The Sunshine Coast Community Forest (SCCF) is working on a plan to stop pickers from devastating tree plantations on the Coast.
Recently SCCF staff spotted a cedar tree plantation in Wilson Creek that was targeted by pickers who cut about 70 per cent of the boughs off hundreds of growing trees.
"Foliage picking on the Coast has been going on for a long time. Usually you see a lot of cedar boughs being picked just before Christmas, but usually it's not this noticeable," said Brian Smart, professional forester with the SCCF, while showing Coast Reporter the damage on Jan. 17.
While the sight of trees without their branches is unpleasant, it is also a detriment to tree growth. Smart suspects the cedar trees targeted will take an extra 10 to 15 years to reach their harvestable size.
The sheer number of trees targeted and boughs taken caused SCCF staff to look into the idea of regulating the non-timber forest use of foliage picking.
"I think that this could be a great opportunity if it is managed correctly," Smart said.
He plans to meet with local company Selma Park Evergreens (which buys foliage picked locally) and community pickers to start to "develop an action plan."
He said the SCCF doesn't want to stop all picking in the forest, rather develop some guidelines to keep trees healthy and able to meet the needs of both the SCCF and local pickers.
"It's not something we actually want to deter. We just need to set some standards and help make it work better," Smart said.
If the problem of over-picking continues, Smart says the SCCF may block roads to their plantations and make sure future plantations are not easily accessible from roadways.
