HELI-MULCHING
We operate the only heli-mulcher in Aotearoa, New Zealand.
Pioneered by Southern Heli Lift Chief Pilot Darren Davison, its design and development was fast-tracked during the Covid lockdown of last year, bringing to life a concept he’d been mulling over for years.
It’s slung under the helicopter, which descends, mulching the tree in a matter of seconds. From there, the unit’s spray system kicks in, administering herbicide to completely cover the remaining stump.
The mulcher provides an eradication alternative when other methods are unsafe, too expensive, or will damage surrounding native vegetation.
As far as we can establish, this is the only aerial mulching-spray unit of its kind internationally.
Our heli-mulcher was born of Darren’s years flying over the backcountry, spotting remote, hard-to-reach invasive trees threatening the surrounding native landscape and, in many cases, near-on impossible to selectively target.
Darren, who’s specialised in wilding pine eradication for more than 12 years, designed the mulcher to answer some of the biggest challenges: safety, cost, accessibility and effectiveness.
A pioneering solution
Heli-mulcher's advantages
It's efficent and cost effective.
Rather than the time, resources and other factors involved with ground crews walking in to fell trees, in many instances, the heli-mulcher is significantly quicker, more cost-effective and safer.
It kills invasive trees outright.
A full circumferential hit is needed to kill a tree. In trying to achieve this with traditional spraying, nearby natives are often accidentally sprayed. It’s not uncommon for parts of the invasive tree’s trunk to be missed, so it continues to grow, thereby defeating the purpose. With our heli-mulcher, it’s a case of do it once, do it right: mulched, sprayed, gone.
Aesthetics.
Sprayed trees leave a rust-coloured eyesore on hillsides for decades, which can also pose a major, long-term fire hazard. The mulcher takes trees down to their stumps, just centimetres high. The only debris left are woodchips.
Chief Pilot Darren Davison provides a close-up look at our groundbreaking heli-mulcher.
We operate the only heli-mulcher in Aotearoa, New Zealand.
Pioneered by Southern Heli Lift Chief Pilot Darren Davison, its design and development was fast-tracked during the Covid lockdown of last year, bringing to life a concept he’d been mulling over for years.
It’s slung under the helicopter, which descends, mulching the tree in a matter of seconds. From there, the unit’s spray system kicks in, administering herbicide to completely cover the remaining stump.
The mulcher provides an eradication alternative when other methods are unsafe, too expensive, or will damage surrounding native vegetation.
As far as we can establish, this is the only aerial mulching-spray unit of its kind internationally.
Our heli-mulcher was born of Darren’s years flying over the backcountry, spotting remote, hard-to-reach invasive trees threatening the surrounding native landscape and, in many cases, near-on impossible to selectively target.
Darren, who’s specialised in wilding pine eradication for more than 12 years, designed the mulcher to answer some of the biggest challenges: safety, cost, accessibility and effectiveness.
Heli-mulcher's advantages
It's efficent and cost effective.
Rather than the time, resources and other factors involved with ground crews walking in to fell trees, in many instances, the heli-mulcher is significantly quicker, more cost-effective and safer.
It kills invasive trees outright.
A full circumferential hit is needed to kill a tree. In trying to achieve this with traditional spraying, nearby natives are often accidentally sprayed. It’s not uncommon for parts of the invasive tree’s trunk to be missed, so it continues to grow, thereby defeating the purpose. With our heli-mulcher, it’s a case of do it once, do it right: mulched, sprayed, gone.
Aesthetics.
Sprayed trees leave a rust-coloured eyesore on hillsides for decades, which can also pose a major, long-term fire hazard. The mulcher takes trees down to their stumps, just centimetres high. The only debris left are woodchips.
A pioneering solution
Chief Pilot Darren Davison provides a close-up look at our groundbreaking heli-mulcher.
We operate the only heli-mulcher in Aotearoa, New Zealand.
Pioneered by Southern Heli Lift Chief Pilot Darren Davison, its design and development was fast-tracked during the Covid lockdown of last year, bringing to life a concept he’d been mulling over for years.
It’s slung under the helicopter, which descends, mulching the tree in a matter of seconds. From there, the unit’s spray system kicks in, administering herbicide to completely cover the remaining stump.
The mulcher provides an eradication alternative when other methods are unsafe, too expensive, or will damage surrounding native vegetation.
As far as we can establish, this is the only aerial mulching-spray unit of its kind internationally.
Our heli-mulcher was born of Darren’s years flying over the backcountry, spotting remote, hard-to-reach invasive trees threatening the surrounding native landscape and, in many cases, near-on impossible to selectively target.
Darren, who’s specialised in wilding pine eradication for more than 12 years, designed the mulcher to answer some of the biggest challenges: safety, cost, accessibility and effectiveness.
A pioneering solution
Heli-mulcher's advantages
It's efficent and cost effective.
Rather than the time, resources and other factors involved with ground crews walking in to fell trees, in many instances, the heli-mulcher is significantly quicker, more cost-effective and safer.
It kills invasive trees outright.
A full circumferential hit is needed to kill a tree. In trying to achieve this with traditional spraying, nearby natives are often accidentally sprayed. It’s not uncommon for parts of the invasive tree’s trunk to be missed, so it continues to grow, thereby defeating the purpose. With our heli-mulcher, it’s a case of do it once, do it right: mulched, sprayed, gone.
Aesthetics.
Sprayed trees leave a rust-coloured eyesore on hillsides for decades, which can also pose a major, long-term fire hazard. The mulcher takes trees down to their stumps, just centimetres high. The only debris left are woodchips.
Chief Pilot Darren Davison provides a close-up look at our groundbreaking heli-mulcher.
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CONTACT US
CHIEF PILOT | DARREN DAVISON
CHIEF EXECUTIVE | LYNDA DAVISON
The Black Hangar
Rangiora Airfield
Merton Road
Rangiora
Canterbury, 7471
We'd love to hear from you.
CHIEF PILOT
DARREN DAVISON
Phone 027 243 6141
darren@southernhelilift.co.nz
CHIEF EXECUTIVE
LYNDA DAVISON
Phone 027 632 2893
lynda@southernhelilift.co.nz
The Black Hangar
Rangiora Airfield
Merton Road
Rangiora
Canterbury, 7471
We'd love to hear from you.
CHIEF PILOT | DARREN DAVISON
CHIEF EXECUTIVE | LYNDA DAVISON
The Black Hangar
Rangiora Airfield
Merton Road
Rangiora
Canterbury, 7471
We'd love to hear from you.
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