Loder Cup to Nurseryman for Native Plant Advocacy

Forest and Bird, Issue 299, 1 February 2001, Page 9

Loder Cup to Nurseryman for Native Plant Advocacy

he manager of a native plant nursery in Canterbury, Jorge Santos, has been awarded the Loder Cup for the year 2000. The Loder Cup, New Zealand’s premier conservation award, honours people and organisations for their outstanding contributions. ‘The award goes to Jorge Santos for his outstanding work in helping to return native plants, some threatened with extinction, to their rightful place in the landscapes of the South Island, the Minister of Conservation, Hon Sandra Lee, announced. Jorge Santos manages the Department of Conservation’s native plant nursery at Motukarara at the base of Banks Peninsula. Born in Portugal, he came to New Zealand in 1974. ‘The Motukarara nursery is at the hub of work underway to restore the diverse and unique native plant communities

which extend in a patchwork across the Canterbury region, Sandra Lee said. "The long-term vision is to restore distinctive landscapes that could otherwise be lost to Canterbury and other parts of the South Island’ Sandra Lee says a key part of this work involves educating the community to use locally sourced native plants instead of exotic species. ‘This year Mr Santos will be coordinating a $25,000 project as part of a $2.5-million con-servation-awareness package, she said, ‘He will be developing a user-friendly native plant restoration and protection resource kit for farmers, community groups, and local bodies around New Zealand’ An Englishman, Gerald Loder, donated the conservation cup in 1926 to encourage and honour New Zealanders who work to investigate, promote and cherish the country’s indigenous plants and animals. Recent recipients include

Southland Forest and Bird members Chris and Brian Rance (1999) who created a community garden and nursery on their property for some of the most threatened of Southland plants, and the Auckland-based Supporters of Tiritiri Matangi (1998) who helped turn the Hauraki Gulf Island into a haven for endangered birds.