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Hey ho, hey ho … Off to plant we go …

Libertas Guest Farm Wildlife Corridor - Precious Tree Project

We started working on a section of this Wildlife Corridor running through Libertas Guest Farm in the earlier part of 2021. Most of the “alien management” of the corridor running though the farm is undertaken by the landowners themselves, but the ongoing task of restoring lengthy tracks of land to its former natural glory can be an unrelenting challenge. The primary invasive species dominating the corridor are black wattle, lantana and bugweed. In addition to being invasive, these species are particularly fast-growers. As a prime wildlife corridor (and currently monitored with cameras by NMMU students), PTP jumped in to help clear the giant bugweed and to boost the reforestation process with endemic forest tree species that are great sources of food for the wildlife too.

A BIG thank you to Dr Morley for his tree-cycling project and FAGRON SA for the sponsorship of 75 endemic forest trees that we planted out.

Click here if you would like to sponsor an indigenous forest tree to our wildlife corridors OR you can go to https://www.payfast.co.za/donate/go/precioustreeproject.

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What we do Matters

What we do Matters - Precious Tree Project

“Before the emergence of this pandemic, I started plans to raise awareness of our natural biome, by using my passion for cycling to raise money for an amazing local Non-Profit-Organisation in Wilderness whose intention is to assist the natural restoration of indigenous forests in the Garden Route, Precious Tree Project.

Since the current pandemic, we have seen how communities less fortunate than us, are being starved of essentials: basic food and health supplies.  This highlights the importance of becoming sustainable: by growing our own foods, planting trees that clean the air and recycle water around us. Nature heals and gives us medicines through its offerings of medicinal herbs, plants and trees.

My mission, together with Precious Tree Project, is extended to not only plant indigenous forest trees, but to share, teach, develop and actively regrow what we have unconsciously pushed back for so many years and create sustainable livelihoods.

I commit to making my passion for cycling, a (sustainable) vehicle to maintain ongoing awareness.

What we do matters. I invite you to join me. 

With gratitude”

Dr Jon Morley (11 April, 2020).

A big thanks to each and every volunteer for your support on the day and making this possible! A special thanks to Coyne Healthcare who have fully supported Doctor Jon’s tree-cycling fundraising efforts for us over the past year, which has afforded us the opportunity to improve the daily school – going lives of the young children at Bergplaas Community Creche in a number of ways!

coynehealthcare #coynecommunity #vitalihealthcentre #communityupliftment #indigenousforestpatch

Tour de Burn – a tree cycling project

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Growing a bio-mimicked forest patch at Vitali Health Centre

Growing a bio-mimicked forest patch at Vitali Health Centre - Precious Tree Project

With lockdown restrictions for most of the year, Dr Jon Morley – our passionate “cycling for trees” partner – has yet to clock more miles on his bicycle in a “staged cycling event” across the Western Cape in order to raise awareness around the significant impact that forests and trees have on our own personal health and well-being. Continuous training on his cycle through the mountains, luckily has been permissible, and is keeping him in shape while allowing him to still get exposure to the public however small and continue to raise local awareness.  

He also managed to get his hands dirty with that “good stuff” called soil and plant out a batch of the trees that were donated to his tree-cycling project. 

These precious trees were donated by Dr Peter Hodson, and between the Vitali team and our VIP’s (very important planters), we spent a morning planting out a small bio-mimicked forest patch of indigenous trees at Vitali Health Centre in Hoekwil.  

Tree species included Outeniqua Yellowwood, Boekenhout, Wild Olive and Camphor Bush, which themselves come with their own recorded medicinal values.

The presence of a growing and maturing mini indigenous forest – on a site where holistic health and well being are of considerable interest to the Doctors, Health Consultants and staff at the Centre  – will increase the healing energy of the site tenfold over the years to come.

If you would like to sponsor an indigenous forest tree, click here!

