The Whakatipu Reforestation Trust thrives on the goodwill and hard work of our volunteers. Volunteers help us turn our vision into a reality, one plant at a time.
Whether you have lived in the Queenstown-Lakes area all your life or are visiting for a short time, we would love to show you what we do and to get you involved.
Ways You Can Volunteer
Community Nursery Sessions
We welcome volunteers to our community nursery to help with all aspects of growing our native plants from eco sourced seeds. No experience necessary.
Spring/summer volunteer hours: Wednesday is nursery day!!
Wednesday morning: 9-12pm (starting again January 14th)
Wednesday evening: 5.30 – 8pm (starting again January 21st)
What to bring:
Gardening gloves, Water, sunhat, sunscreen.
(For evening sessions feel free to bring a picnic dinner)
Location: Jean Malpas Community Nursery, Poplar Drive, Kelvin Heights.
Community Working Bees and Planting Days
Summer Working Bees: Every Tuesday morning. Keep an eye on social media for other events and pop-up sessions.
Tuesday February 10th, 9am – 12: Whitechapel Reserve. Whitechapel Road Arrow Junction. You will see us beyond the planting area at the entrance to the river trail. All very welcome!
Tuesday February 17th, 9am – 12: Slopehill Reserve, Slopehill Reserve (entrance from Speargrass Flat Road end) Look out for the WRT flag.
Tuesday February 24th: 9am – 12: Jardine Park, Kelvin Heights Peninsular.
Tuesday March 3rd: 9am – 12: Location TBC
Tuesday March 10th: 9am – 12: Location TBC
Tuesday March 17th: 9am – 12: Location TBC
What to bring:
Gardening gloves, Water, sunhat, sunscreen.
We will supply tools, gloves if needed and picnic morning tea!
Autumn 2026 planting: Come autumn we will be planting native plants at our keystone sites. To date, we have planted over 135,000 natives throughout the Whakatipu Basin.
Volunteered Services
We welcome volunteers who can contribute their own expertise and help in other ways. For example by providing:
✓ Photography ✓ Writing ✓ Artwork ✓ Spraying ✓ Using Scrub-bar ✓ Fundraising ✓ Engineering ✓ Building
Become a Planting Partner
We can provide plants and support to other groups who take on the planting and management of sites on public land throughout the Whakatipu Basin.
We’d love to hear from you, your business, community association, community group or school if you are interested in taking on a planting site.
Newsletter Signup
Join our mailing list to keep up to date with news, community planting days and latest developments…