how these plantings boost local invertebrate biodiversity at Port Saddle,” said Charlotte.
“We’re looking forward to watching the restoration progress in the coming years,” Charlotte added.