Detainees at the Alexander Maconochie Centre (AMC) have been assisting with the planting of Floriade bulbs, along with grassland tube to help with grassland improvement.
ACT Corrective Services (ACTCS) recently applied to take part in community bulb planting program, as the traditional Florida event was unable to get underway this year due to COVID restrictions.
Over the past week, detainees in the Cultural and Land Management program have been planting over 2,600 daffodil bulbs at the AMC as part of ‘Floriade: Reimagined’ initiative.
“Despite the current climate, community groups and organisations have come together to ensure that Canberrans can still celebrate the beginning of Spring by spreading the blooms around the Capital,” Minister for Corrections Shane Rattenbury said today.
Detainees in the Transitional Release Centre (TRC) have also been assisting with the planting of grassland tube after ACT Parks and Conservation Service (ACTPCS) kindly donated left-over stock to ACT Corrective Services (ACTCS).
ACTCS Commissioner Jon Peach said these opportunities have come at a great time for detainees allowing them to be part of a community initiative and take responsibility for a long term project.
“Detainees from the Cultural and Land Management Program have taken advantage of this year’s Floriade initiative by planting the donated bulbs in the space between the AMC Gate and the Visits building. I am sure that this will be a welcoming sight for visitors to the AMC in Spring,” he said.
ACTCS is constantly undertaking weed control, paddock fencing repairs and grassland improvement across the AMC site to increase habitat for the critically endangered Grassland Earless Dragon and other threatened species.
“The grassland tube planting has been used to undertake grassland improvement across the AMC. This ties in with a broader project to improve natural temperate grasslands within the Jerrabomberra Valley,” ACTCS Commissioner Jon Peach said.
“To ensure that we can maintain the work, ACT Parks and Conservation Service have provided grass and forb tubestock, protective guards and planting tips to detainees in the TRC. Without their ongoing support and supply of materials, this wouldn’t be possible,” he said.
