Backyard Biodiversity

Backyard Biodiversity

Enhancing Biodiversity around your Home

Sometimes in urban environments we can feel stressed with the pace of life and very separate from the natural world. Creating nature spaces in and around your property can provide healthy, peaceful and fun family places to spend time in. Nature spaces can be anything from seating in the centre of a shrub garden, to mini forests, nature trails and frog ponds. The trick is to create beautiful spaces for you to relax in (or play and discover!) while at the same time providing healthy habitats for native animals such as birds, frogs and lizards. Creating urban environments that are rich in a diversity of different living things (biodiversity) means a healthier community for us all.

Image: Enhance our environment by creating spaces that can be enjoyed by people and local wildlife.

Why is biodiversity so important?

Our Food depends on it - one of the great benefits of protecting biodiversity is that it provides a pool of genes to improve our crops. Wild genes can provide resistance to disease, improve production and protect against long-term changes in temperatures and rainfall. Everything we eat has a genetic tradition.

Our Medicines are made from it - over 21,000 plants around the world have reported medical uses. Lymphoid leukaemia once killed 90 per cent of its child victims within six months. Now the disease is being effectively treated with tylocrebrin, a drug derived from an Australian native vine, Tylophora.

We are all Connected – we are connected to all other things in the web of life through the air we breathe, water we drink and food we eat. By destroying other parts of the web, we are destroying our own chances of survival.

Natural spaces are healing places, places of discovery and adventure, places of sport and relaxation. It is well known that communities with plenty of healthy green spaces are much happier and have a higher quality of life.

Designing Nature Spaces

Redesign your yard to welcome back the birds, butterflies, possums and lizards by:

You can use the Flora for Fauna web-site (www.floraforfauna.com) as a step by step guide to help you select which plants are best for your climate zone and which birds, butterflies and other fauna you can attract to your yard. Once you have picked your selection of natives you will be able to design a plan on a sample grid which will give you a top and side view of your new garden.

Ecological Gardening

Ecological gardening has to be the way of the future. It involves almost a complete turnaround in approach. Instead of just choosing plants that appeal to you and adapting your garden conditions to suit them, you assess what your site offers and select plants that suit it - often with very different results.

Although species native to your area will form the core of plantings (because they are naturally adapted to the climate, soils, drainage and so on), exotics are not out of the question providing they match your local conditions.

Pesticides and herbicides are frowned upon because the aim of ecological gardening is to encourage a system in balance with local wildlife. Birds, insects, lizards and perhaps even small mammals will then seek out the refuge you are creating. Water availability and a new attitude to 'tidiness' can encourage the return of wildlife, which, in turn, helps keep pests and diseases under control.

There are many other benefits too. Some gardeners find endless interest in the procession of new wildlife visitors and residents. You're also likely to feel more in tune with the world around you. The time you once spent pampering plants can now be used for coming into closer contact with birds feeding and nesting, lizards basking in the sun and insects foraging.

Yes, adjustments are not only necessary but essential - and if you feel that you aren’t quite adept at the moment, take heed of the environmental warnings around you.

Greenplan is a Wollongong Council initiative to encourage the greening of the City of Wollongong. The Greenplan Nursery has a selection of small trees, shrubs and ground covers that are indigenous to the Wollongong area.

Council Nurseries

GreenPlan Wollongong City Council Nursery

Wollongong City Council Botanic Garden nursery provides Wollongong City Council ratepayers with opportunities to purchase at minimal cost a wide range of ground covers, grasses, trees and shrubs indigenous to the Wollongong area through the Greenplan initiative.

Plants can be purchased from the Botanic Garden nursery on Northfields Avenue, Keiraville on any 3rd Friday of the month between the hours of 7.30am and 2.30pm (excluding public holidays).

Costs including GST are:

There is a limit is 25 plants per property each financial year.  Payment is via by EFTPOS (no American Express accepted) or cheque on the day.  A receipt will be supplied.

Please ensure you bring your rates notice with you as proof of Wollongong City Council area residency.

Greenplan Sale Days
Additional plants may be purchased at Greenplan sale days which are held 3 times per year. Upcoming dates are:

On Greenplan sale days ratepayers may purchase up to 50 plants per property at prices as marked until stocks last.  Payment is by cash, cheque or EFTPOS (no American Express accepted).

Please ensure you bring your rates notice with you as proof of Wollongong City Council area residency.

For further information, please visit http://botanicgarden.wollongong.nsw.gov.au/greenplan.htm
 or phone 4225 2636.

Wollongong City Council Greenplan Plant List [PDF, 65kb]

 

Shellharbour Council Wholesale Nursery

Shellharbour Council operates a Wholesale Nursery at 132 Industrial Road, Oak Flats which is open to the public (not restricted to Shellharbour rate payers) from 7:30am until 3:45pm Monday to Friday (except public holidays). The Nursery features a large range of plants including native and exotic trees, shrubs, ground covers, climbers, indoor plants, ferns, palms, deciduous plants and farm trees (tubes).

Sizes are available from tubes to 50 litre pots.
Other services provided by the Nursery/Park and Recreation section include:

Please see the below price list and for more information
contact Council on 4221 6191.

Shellharbour Council Nursery Pricelist [PDF, 430kb]

padf image grow me instead

Grow Me Instead [PDF, 3Mb]

a guide to protecting our bushland by avoiding plants that can escape into natural areas

Links

Landcare Illawarra
www.landcareillawarra.org.au
Landcare Illawarra is a community-based organisation which helps the Illawarra community living in the 3 local council areas of Wollongong, Shellharbour and Kiama on the NSW South Coast to get involved in a broad range of environmental repair activities.

Birds In Backyards
www.birdsinbackyards.net
Bring your garden to life with birds! This fantastic program helps you identify birds by their calls and appearance, do backyard bird surveys, and gives lots of ideas on creating beautiful bird-friendly spaces in your backyard. Help to create the vital food, shelter, water and nesting sites that birds need to survive our modern times.

Bugwise
www.bugwise.net.au Yes, Bugs! Did you know that invertebrates (bugs) make up the vast majority of biodiversity on the planet? They provide essential services to us in keeping the environment working…they provide us with healthy soils, clean water and food through pollination. Love your bugs!

Sydney Water Plant Selector
Sydney Water’s Plant Selector can help you find plants that are suitable for your local soil and weather conditions www.sydneywater.com.au

Give a Frog a Home!
Give a Frog a Home! www.frogsaustralia.net.au Frogs are disappearing in Australia, and need your help. It’s simple to create a space for native frogs to shelter, feed and breed in your backyard. Make your next ‘pet’ a frog! Stay tuned for Special Offers on frog ponds coming soon!

Safer Solutions in Your Garden
Safer Solutions in Your Garden www.safersolutions.org.au

 


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