Community tree planting: 17 years of restoring nature

This month marked our 17th annual HealthPost planting day - and with 700 more seedlings in the ground at Onetahua Farewell Spit, we’ve now planted 17,000 native trees together as a team.

Perfect planting conditions, sandy soil, and the help of the tireless HealthPost Nature Trust team including a committed crew of volunteers, and DOC staff, made for a fun and rewarding day. This was our first planting in the newly expanded project area — former farmland now being transformed into our vision of a thriving biodiversity hot spot.

Special thanks to Meret at OK Grow for donating 500 eco-sourced seedlings to the HealthPost Nature Trust this year, with another 500 to follow in 2026!

I’ve been part of every planting since we began, and it’s still one of my favourite days on the HealthPost calendar. Looking back at the special sites we’ve helped restore across Mohua Golden Bay is so encouraging. Recently, I revisited a few of them with friends and whānau and took some 2025 snapshots to compare with our archive photos. The transformations speak for themselves.

Milnthorpe Park: Our first planting

We began at Milnthorpe with 500 rimu trees on challenging pakihi soils. This park — with its network of tracks and stunning beach — is beloved by our community, and we’re proud to have contributed in a small way to its regeneration.

Motupipi Sandspit: From fire to forest

The following year we planted at Motupipi Sandspit, an area that had been ravaged by fire. To see the thriving forest now growing is incredibly rewarding.

Paynes Ford: From paddock to bush

In 2017 we planted a bare paddock at Paynes Ford, a favourite recreation spot for locals and visitors. Just a few years on, the transformation into a flourishing native forest is striking.

This mahi has been possible only with the guidance and input of passionate people and groups in the community who were already working hard to restore these areas. Thank you to everyone who’s been part of this journey — together, we’re helping nature thrive and creating a legacy for generations to enjoy.