Converting front lawn to wild life garden

[PN]

Hi @EricL and @MitchellMc Hope you are keeping well. I am after some ideas and suggestions. Looking to transform the front lawn to a wild life garden. Wondering on ideas of how to start and how to go about it. I have enclosed photos of the left and right sections of the front lawn.

All suggestions greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Partha

Left section of front lawnRight section of front lawn

[MitchellMc]

Hi Partha (@PN),

I'd be keen to hear about what type of wildlife you'd like to encourage into your garden. Birds and bees would be a great place to start as they are easily attracted with the use of flowering plants. Preference should be given to native plants as they are drought tolerant and require little maintenance. Some suggestions would be Grevilleas, Kangaroo paw, Gums and Wooly bush, to name a few. However, we have an extensive range of native plants to choose from.

A water source is also a fantastic way to draw in wildlife. A simple birdbath or pond feature would be a good place to start.

A rockery encourages a myriad of different insects and lizards to find refuge. We have Whites 80-120mm 20kg Natural Landscaping Stone and can order landscape bush rock, sandstone and feature boulders.

You should find these guides useful: How to attract birds, bees and wildlife to your garden and How to attract bees and butterflies.

Looking forward to hearing more about your project and providing further assistance.

Mitchell

[PN]

Hi @MitchellMc 

Thanks heaps. I am looking to create a sanctuary for birds and bees. Thank you so much for your suggestions on plant and feature choice. It is a bit daunting to start such a project so your suggestions are most helpful. We are looking at having native plants to encourage the local bird life to visit.

Many Thanks

Partha

[MitchellMc]

@PN,

Excellent decision. I'd suggest a birdbath and some flowering natives to start. As soon as you include those, you'll see exponential growth in the number of birds and bees that frequent your garden.

Mitchell

[PN]

Thank you @MitchellMc will get started this weekend and will share results progressively.

Thanks

Partha

[PN]

Hi @MitchellMc 

I have ventured to the Warragul store and got following plants:

1. Kangaroo Paw Bush Gems Inferno

2. Bush Dance (anigozanthos hybrid Syn: Rambudan

3. Anigozabthos Frosty Red (Anigozanthos rufus)

4. Grevillea Filioba x pinaster Low form (phoenix)

I wanted to check Mitchell, at what gap should we plant these to allow enough room for growth?

Many Thanks

Partha

[pstq]

You might want to check if there's a nursery that can supply local provenance plants, so they're the exact type for the local birds. Honey bees aren't native, so doesn't affect them.

If you ever get snakes in your area, consider if creating habitat for them is a good idea. We do, so we avoid creating any areas for them to hide.

[PN]

Thanks @pstq . Very helpful. Big project this for a novice like me so all advise greatly appreciated.

[MitchellMc]

Hi @PN,

That sounds like a great selection you've picked up. Kangaroo paws (1, 2, and 3) should be planted 30cm or more apart, and they'll spread to fill in the gaps. Grevillea Filioba x pinaster can grow between 1.5-2m wide. I wouldn't plant them any closer than 3m from each other or 2m from anything else.

I am looking forward to seeing some pictures of the plantings.

Mitchell

[PN]

Thank you so much @MitchellMc Mitchell. Very helpful. I will do the plantings and share the photos. Got a bird bath also with some stones and will put those up too.

Thanks

Partha