Whanganui has range of Conservation Week activities on August 15-23

Volunteers weed and plant in Gordon Park's remnant kahikatea forest. Photo / File

Nature lovers can take in the fresh cool air, tall trees, deep forest litter and mass of eager seedlings at Gordon Park Scenic Reserve during a Conservation Week volunteer morning.

The activity is the first of seven during Conservation Week (August 15 to 23).

For the Gordon Park event, people should meet at the reserve at the corner of Kaimatira Rd and No 3 Line at 10am on Sunday, August 16, bringing their own gloves, spade and drink bottle. They'll hear about the work the Department of Conservation (DoC) and Friends of Gordon Park have been doing to keep this lowland forest remnant free of invasive weeds and fortify its boundaries.

The group will clear weeds and plant, with time to enjoy the quiet and the diversity of plant and bird life. The reserve has a flat and well-formed track that can be walked before the event ends at 12.30pm.

Later in the week the $10 ticket price for two nature-related films shown at Confluence, 15 Watt St, will be donated to the Gordon Park project.

The first film, on August 20, is about an environmental artist. The second, on August 21, features an 83-year-old woman who sets out to climb a Scottish mountain.

Tickets can be bought by ringing 06 281 3474, and all the Conservation Week details are on the Conservation Department website.

Another opportunity to get practical is a beach planting on August 23, starting at the Duncan Pavilion at 10.30am.

Children have a bird-themed art session at the Gonville Library at 3.30pm on August 17, or they can find out what's in DoC ranger Timothy "Timbo" Paki's backpack at the Davis Library storytime at 10am on August 18.

Also on August 18, Whanganui's Dr Roger Shand gives a talk about the way the mouth of the Whanganui River has been controlled since the late 1800s, and what issues that is causing now. The free talk starts at 7.30pm in the Davis Lecture Theatre.

If none of this appeals, there are lots of ways to have your own nature time, DoC community ranger Katy Newton said. She suggests a walk by our awa, a visit to Bushy Park Tarapuruhi or a look at Whanganui Regional Museum's Teeth, Talons and Taxidermy exhibition.

Conservation Week was begun by the New Zealand Scout Association in 1969, then taken over by the Lands and Survey Department's Nature Conservation Council. DoC was formed in 1987 and has run it ever since.

DoC director general Lou Sanson said nature was a solace during New Zealand's big lockdown this year, with people refreshed by visiting their local beaches, parks and gardens.

"For many of us, nature helped us through a pretty unusual time - and we need to carry that forward into our lives in the Covid-19 world," he said.