Douglas Fir Seedlings

Tourist spots flourish in Raetihi

Historic Raetihi

The community in the township of Raetihi are not sitting idle and dreaming of better times. They are busy working behind the scenes to make their town a better place to live in and build on their reputation as a tourist destination.

Peak FM's Geoff Anderson, a member of the Raetihi Promotions Group (RPG) said the town is getting busier, especially in the summer.

"The cycleway is bringing more people through our town; more are using the Whanganui River for rafting, canoeing, jet-boating ... The River Rd is now sealed all the way through from Whanganui – that's getting busy as well."

The Information Centre is run by RPG volunteers thanks to funding from a charity trust and a grant from the Ruapehu District Council. A small amount of funding comes from the sales of local souvenirs, arts and crafts.

Empty Shops

A continuing vandalism problem has prompted RPG to approach the owners of empty shops asking if the shop windows can be used for historic displays and to promote the area's attractions.

Mr Anderson said: "The vandalism was horrendous. One of the empty shops has boarded up the frontage which is not a good look."

RPG says the project will enhance the look of the street and perhaps reduce vandalism.

The agent for some of the empty shops, Mike Nash, has spoken to one of the trustees of the owners who said they are interested in looking at a proposal.

Mr Nash says the response appeared positive.

Makotuku River Walkway

A start has been made with the douglas fir trees being felled and milled. The timber has been donated to local groups and marae. The macrocarpa milled at the same time is being used by local Graham Bell to make tables for the reserve on Parapara Rd.

RPG is also working with the district council to establish a new car park south of the cemetery.

RPG says work on the walkway is continuing and is subject to funding.

Chills Off

For a number of years a community group called Chills Off has been working on improving the Raetihi swimming pool, which belongs to the Ruapehu District Council on behalf of the community and is administered by a management group which runs the council's pools, The Leisure Company of Hamilton.

Chills Off were successful in having the pools enclosed but find it is not enough to keep the water warm, so their next project is to heat the water.

The Wood-Wide-Web: Are Plants Inter-Connected by a Subterranean ...

Mushrooms are the visible manifestations (sexual organs, actually) of microscopic, soil-dwelling fungi that form mutually-beneficial partnerships with plants.

Since these filamentous fungi interact with the roots of plants, such symbiotic relationships are called mycorrhizae , literally “fungus root”.

Fossil evidence supports the idea that these plant-fungal partnerships are as old as the emergence of terrestrial plants (about 500 million years ago).

Indeed, some scientists believe that mycorrhizae may have been critical for the successful colonization of land by plants.

The plants benefit because the mycorrhizal fungal network effectively increases the root surface area. This may help the plant take up water and mineral nutrients, such as phosphorus and nitrogen. The fungus gets sugars (carbohydrates) from the plants.

Over 90% of native plant species examined form mycorrhizae. That means in a typical forest or meadow, most of the plants’ roots are connected to fungal networks.

Is it possible that plants are inter-connected by these weblike fungal networks? Moreover, could chemical signals travel throughout this network?