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The Australian Plants Society NSW is delighted to be hosting the Australian Native Plants Society Australia (ANPSA) Biennial Conference at the Kiama Pavilion in September 2022.

These conferences are held every two years and are hosted by each state in turn. The very successful 2019 conference was held in Albany, WA, with around 325 delegates attending.

In 2022, the conference is being hosted by the Australian Plants Society NSW and is being held at the Kiama Pavilion in the beautiful village of Kiama on the pristine south coast. 

Bookings now open

 Click here to register for conference 

We advise booking accommodation asap. It is strongly recommended that you take out travel insurance when booking

Click for important cancellation information

Click here to be added to the mailing list

 Register for tours here 


Australian flora - past present future: a journey of inspiration

Focusing on ‘Australian flora – past present future’, we will take you on a journey:

  • Travel back to the past to appreciate the land of thousands of years ago
  • Experience the beauty of the current world and the threats it’s facing
  • Project ourselves into the future to design solutions to better protect and enhance our unique floral heritage.

With a series of expert speakers and excursions to surrounding areas, we'll be sharing:

  • The evolutionary history of the Illawarra – its landforms and plants
  • How the land was used and cared for, pre-white settlement
  • Successes in environmental protection, regeneration, horticultural trends and the threats of fire, weeds, feral pests and population growth and development
  • Opportunities with education, plant resilience, collaborations and seed and plant conservation

Schedule of activities

We kick off the conference on the Saturday 10 September, with:

  • A complimentary tour of the Kiama region, which is part of the package for people attending the whole conference. This includes lunch at Shoalhaven Heads winery lunch with visits to Berry School nursery and Bombo Headland
  • Native plant sales at the Pavilion - open to all - Sunday, 10am to 5pm, at the Kiama Pavilion, with a focus on plants indigenous to Illawarra, plus other native plants
  • A cocktail event to welcome people on the Sunday night at the Pavilion
  • Conference sessions and excursions from Monday to Friday - conference days are Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, and excursions on Wednesday and Friday. 

Focus on solutions - future proofing

We hope at the end of the week, you’ll: 

  • Be amazed at the beautiful Illawarra plants and environment
  • Renew old friendships and make new ones
  • Be inspired by new ideas, new partnerships and new learning
  • Experience practical hands-on tips and techniques to grow native plants

Together, we can make a difference to the world of today and the one we hand to our children and grandchildren.  


Program

More information and speakers and topics will be added over time. More detail on speakers here.

Saturday 10 September

Complimentary tour of Kiama region - included in conference price

Sunday 11 September

ANPSA Leaders meeting

Plant sales - 10am to 5pm

Registration - 4pm - 6.30pm

Cocktail event - 6.30pm

Welcome by Neil Reilly, Mayor of Kiama


Monday 12 September, 8.45am start, Kiama Pavilion

Conference day 1 - Context and the past

Tuesday 13 September, 8.45am, Kiama Pavilion and Kiama Anglican Church

Conference day 2 - focus on the present

Morning - Setting context

Welcome to country - Aunty Joyce Donovan

Welcome to Kiama - Jane Stroud, CEO Kiama Council

Set the context for the whole conference - Professor David Keith

Weather in Kiama 40,000 years ago to present and into the future - Dr Tim Morrow

Firestick farming, what the charcoal records tell us - Assoc Professor Scott Mooney

A day in the life - Clarence Slockee

Health, healing and culture - Aunty Joyce Donovan

Native plants in garden design - the past informs the present and future - Lawrie Smith 

Morning - Chat rooms

Growing indigenous rainforest plants for the community - Lyn Clark

Regenerative agriculture and the role of native plants - Bruce Maynard

Success in regenerating Five Islands - Rowena Morris and Jennifer Owens

Seed collecting and provenance - Damion Stirling

Plant selection for microclimate - Lawrie Smith

Morning - Chat rooms

Australian Wildlife Conservancy Safe Havens – vegetation inside and outside the fence - Dr Jennifer Pierson

How to get grafted native plants into your garden - Catriona Bate and Phil Trickett

Flying foxes and the essential role they play in the environment now and in the future - Sandra Guy

Models of conservation - from bush care to private land conservation - Patsy Nagle

Rainforests - impacts of climate change - past present future

Afternoon - the past

A day in the life - Clarence Slockee

Health, healing and culture - Aunty Joyce Donovan

Native plants in garden design - the past informs the present and future - Lawrie Smith 


Afternoon - Present into the future for native species - Kiama Pavilion

Jane Fountain - Skills and knowledge for the future – intro to study groups

Eucalypts of the Illawarra - Warwick Varley 

Eremophila -The Eremophila Study Group - the next 50 years - Dr Lyndal Thorburn 

Filling the gaps: how to preserve our isopogon and petrophiles- Phil Trickett and Catriona Bate 

Banksias – South east cultivars - Karlo Taliana

Grevilleas for the future – Peter Olde , OAM

Evening - Award dinner and fun trivia - 7pm


Wednesday 14 September, 8.30am

Excursions - Leave from Kiama Pavilion, 

Thursday 15 September, 8.00am, Kiama Pavilion - Focus on future

Conference day 3. Breakfast served

Friday 16 September, 8.30am

Excursions - Leave from Kiama Pavilion

Excursions - Day 1 - click for more info

Multiple locations to choose from (pending numbers)

