Here's a range of information sheets to help you create your own Flora for Fauna garden. They cover everything from planting and maintaining a native garden, to attracting butterflies and birds, and even dealing with unwelcome visitors.
Bird baths on pedestals are surprisingly popular with birds. Perhaps an elevated bird bath provides an extra sense of protection, as birds are more vulnerable drinking at ground level.
There's nothing more enjoyable than watching native birds such as tiny, acrobatic spinebills or a small flock of parrots feasting on nectar, insects and seeds in your garden. Birds can be enticed into your garden by providing the right conditions and a safe environment.
Attracting butterflies to your Flora for Fauna garden
Butterflies and moths add an extra dimension to the garden, providing both movement and colour. With the investment of a little time and observation, we can become privy to one of natures most complex and interesting life cycles.
Attracting frogs to your Flora for Fauna garden
There are several ways to attract frogs to your
garden. A pond with some water plants and grasses
around the edge, will attract frogs to lay their
eggs. Once the tadpoles have grown, your garden will
have more frogs.
Attracting native bees to your garden
Over 1,500 species of native bees grace the gardens and bushland of Australia. They provide a vital pollination service for our bushland wildflowers and for many garden plants.
Creating a lizard-friendly garden
Shingleback and Blue-tongue Lizards need places to sun themselves and tussocks and other tufting plants to hide in and hunt for insects.
Dealing with unwelcome visitors
Introduced birds such as Blackbirds, Starlings,
Sparrows and Indian Mynahs were introduced to
Australia over 150 years ago and are now a common
sight in suburban backyards.
Feeding birds in your garden
Bird feeding is fun and an enjoyable way of getting
to know local native birds at close-range. In
Australia, birds don't really need extra feeding as
they can readily find their food - especially if
gardens have native plants providing nectar, seeds,
berries and insects.
If your garden has clay soils
While many Australian soils will tolerate heavy clay
or clay-loam soils, a little effort put into soil
preparation before planting will allow a wider range
of plants to be grown and will also result in better
plant growth.
Some plants are particularly suited to growing in sandy soils. Some plants may tolerate dry conditions, whilst other may need some watering over summer.
Iron deficiency is a very common disorder in native plants and examples may be found in most gardens which contain a reasonable selection of Australian plants.
Many native bird and mammal species rely on hollows in trees for shelter and for breeding. These hollows are formed when the centres of tree limbs rot away due to fungal or termite action.
Some tolerate extremely dry sites; other wet or boggy site. Some grow well in the shade; others filtered light or full sun. Some grow well in clay soils; others prefer loamy soils or sand.
Some parks, with only trees and lawn are devoid of any ground dwelling insect life and it is quite difficult to find the little creepy crawlies that all the bigger animals need to eat.
DDSN Interactive.
