Tag: revegetation

Gardening for Wildlife and Biodiversity

Local sustainability superstars, Mandy and Mike Bamford, guide us through their stunning ReWild garden full of gorgeous greenery and wonderful wildflowers.

Mandy and Mike Bamford turned their backyard from a sandy paddock into a beautiful biodiverse, ReWild wonderland over the last 34 years. Their astonishing efforts and persistence in weeding, planting and growing plants from seed has paid off, and now their garden is always buzzing with activity from native wildlife and their outdoor space provides them with endless enjoyment.

Starting from scratch

Mandy and Mike moved into their 2,116m2 block of land in Kingsley 34 years ago. When they purchased the block, it was a large, barren paddock with nothing but weeds thriving in yellow builder’s sand.

Despite the extent of work ahead of them, they saw the potential of the space and knew that with a bit of work, their garden would grow into a biodiverse, green oasis for their family that would soon provide habitat for native fauna for years to come.

Mandy and Mike saw great potential to create their biodiverse garden when they purchased the land 34 years ago.

Mandy and Mike had always been fascinated by native animals and plants. The opportunity to create their garden from scratch was an exciting dream that they got started on right away. Their goal was to create a garden for wildlife so that they could enjoy seeing spectacular native animals every day in their own backyard, with the additional benefits of a cooler home and fresh air for their family.

ReWild Gardening

‘ReWilding’ is a global movement aiming to restore the natural environment through planting native species, with the aim of providing habitat for native fauna, greener cities and mitigation of climate change.

ReWild Perth is about creating environments that support native wildlife we have displaced through land clearing, in our own backyards and gardens. There are limited untouched green spaces remaining in the Perth Metropolitan area, but with a community effort we can all start to restore the environment and cohabit with native species.

Mandy and Mike signed up to the ReWild program to continue to create their beautiful garden and outdoor space. Registering their ReWild garden gave them access to a garden action plan, which helped them set goals for their garden and track their progress. They could also view the collective impact they were making on the suburb progress map.

ReWild resources and plant lists are perfect for heading to the nursery to find out which plants are native, and how each of your plants can support wildlife in your garden. You can select plants that attract a certain species and find out how to create the perfect habitat garden.

A Grey Fantail taking a bath and a quick drink before exploring the garden.

Natives for nature

After a few years of planting seedlings, growing plants from seed and swapping plants with friends and family, Mandy and Mike could start to sit back, watch their garden grow and enjoy the fruits of their labour.

They have watched their Marri trees grow from seedlings into large trees that are now providing a bounty of food for Carnaby’s Black Cockatoos! The Marri trees are often full of honeyeaters, Striated Pardalotes and insects that feed, nest and shelter in them.

There are seven Marri trees on Mandy and Mike’s property, which provide a wonderfully shaded canopy on their home and keep them cool throughout the summer months. Tree canopy is incredibly important for mitigating the urban heat island effect, which we have been experiencing quite intensely this past summer.

“When the maximum for Perth was 43° degrees a few weeks ago (February 2024), our thermometer was showing only 39° degrees. It was very pleasant sitting under our Marri trees with a cup of tea, watching the wildlife coming to our garden for shade. Imagine how much cooler it would be if every spare space in our suburbs had trees!”

The Marri trees aren’t the only flora species buzzing with activity in their garden. Some species pop up by themselves, such as the three orchid species that flower happily every year. They support a myriad of insects, such as the Peacock Spider and the beautiful Blue-banded Bee!

Creating homes and habitat

Not only do Mandy and Mike provide habitat for wildlife by planting the native plants that animals love, but they also provide built habitat options, such as ‘lizard lounges’, insect hotels, baths, ponds and water bowls for birds and ground marsupials. They also install nest boxes that replicate hollows and crevices for birds and bats.

If you walk around the garden, you will see piles of leaf litter that have been left out for invertebrates, fungi and microorganisms to keep their soil healthy. The leaf litter also acts as a natural mulch on the ground. Small areas of sand between paving bricks provide nests for Blue-banded Bees, and the many groundcovers and shrubs provide protection for many different animals as well as acting as a living mulch helping to retain soil moisture.

The diversity in both natural and artificial habitat options, alongside ponds and wet areas provides the perfect home for many native species. Mandy and Mike have successfully brought the bushland to their backyard!

No-fuss Natives

Mandy and Mike don’t water their garden much at all. They only need to water their veggies, herbs and fruit trees, and a small patch of lawn they have where their dog plays outside.

“Newly planted seedlings need watering throughout the first summer but mostly the garden doesn’t need much water,” Mandy said, “Only light hand-watering needs to be done during the summer.”

