Contributed by Ethan Mimnaugh
Mooloolah Landcare Nursery
WE all enjoy our gardens, and nothing is more spectacular than seeing a colourful butterfly or beautiful songbird visiting our homes for the first time. Of course, we all want more of a good thing, so how do we get it? Let’s go over some simple ways to attract more wildlife into your garden.
Food sources will increase the temporary visits from all kinds of creatures by encouraging them to forage at your home. A birdbath is an easy, and a total classic. Some birds, like our beautiful aussie parrots, love eating the seeds of our native trees and grasses, others prefer to eat nectar, or insects. Our fruiting rainforest trees, like the Lillypilly, are great tucker for all kinds of possums and tree dwelling marsupials. Bandicoots and lizards love searching through a deep, rich mulch of fallen leaves for their foods, they are after the insects which eat the leaves, bark, and nectar of all our native species. Gliders are special, and they enjoy eating the sap of various Acacias and Eucalyptus trees. Don’t be discouraged if you see a native tree that has been stripped by caterpillars; instead be proud to have fed and grown so many native butterflies.
Another way to bring in the critters is to create permanent homes for them. Artificial hollows can be made or purchased to increase these rare habitats. Dense shrubs provide great habitat for small birds, while large and long vines can be a bridge for climbing creatures to navigate to and from the ground. Always layer your vegetation for maximum habitat creation, and don’t be afraid to leave a pile of rocks or logs in an open place for reptiles to make a home in.
There are endless ways to attract wildlife into your garden, but the long and short is to plant native plants, they are the food and the homes of the beautiful creatures we have on the Sunshine Coast. Come down to Mooloolah Landcare Nursery where the experienced staff can help make your property a Garden for Wildlife.