Kangaroo and Wallaby guards and protection

The 34 acre site that is now the home of Mudlark Permaculture is an open grassland  strip 250mts wide and 500mts long,  set between native Australian bush land and a 280 mt diameter artificially created wetland.

The land was considered so poor by its previous owner that it had not been fenced or stocked for 30 years.

The only things to graze this land for years have been a few rabbits, hares, the odd wallaby and around 100 kangaroo.

Kangaroo come on to the property every evening to drink.

In taking all those things into context, I had to acknowledge that I was basically on the kangaroos turf and I better learn how to live with it.

I have to say that kangaroos are unique in that they are incredably stupid, they can not be trained in any way. Electric fences are of no consequence to them as they do not touch them, get a shock and remember for next time.

Kangaroos jump in very long powerful strides and are very fast when they have to be. Anything that may be in their way will be jumped on or over.

The expense of a 2mt high, everything proof fencing, was not an option first up.

So I have had to be a little creative in order to slow down the collateral damage to the first vestiges of my permanent human centered activities.

Most of the original 'bull wire' fencing was still in position, but on the ground, with the fence posts all having rotted off at ground level. This wire is very heavy gage and stiff. I have cut it into aprox. 2 mt lengths as I worked my way along cleaning up the old fence lines.

I replaced the fence with simple steel posts and plain wire strands, and ring lock mesh in a few sections, dependant on finances at the time.

 I have been working my way back along the fence, weaving the lengths of old bull wire vertically into the new fence, securing it with small lengths of tie wire.  It does look interesting and it is very functional, it is slightly springy if the kangaroo do try and jump it.

The old wire is very heavy, stiff and rusty, it can not be straightened without breaking it

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Acacia thinings for poles

In other sections, were the old wire was too rusted  to be of use I have been vertically weaving in long slender thinnings into the fence to add height.  Some of these are from a local acacia species that is regenerating in large clumps which then self thin, by about half of them dying at around the 10 year mark. These are often 6-7 mts tall with a base diameter of less than 10cm. I can often get 2 or 3 poles out of them.

Poles woven through ringlock netting.

Detail of pole tie wire.

I have around 3kms of perimeter fence to work on over time  and I haven’t intended to block all the wild life out over night, more a case of slowing them down for now.

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Another great ‘free’ fencing material that abounds in the 1^st world is the shipping pallet. I usually don’t leave home without the trailer as there are always ‘free’ resources to be gathered around the country side, building sites, backs of shops etc (I always ask first!)

Pallet triangles.

Some of the ways I have used these pallets is arranged in a simple triangle with very long screws through the corners. This is working well on single trees that are regenerating out in exposed areas of the property.

Pallete corral, with damaged tree on the outside.

In sections where natural regeneration is appearing in clumps, I have put up ‘corrals’ using 10 to 20 pallets. Set slightly in a zigzag to help with stability.  The kangaroos won’t jump inside these corrals, as they are too small to jump out of. For the most part the kangaroos don’t eat these acacia, but the pressure of continually being jumped on or having the growing tip knocked off really retards their growth. Once protected by the ‘corral’ they take off in height and become excellent candidates for stem pruning.

Inside and outside the corral- spot the difference-after 18months these inside trees are now large enough to withstand kangaroo pressure and this ‘corral’ will be unscrewed and moved over.

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 The excellent plant growth experienced on the new swales has frustratingly been matched by the wallaby populations desire to eat it all. With over 1km of swale this has called for a plan where I have had to pick my battles. 

A fresh young apricot tree with cover crop-prior to being striped by a wallaby.

The local wildlife have avoided some plants and I will be re-seeding and replanting more of those varieties in autumn. Anything completely devoured as a wallaby favorite will be chalked up to ‘experience’.

The kangaroo apples were almost the only plants left untouched, they have made very fast growth, I will be planting these by the hundreds next autumn.

Picking my battles has meant favoring the precious fruit trees first and foremost. I did this by placing large branches gently in a cage type formation around the tree. This has acted to slow down the curious wallabies. This open stick basket has still allowed the cover crop to grow, especially the vetch which likes to climb.

Young apple tree in the middle of an acacia branch cage.