While Mandy and Mike enjoy gardening and choose to spend their time in the garden, it’s not necessary for a ReWild garden. Once their garden became established, their native plants don’t require much upkeep. The most that needs to be done is a light prune of some of the larger shrubs, and some Marri leaves need to be swept off the paths and put into the compost.

One of Mandy’s favourite species, the Coojong or the Golden Wattle (Acacia saligna). It is a ‘powerhouse’ for native animals and helps improve your soil health!

A win for water efficiency and conservation

This garden is waterwise as well as being wildlife friendly, it allows the rain to water it and is irrigation free! In addition, beautiful biodiverse gardens beaming with plants help water infiltration preventing stormwater run-off, allowing deep soaking of the soil. The plant cover provides a cooling effect and keeps the soil protected in the hot summer months, and it can even help reduce temperatures inside Mike and Mandy’s home. Together these water and energy savings mean less money is going on bills!

This garden is also well positioned to survive in Perth’s forecast drying climate with additional hot days.

Easy to maintain and a beautiful garden!

Who said you couldn’t have it all? Waterwise and biodiverse gardens can be just as beautiful as any other garden full of exotic water hungry plants, and they better support our local wildlife. Natives can be used to design all sorts of gardens now – from Mediterranean, cottage gardens to coastal designs, natives are versatile and resilient as well as adapted to our climate!

Mike and Mandy say maintenance of the garden is less than what it would have been if they had lawn, and it’s something they enjoy doing. Whether it’s a few hours of weeding a month, light pruning or planting new plants in winter, they love spending time in their biodiverse oasis.

Join the ReWilding Revolution!

If you want to start a ReWild garden, Mandy and Mike’s advice is to enjoy it and experiment!

Always ask for advice from other rewilding gardeners, check out social media rewild or gardening groups, and get your resources from ReWild Perth, NatureLink Perth, Birdlife Australia, Gardening Australia, Wildflower Society and Water Corporation.

The City also has some great resources to help you on your rewilding journey. Our Growing Locals page has a soils map so you can find out your soil type and discover the right native plants for your garden. You can also check our Intramaps resource to see if you live in a ‘Regional Ecological Linkage’ area by clicking ‘Regional Ecological Linkage’ on the lefthand menu and find your address. View our tips for a thriving wildlife garden. You can apply for a free street tree and view our Waterwise Demonstration Gardens for some inspiration. Our recent Waterwise Verge Garden Competition winner also has some great tips for waterwise native gardening.

“It’s great knowing that we are helping to create a stepping stone for wildlife through our suburb. It has been exciting to notice other people in our street gradually adding a few native plants to their verges and gardens.

There is a rewilding revolution taking place!”

Together we can all make small changes to take charge of our space and ‘bring nature home’ to where it used to be.

Mandy and Mike Bamford in their ReWild garden.

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Creating Art to Protect our Parks – Meet the passionate volunteer group who are inspiring our younger generations to preserve the environment

The Friends of Periwinkle Bushland have successfully inspired many members of the community to appreciate nature in a bit of an unconventional way – through art!

The Friends of Periwinkle Bushland were established in 2002 by a group of incredibly passionate locals inspired to protect and respect their beloved bushland. More than 20 years later, the group is still doing brilliant work to preserve the beautiful patch of Periwinkle Park bushland in the heart of Mullaloo and inspire the enjoyment of our natural areas.

Volunteers are at the heart of Periwinkle Bushland

Meet the Friends of Periwinkle Bushland

The Friends of Periwinkle Bushland have been consistently weeding Periwinkle Park over the last 20 years, which has allowed the park’s natural vegetation to regenerate and thrive.

Amazing volunteers like Dorothy Lullfitz have done some great work restoring and preserving Periwinkle Park since the group’s establishment.

Dorothy often has locals walk by and compliment her fantastic efforts. Yet, she feels like weeding and revegetation “doesn’t feel like work” when she gets to experience the joy of finding a new native orchid and is able to free the Yellow Leschenaultia (Lechenaultia linarioides) to expose their showstopping flowers.

What also sparks pure joy for Dorothy is watching the increasing diversity and populations of birds each year. Her favourite visitors, while she restores the bushland, are the families of Splendid Fairywrens that twitter in the understorey, and the Rainbow Bee-eaters that trill on a warm summer morning.

A New Holland Honeyeater making its home amongst the preserved bushland in Periwinkle Park.

Dorothy has many favourite species she loves to see while at Periwinkle Bushland, with each season showcasing different flowers and plants to enjoy. In the summer, Dorothy enjoys the bright yellow wattle that paints the bushland, and the Hardenbergia seed pods which begin to spring out their seeds. The Yellow Leschenaultia seems to produce a few flowers year-round, displaying their bright yellow and pink colours. There is never a dull moment in the bushland for Dorothy, and the beautiful sites around her inspire her to continue the amazing work she does for our community.

