by Shane Sody
The City of Adelaide has released imagery to showcase plans for the renewal of Botanic Creek through your eastern Park Lands.
Botanic Creek is an ephemeral waterway (flowing only after rain) that runs northwards, not far from East Terrace and empties into the Adelaide Botanic Garden lake in Park 11.
The course of Botanic Creek, northwards through your eastern Park Lands. Note that in Rymill Park / Murlawirrapurka (Park 14) after crossing Bartels Road, the creek flows mostly through underground pipes, into (and then out of) the Rymill Park lake. Pic: Kadaltilla / Adelaide Park Lands Authority agenda, 22 May 2025.
The creek is only partly visible. Some sections of the creek are channelled into underground pipes (e.g. under roadways, also in and out of the Rymill Park lake).
The long-term renewal project has been badged as creating a “Creek of Cultural Connection”.
The first stage (completed in early 2024) boosted biodiversity by planting reeds and other vegetation into the creek bed, and creating swales to break up the water flow as the creek wound through the 19th century olive grove near Wakefield Road in Victoria Park / Pakapakanthi (Park 16).
At its meeting on Thursday 22 May 2025, Kadaltilla/the Park Lands Authority was advised that for the remainder of its length, (from Wakefield Road to Botanic Road, through Parks 15, 14 and 13) Botanic Creek is beset by ongoing erosion and sedimentation, a lack of vegetation, biodiversity and habitat value, and unable to deliver meaningful water quality improvement.
The Authority was shown these recent pictures of the watercourse:
The Authority was advised that rehabilitation works (some of which are already under way) would include:
Desilting – to remove accumulated sediment
Erosion protection utilising hydraulic control structures (including rock “riffles” and a mini weir) in the creek bed to reduce the flow rate after heavy rain;
Revegetation – planting native species to improve amenity, water quality and biodiversity
Tree protection – minimising impact on existing trees.
The author of this article, Shane Sody, is the inmediate Past President of the Adelaide Park Lands Association. He is also the editor of the semi-monthly newsletter, "Open Green Public".
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