Rural landowners should retain existing locally native vegetation and pastures to preserve habitat and biodiversity links.
There are a large range of plants that are indigenous (locally native) to the City of Whittlesea, and have evolved over thousands of years to suit the local environment.
These indigenous plants provide food and habitat for native animals and contribute to the aesthetics of our rural landscape.
Our city is very diverse in its physical characteristics, which influences the types of vegetation that can occur naturally in any given area. For example, many plants are restricted by their environmental requirements such as soil type, climate, rainfall and topography.
Indigenous plants chosen for your local area can be hardy and reliable and can be used for gardens, habitat and for shelter belts on farms.
If you are interested in planting native vegetation in the City of Whittlesea, download our Indigenous plant list.
Native pastures, while often overlooked or regarded as inferior quality compared to exotic grasses, provide comparable food value to exotic grasses and tolerate grazing well.
Native pastures also offer the following benefits:
We have produced a 'Wattles of the City of Whittlesea' booklet to help residents learn about wattles found in the City of Whittlesea.
Over a dozen species of wattle are indigenous to the City of Whittlesea and many other wattle species are commonly grown in gardens.
The booklet covers:
You can also request a hard copy by calling 9217 2042 or email sustainability@whittlesea.vic.gov.au.
We have produced a 'Eucalypts of the City of Whittlesea' booklet to help you identify the local eucalypt species.
The booklet includes an identification guide to 21 local species including 18 indigenous and 3 non-indigenous species. The booklet also includes a handy key and great photos of the identifying features including the juvenile and mature leaves, flower buds, fruits and bark.
You can request a hard copy by calling 9217 2042 or email sustainability@whittlesea.vic.gov.au