Celebrating Matariki

As we safeguard the whenua, the whenua nurtures us. If you’ve served as a kaitiaki: thank you!

We want to give particular thanks to all of you who are busy growing kai for the community, or teaching our kids.

We also want to shine the spotlight on a few of our not-for-profit heroes, who are out there passionately protecting the whenua and the rākau (trees), manu (birds) and pūrerehua (moths & butterflies) that belong in it.

Rākau

One Tree Per Child operates in 11 different countries (and counting). Their mission is to encourage every child to plant at least one tree before they leave school; so far, they’ve planted half a million trees around the world. On the ground here in Aotearoa, One Tree Per Child supports the Trees for Survival Charitable Trust to do the mahi.

Trees for Survival works with schools and local communities to propagate and plant native trees, along waterways and on erosion-prone hillsides. Their environmental education programme encourages schoolkids to make a practical difference to their environment. The kids learn about conservation, re-vegetation, wetland restoration and protecting water quality.

These busy kids are from Patumahoe School, planting out seedlings they grew themselves, from seed.

Riparian planting along waterways can significantly improve water quality and habitats for our precious native fauna. Trees and shrubs filter water and stabilize the soil, so they decrease erosion, along with sediment and nutrient run-off, leading to cleaner creeks and rivers.

We’ve been supporting Trees for Survival for over 15 years, by donating potting mix and fertilisers for their seedling growing program.

If you'd like to help Trees for Survival with their essential work, $7 from you puts a native tree in the hands of an eager schoolkid. You can even donate a tree on behalf of someone special to you. A tree is a gift that could endure for centuries to come!

Manu

We’re proud to support the National Kiwi Hatchery, leading experts in kiwi husbandry, egg incubation systems, hatching techniques, and kiwi chick rearing.

Our wild kiwi population continues to decline, because most kiwi chicks fall victim to introduced predators. It’s not a stretch to say the work the National Kiwi Hatchery does is critical for the survival of kiwi. The Hatchery also supports DOC and community groups in their work to protect kiwi in the wild, by incubating eggs and caring for chicks until they’ve grown big enough to be safe from predators.

You can help save kiwi by visiting the Hatchery in Rotorua, to see conservation (and kiwi) in action; 100% of your ticket goes back into the kiwi hatching programme. You’ll get to talk to their kiwi experts and learn about the process, while being guided through the new state-of-the-art Hatchery facilities.

Yates have been donating Hauraki Gold Peat Moss to the National Kiwi Hatchery for over a decade, to make brooder boxes snug and comforting for chicks, and encourage them to fossick for bugs. We're especially honoured to have chosen names for some of their gorgeous wee chicks through the years. Just quietly, if you sponsor a kiwi chick at the Hatchery, you get to choose a name! You can find out more about supporting the Hatchery here.

We’re impressed that over 3,000 native trees have been planted at the new National Kiwi Hatchery site, a huge effort by volunteers and community organisations. We were also delighted to hear Trees for Survival kids contributed to the planting.

Pūrerehua

Yates are appreciative supporters of the Moths and Butterflies of New Zealand Trust Pūrerehua Aotearoa. The Trust works to preserve our biodiversity and ensure New Zealand’s ecosystems support thriving moth and butterfly populations.

They are currently working to re-introduce the Red Admiral/Kahukura butterfly to Auckland, crowdfunding a DNA study into unidentified native butterflies and providing resources to schools so our kids can learn more about our unique moth and butterfly species.

The Red Admiral butterfly - once a common sight in Tāmaki Makaurau.

The Trust celebrates the much-loved Monarch butterfly, because it’s such an iconic emblem for our wider family of butterflies and moths. Unfortunately, Monarch numbers appear to be in decline, so the Trust could use your help!

At this time of year, any Monarch butterflies you see will be overwintering. To learn more about Monarch overwintering behaviour and habitats, the Trust are running a butterfly tagging program. To collect the data they need, they’re on the lookout for tagged butterflies: if you see a Monarch with a tag like the one pictured below, they’d really appreciate it if you enter the tag number and location here.

Yates supports the Moths and Butterflies of New Zealand Trust Pūrerehua Aotearoa by donating a percentage of the proceeds from every packet of Yates Swan Plant and Yates Butterfly Field Mix we sell.

If you'd like to directly support the work the Trust is doing, you can subscribe to their beautiful quarterly magazine, packed with articles about NZ butterflies, moths, habitats and news about the projects going on around the country. Or, you can donate to help fund their projects here.