Native Forest Regeneration in Te Awa Kairangi
New Zealand
Conservation, RestorationMA
Mangaroa Farms
New Zealand
NonprofitMangaroa Farms is a resilient community food hub and education centre in Te Awa Kairangi Hutt Valley. With 1,200 hectares, Mangaroa Farms is a living laboratory transitioning dairy and pine into regenerative agriculture and native forests. The market garden team produces a weekly array of fresh and delicious produce grown with organic principles, while the farm backs on to 500+ acres of native old growth forest and 700+ acres of pine which will be regenerated as native forest, working alongside nature and partnering with pasture-raised livestock to increase soil health and diversity. Mangaroa Farms regularly hosts volunteer days and workshops to share the broad knowledge base of their team.
Project story
Tree Planting — Katherine Mansfield Drive (KMD)
In winter 2021, a 17,000 square metre gully off Katherine Mansfield Drive in Whitemans Valley became the first site at Mangaroa Farms to be fenced off and planted back into native bush.
The KMD gully from the air — 17,000m² of native revegetation
The team from Natural Habitats planted 17,000 re-veg grade native species at 1-metre centres across the gully floor. Every plant went in with a fibre guard and woolmulch mat to suppress weeds and reduce the need for herbicide. The contract included three years of maintenance — controlling noxious weeds and releasing around each plant as the canopy established.
Drone view showing the planted gully filling in
Alongside the gully, 935 linear metres of canal edges were planted — native grass mix on one side at 600mm centres, re-veg natives on the opposite edge. Another 2,493 fibre guards and woolmulch mats went down along the waterway. An existing 8,000m² of vegetated area within the gully was also cleared and managed for weed species over the three-year maintenance term.
The gully in July 2024 — canopy closing, natives establishing
The total investment for the KMD site was $270kNZD+ contracted to Natural Habitats in May 2021. It was a straightforward proposition: stop grazing the gully, fence it, plant it dense, and let the bush come back. Four years later, from the air, you can see the result. The canopy is closing. The gully that was once open pasture is becoming ngahere again.
The native bush beginning to thrive in December 2025.
Evidence
17,000 native plants in the gully at 1m centres
2,493 plants along 935m of canal edges
$277,703 NZD total investment (excl. GST)
3-year maintenance term included (weed control + releasing)
Fibre guards + woolmulch mats on every plant
Project updates
Team
Native Forest Regeneration in Te Awa Kairangi
New Zealand
Conservation, RestorationMA
Mangaroa Farms
New Zealand
NonprofitMangaroa Farms is a resilient community food hub and education centre in Te Awa Kairangi Hutt Valley. With 1,200 hectares, Mangaroa Farms is a living laboratory transitioning dairy and pine into regenerative agriculture and native forests. The market garden team produces a weekly array of fresh and delicious produce grown with organic principles, while the farm backs on to 500+ acres of native old growth forest and 700+ acres of pine which will be regenerated as native forest, working alongside nature and partnering with pasture-raised livestock to increase soil health and diversity. Mangaroa Farms regularly hosts volunteer days and workshops to share the broad knowledge base of their team.
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Project story
Tree Planting — Katherine Mansfield Drive (KMD)
In winter 2021, a 17,000 square metre gully off Katherine Mansfield Drive in Whitemans Valley became the first site at Mangaroa Farms to be fenced off and planted back into native bush.
The KMD gully from the air — 17,000m² of native revegetation
The team from Natural Habitats planted 17,000 re-veg grade native species at 1-metre centres across the gully floor. Every plant went in with a fibre guard and woolmulch mat to suppress weeds and reduce the need for herbicide. The contract included three years of maintenance — controlling noxious weeds and releasing around each plant as the canopy established.
Drone view showing the planted gully filling in
Alongside the gully, 935 linear metres of canal edges were planted — native grass mix on one side at 600mm centres, re-veg natives on the opposite edge. Another 2,493 fibre guards and woolmulch mats went down along the waterway. An existing 8,000m² of vegetated area within the gully was also cleared and managed for weed species over the three-year maintenance term.
The gully in July 2024 — canopy closing, natives establishing
The total investment for the KMD site was $270kNZD+ contracted to Natural Habitats in May 2021. It was a straightforward proposition: stop grazing the gully, fence it, plant it dense, and let the bush come back. Four years later, from the air, you can see the result. The canopy is closing. The gully that was once open pasture is becoming ngahere again.
The native bush beginning to thrive in December 2025.
Evidence
17,000 native plants in the gully at 1m centres
2,493 plants along 935m of canal edges
$277,703 NZD total investment (excl. GST)
3-year maintenance term included (weed control + releasing)
Fibre guards + woolmulch mats on every plant
Project updates
Team
Location
New Zealand