The Yellow Leschenaultia (Lechenaultia linarioides) displays its bright flowers year-round at Periwinkle Park.

Inspiring the next generation of land carers

The Friends of Periwinkle Bushland have presented to schools, such as Mullaloo Heights Primary School, who have been involved in the bushland revegetation process since the beginning. This activity has been a valuable part of the school’s curriculum, with students learning about the importance of native plants and preserving natural areas for wildlife and ecological health.

The children have helped plant native flora species across Periwinkle bushland, which has considerably improved the flora condition of the park and provided habitat for small songbirds such as the Splendid Fairywren.

Mullaloo Heights Primary School students getting involved in revegetating Periwinkle Park bushland.

The Art Park

Community involvement was initially high when the Friends of Periwinkle Bushland was first established, however many of the group’s original members have moved away or have been blessed with old age. The group is now struggling to find new volunteers to keep their group going.

A younger member, Elena, joined Friends of Periwinkle Bushland, and hit the ground running with new ideas to attract new group members. As an art enthusiast herself, she knew how influential and educational art could be. From there, the Periwinkle ‘Art Park’ was born!

Members of Friends of Periwinkle Bushland get involved by running children’s art classes and creating art to be donated or sold for the group’s fundraising. Rubbish dumped in the park, such as old shovels, are found, cut and sold by the members as rustic garden art.

Some of the beautiful bookmarks and cards made by the Friends of Periwinkle Bushland volunteers.

The Art Park is not only for group members, younger members of the community can get involved too, with families gathering to participate in art activities organized by the Friends of Periwinkle Bushland. Activities include drawing bush scenes, rock painting, botanical hammer printing and photography sessions.

All art sessions begin with a walk through the bushland and a visit to the ‘Hug tree.’ The children’s art classes and activities at Periwinkle Park are teaching future generations to enjoy and protect native flora and fauna, in a fun and educational way!

Children visiting the ‘Hug tree’.

Children drawing bush scenes in the Art Park.

Visitors of Periwinkle Bushland can enjoy the painted wooden seats around the ‘Art Park.’ The wooden seats are painted in incredible detail by local artists, and they showcase some of the beautiful fauna and flora that live in Periwinkle Park. These bench seats create the perfect opportunity to sit and relax and enjoy the wonders of the bushland.

Nothing compares to the peace and relaxation of being in nature. In the City of Joondalup, we are incredibly lucky to have so many pristine natural parks and reserves that are full of significant flora and fauna. The continuation of our Friends Groups is needed to help maintain the biodiversity in our beautiful natural areas.

The beautifully painted bench seats are perfect for relaxing and enjoying nature at Periwinkle Park.

Periwinkle Park needs you!

The Friends of Periwinkle Bushland are doing amazing work, but they desperately need more members to keep the group’s efforts going. Without more people joining and continuing the work of those who can no longer participate, the group will unfortunately have no choice but to discontinue.

There are so many benefits to joining a Friends Group, including:

  • Meet like-minded people in your local area, and the opportunity to form life-long friendships.
  • Keep your brain and body active and healthy.
  • Learn new skills in gardening.
  • Experience the rewarding feeling of doing good for the community and preserving nature.
  • Access to training and workshops.
  • Work experience and networking in natural area management.

Whether you are a student, a worker or a retiree looking to keep busy, Friends Groups are an opportunity to conserve bushland  and contribute to your local community, all while enjoying nature!

Contact Barry on 0407 989 287 or Dorothy on 0498 806 182 for more information and to join the Friends of Periwinkle Bushland.

Dorothy’s tips for protecting our bushland:

  • Report or ‘Snap Send Solve’ any anti-social behaviour, such as rubbish dumping, pruning native vegetation and off-lead dogs to the City of Joondalup.
  • Pick up rubbish as you enjoy our natural areas.
  • Don’t fertilise the weeds! Pick up after your dog and be a responsible pet owner.
  • Control weeds in your garden before they seed and spread into our natural areas – learn about environmental weeds and garden escapees.
  • Join your local Friends Group to help preserve native bushland so we can continue to enjoy them!

Don Poynton of Friends of North Ocean Reef-Iluka Foreshore

Don Poynton is a local environmental leader and has been volunteering in the City for 24 years across a number of different environmental community groups to conserve and restore the coastline and natural areas (Image Credit: Dee Farrell).

Local action on the coast

As Coordinator of Friends of North Ocean Reef-Iluka Foreshore (FONORIF), Don has helped oversee the weeding and planting of native plants in the Iluka Foreshore Reserve, part of Bush Forever site 325. The group also helps educate the community about the environment by installing signage, running guided walks and more recently holding events and displays.