  • Royal National Park - Audley and Wattamolla precincts
  • Barren Grounds, Robertson Rainforest, Minnamurra Rainforest
  • Minnamurra Rainforest, Jamberoo Native Nursery and Illawarra Grevillea Park
  • Joseph Banks Native Plants reserve, Kamay/Botany Bay National Park
  • Fitzroy Falls, Robertson Rainforest
  • South Coast - Shoalhaven Heads and Beecroft Peninsular

The future

  • Costa Georgiadis - the future of native plants
  • Inheriting the planet - voices of young people, including students from Kiama High School, Michael Gould
  • Fire, forests, plantations and biodiversity - Professor David Lindenmayer
  • Causing trouble for a good cause - Dan Ilic
  • 2024 Conference - APS Victoria
  • my vision for the future - panel of society region leaders 
  • World cafe - collaborations and partnerships 

Excursions - Day 2 - click for more info

Multiple locations to choose from

  • Joseph Banks Native Plants Reserve, Bungoona Path and KayBotany Bay National Park
  • Australian Botanic Gardens and Illawarra Grevillea Park
  • Silky Oaks, Robertson Rainforest
  • Fitzroy Falls, Robertson Rainforest
  • South Coast - Shoalhaven Heads and Beecroft Peninsular

Speakers

Here are some of our speakers. For more information on the program, click here




Excursions during the conference

We are planning 2 days of excursions during the conference. We are offering a variety of excursions accessible via a coach in a day optimising the time on the ground exploring! These excursions are only available to those who are booked for the whole conference. 

At booking time,  we will ask you to nominate your choices. If your chosen excursion has already reached capacity, we will let you know so you can make an alternate choice. The current list for mid week excursions are shown here (subject to change). 

Several of the excursions feature the same locations due to limits on numbers per bus as well as bus access. Each excursion will have a local leader to provide commentary. There will be toilet stops, morning/afternoon tea and lunch included. Some locations will require limited walking and others will have longer walks and options for extended walks and be picked up at the other end by the bus.

To see a taste of the excursions and for plant lists, click here for short 3 minute promotional videos plus downloadable material such as plant lists. We are aiming to go as 'green' as possible and not produce lots of paper lists, so please review the material and print or download as needed.  

  Click for more details on excursions


See a video introduction to the conference below

Australian native plant sale - Sunday 11 September, 10am to 5pm, Kiama Pavilion. All welcome!



Pre- and post-tours 

Tours to extend your stay before and after the conference are being planned. We are currently planning tours for conference participants and their partners to:

it is strongly recommended that you take out travel insurance when booking. 

 Click for more details on tours


Location - Kiama in the Illawarra

The event will be held at the Kiama Pavilion, right on the beach at Kiama. For more inspiration and information on what you can see and do in the Kiama area - see here. 

Getting to Kiama - More info here 

Accommodation in Kiama

Kiama is spoilt for choice in accommodation options. One of our members has developed the following accommodation guide, at today's prices. Click here to download. Prices in this guide were last updated in October 2021 (with a recent accommodation update - April 2022). Several facilities offer discounts for attendees at the conference. 

Additional information on Kiama accommodation found here. The Visitors Guide with maps for Kiama is located here. 

Things to do in Kiama - click for more info

If you have a car, there are lots of places to visit, see below. 

If walking, you may want to take in:

The Kiama Pavilion


Restaurant recommendations

Hanoi on Manning – Vietnamese

Olive and Vine – Contemporary large restaurant

Diggies Kiama

Thai on Collins

Harbour Thai

KG Café

The Grand – Pub style

The Hungry Monkey – casual



About Kiama, the Illawarra and its flora and fauna

Flora of the Illawarra and surrounds

Growing Illawarra Natives, database of native plants

Illawarra Native Garden Guide, Wollongong Council's guide to native gardening

Plants of the Illawarra, ABC Gardening Australia

Species lists, developed by Tony Maxwell, APS NSW, including Illawarra/Shoalhaven 

Flora and fauna of the area, by Illawarra Fly


Wonderful places to visit

These places will require you have your own vehicle although we are visiting some on excursions and tours. 

Carrington Falls and Nellie's Glen, spectacular falls and walks

Barren Grounds

Minnamurra Rainforest

Robertson Rainforest

Fitzroy Falls

Mt Keira Scout Camp

Mt Keira Lookout

Saddleback Mountain Lookout

Kiama - things to do, where to stay - scroll for more info

Thank you's

We are thankful for the support of the local Kiama Council to hold the conference in their region. 

We’d also like to acknowledge the contribution of Destination NSW, our Strategic Sponsor, whose grant is assisting us to enhance the impact of the conference, while attracting members from all over the country and people new to the Society. 

We'd also like to thank the many volunteers of the Australian Plants Society NSW, who are helping put on the conference. 

Strategic Sponsor


Sponsors


More information

For queries about the conference and tours: Heather Miles, Secretary@austplants.com.au, 0408 696 356;

Ralph Cartwright, Conf2022@spin.net.au, 0416 030 872. 

 Click here to register 


 Click to be added to the mailing list 

P.O. Box 263
Cremorne  Junction NSW 2090

Contact us on office@austplants.com.au

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