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Homeward Bound

Homeward Bound - Precious Tree Project

TOUR DE BURN – STAGE 1, DAY 5

The last 100km day ride brought the tree-cycling team back into home territory. A well deserved round of applause to Jon and Dave – who just got on with it kilometre after kilometre, who kept smiling kilometre after kilometre and made it all look rather easy even when it wasn’t.

And a big thank you to the doctor’s wife, Ez Morley, for everything, including all the great photos that contributed to these posts.

Watch this space for Stage 2 of Tour de Burn – a tree cycling project!

Click here to support Jon’s 12 month drive to raise funds to plant out 5000 indigenous forest trees in the Garden Route!

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Clocking up another 100km on their Tour de Burn Belts!

TOUR DE BURN – STAGE 1, DAY 4

Our tree-cyclists were up and off relatively early on day 4, the day that the good doctor’s wife had to handle the fluffing responsibilities for the team on her own. It was also the day that the support vehicle had a flat tyre… and when you are deep in Karoo Territory, where big muscle assistance is no-where in sight & cellphone reception is between zero and nothing, it’s a task you get to perform on your own!

Well done to Mrs Morley for keeping it all together and holding fort, and well done to the guys for clocking up another hundred kilometer notch on their Tour de Burn belts!

If you would like to support the Morley’s team effort and donate a tree, click here!

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Revelling in Karoo Panorama

TOUR DE BURN – STAGE 1, DAY 3

Full on appreciation of the panoramic views that the Karoo offers, whether you are a tree-cyclist on a bicycle or a fluffer in a support vehicle.

The pleasure of being able to observe two dedicated, super-fit men cycling 100kms through the magnificence of the Karoo was not lost on us.

Big riding and easy-on-the-eye driving. Great route to go … either way you tackle it.
Click here to support Jon and his campaign!

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The Tough got Going

Tree-cycling - Tour de Burn Stage 1 Day 1 Precious Tree Project NPO

TOUR DE BURN – STAGE 1, DAY 1

Day 1: 12th June 2020, 08h45. 7 degrees celcius. Brrrrrrrr.
Tree-cycling team: Jon Morley and Dave Cubbin
Support team: Ez Morley and I

The guys started the cycle on day 1 at the entrance to Simola in Knysna with the most difficult climb of the stage. As the support team, Ez and I, waved them off with backpacks loaded with water, energy bars/drinks/snacks and gave them some space to tackle the Prince Alfred Mountain pass ahead of us. The Prince Alfred mountain pass is a glorious drive and we navigated our way up the mountain slowly (no more than 10 kms per hour) in order to take in and take shots of the breathtaking beauty of the area.

Half way up the mountain pass we thought to notch it up a bit and reduce the distance between us and the boys until we had them in our line of sight. It took way longer to catch up with them than we anticipated that at one point going up the pass, we thought we had missed them somewhere on the road. But of course, we hadn’t!

The boys were simply nimble .. The boys were simply quick! Not just up the mountain, but all the way to the “finish line” in Oudtshoorn, 100kms later.

Lesson to remember for the following 4 days: do not underestimate the power and speed of these two (and we certainly didn’t do that again).

Click here to support Jon and his campaign!

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Planting for Health

Planting for Health - Tour de Burn - Precious Tree Project

While much has halted or slowed down in our world since lockdown, raising funds to assist the regenerative growth of our natural endemic forests continues and it’s importance to do so is more apparent in light of the health challenges facing the national and global community.

Dr Jon Morley’s vision to plant out 5000 indigenous trees: Instead of kickstarting the cycle event with a 500 km cycle to Afrika Burn this month, he will be hosting a cycling event every 2 months and close off his fundraiser with a cycle to the new Afrika Burn venue in May 2021.

Watch this space for details on Dr Jon’s cycling antics, and if you would like to sponsor his initiative click on this link or you can support his Backabuddy crowdfunding platform at https://www.backabuddy.co.za/champion/project/precious-tree.