FONORIF was formed out of the Joondalup Community Coast Care Forum Inc (JCCCF), an umbrella organisation for several of the City’s coast care groups, which started in 1999 to represent the many interests along the coast. The local group was created when Ocean Reef resident Dr Marjorie Apthorpe and a few like-minded residents from adjacent suburbs came together to look after part of the coastal reserve between Ocean Reef and Burns Beach.

Don is currently the Chair of the JCCCF which now acts as a community reference group for monitoring issues and initiating action along the City’s coastal strip.

Since 2014, Don has also been volunteering with Friends of Carnaby Reserve to undertake restoration projects in Carnaby Reserve (formerly Medinah Park) with the help of the City’s Natural Areas Team. He is also the Chairman of the Northern Suburbs Branch of the WA Naturalists’ Club and was the Treasurer of the Friends of Marmion Marine Park for many years.

In 2022, Don received a special commendation in the Western Australian Coastal Awards for Excellence for championing the natural environment and its importance to the community, providing leadership and advocacy, and encouraging community participation in coast care activities.

Why volunteer?

Don said that he is motivated to volunteer in these groups because he cares about the local amenity and biodiversity and enjoys working outside.

“I hate seeing weeds in public places! I love being outdoors. I like working in the best ‘open-plan’ office in the world! I appreciate the diversity that exists at Iluka and want to ensure it is maintained and if possible increased,” says Don.

He also enjoys learning and knowledge sharing and working with the other volunteers saying that:

“I find there is always something new to discover or learn. I like to impart what knowledge I have, to others who are interested. I enjoy the company of the people I volunteer with.”

The coastal bushland offers a range of unique and beautiful local species that you can appreciate across the different seasons says Don.

“There are so many beautiful and fascinating species of plants, fungi, birds and insects, it’s impossible to have a favourite. Winter brings out the cup fungi and the tiny earthstars. In Spring the male fairy wrens show off their colours and iridescent blue-green jewel beetles can be found crawling over the yellow buttercups.”

Tackling local environmental issues

Through Don’s volunteer work with FONORIF he tackles­ a range of environmental issues. These include feral species control of feral and domestic cats and foxes, weed species including the One-leaf Cape Tulip, Wild Pink Gladiolus and Veldt Grass, and the destruction of native vegetation and sand dunes through unauthorised entry to the coast.

Changes on the ground

There have been many positive changes to the local environment as a result of FONORIF’s work explains Don.

“Many areas within the 30 hectares looked after by FONORIF have been rehabilitated since the group began. These include areas around the Iluka Foreshore Park to areas not seen by or accessible to the public.”

Don is also proud of the group’s Iluka Foreshore Macroinvertebrate and Herpetofauna Survey, partially funded by the City’s Community Funding Program, run over 3 years that recorded more than 550 macroinvertebrate and 14 reptile species.

More recently, Don helped to organise a Free Family Discovery Morning to educate the community about the diversity of local flora and fauna and the importance of maintaining biodiversity. Around 500 members of the community attended the event throughout the day and participated in guided beach, bird, biodiversity and bush tucker walks and learnt more about the local environment through environmental displays. The event was funded through one of the City’s Community Funding Program grants, a donation from the Iluka Homeowners Association and FONORIF.

Iluka Foreshore before revegetation
Iluka Foreshore in 2004 before restoration (Image Credit: Don Poynton)
Iluka Foreshore 2016
Iluka Foreshore in 2016 after restoration (Image Credit: Don Poynton)

You can play a role

FONORIF and other Friends Groups play an important role in local environmental management and work closely with the City’s Natural Areas Team explains Don.

“Friends Groups can become the eyes and ears of the environment. As we spend all our time involved in on-ground work, we become more aware of issues that arise in our own patches e.g. an outbreak of a priority weed in a patch of bush that would not be visited by Natural Areas staff.”

Don said community members can help take action in their local environment by starting a Friends Group or joining an existing group.

“The City has over one hundred natural areas but less than twenty have Friends Groups. It would be great to see this number increase but if people would like to help but are not willing to start a group they should join an existing group.”

Getting more young people involved in the Friends Groups is also important said Don.

“It is noticeable that nearly all the existing volunteers fall into the “seniors” category and that very few young people are involved. The groups and the City need to promote the natural areas so people understand how important it is to look after them, not just for biodiversity but for their education and lifestyle, including mental health, values.”

How can I get involved?

The Friends of North Ocean Reef-Iluka Foreshore and Friends of Carnaby Reserve are always looking for volunteers and members to join in their regular activities. To volunteer in these groups contact:

Friends of North Ocean Reef-Iluka Foreshore: ilukacoastcarejoondalup@gmail.com https://www.facebook.com/groups/238527943276186

Friends of Carnaby Reserve:  tyrglanyrafon@hotmail.com

The City also has seventeen other Friends Groups you can volunteer with. For more information and contact details visit the City’s website.