My name is Bruce Perkins and I grew up at Murgon. Over the last 35 years I have grown large numbers of rainforest plants including cabinet timbers and bush foods at Kilkivan, Samford and currently at Bunya Nurseries Murgon.

In this time I have developed considerable understanding of our complex ecologies, including the uses and benefits of local rainforest plants.

I enthusiastically encourage the planting of cabinet timbers and bush foods. I have supplied plants, advice, project design and site supervision to many S.E. Queensland councils, nurseries, landscapers and landholders.​

My first tree planting was 1000 Hoop Pines from Gallangown where they were grown in raised beds, root pruned and put in metal tubes and then into metal containers in metal trays of 25.

I planted them in rows in blocks of land around and at Kilkivan around 25 years ago

These were planted individually 3-4 metres apart in 2 staggered rows. Most survived.

I planted some of these hoop pines and many other varieties of plants on land I had nearby

I built a wholesale nursery, Mudlo View Nursery where I lived for 15 years

This was a 50 hectare bare paddock of speargrass and a few eucalyptus species which had difficulty keeping 2 horses

Projects designed, supplied and supervised by myself

Kilkivan Town Gardens planted 20 years ago

Kilkivan Bridge Street

Group plantings between tennis courts and highway

All of these plants have survived

Highway park at Woolooga

Maleny Showground

Maleny Showground, bank of Obi Obi Creek

This project was instigated by Barung Landcare and the then Malany Folk-festival committee.

The folk-festival public paid for medium-sized plants and planted them with 50 cents per plant going to Barung for maintenance.

Trees were planted a few feet apart on a very steep, eroding bare slope.

Noosa Spit 17 years ago

This project was designed by myself, Council’s landscape architect and Greening Noosa member Glen Gloster.

They were planted in groups and watered once. There were some casualties but most survived and are now spreading themselves.

This project won Greening Australia project of the year. It was a community-driven project, carried out and maintained by the community supported by Noosa council.

We only planted medium and advanced sized plants.

Over the following years, we supplied plants monthly to Greening Noosa’s plantings around Noosa.

Due to success of plantings, I was invited to be part of the panel that developed Noosa’s Landscaping Guidelines.

Cherbourg Bush Botanical Garden project at Bert Button Lookout, planted 14 years ago.

Same site 14 years apart

These were large group plantings of advanced native plants.

Many of these plants are bush foods and cabinet timbers.

Despite the early death of trainee and maintenance person, most plants survived with no maintenance

This parkland produces an abundance of seed and fruit

Lessons learned are that plants planted in groups in mower-friendly shapes, large and small, succeed where on many occasions singularly planted trees often struggle to survive.