What plants make an environmentally friendly garden?

2 February 2024

by Kristian Russell, Conservation Ranger

Which plants are best for an environmentally friendly garden?

Along the Great Ocean Road we are blessed with truly eye-catching environments, made up of many interesting and striking plants. To conserve this beauty, the best possible thing to do is plant indigenous plants to your location, and that a native plant may be a weed.

The absolute best place to go is your local nursery for advice and a plethora of local plant options:
Apollo Bay - Shrub Club Community Nursery
Aireys Inlet - Otways Indigenous Nursery
Colac - Kui Community Nursery
Newcomb (Geelong) - West Coast Indigenous Nursery
South Geelong - genU Community Nursery

It is important to note that native plants and Indigenous plants are different things, 'Native' meaning from this continent and 'Indigenous' meaning from your specific area. Some Native plants can be environmental weeds in your area and/or create an imbalance within your local environment that negatively effects the plants and animals that rely on that environment.

What garden plants can be detrimental to your local environment?

Often some of the most unsuspecting plants can become the nastiest of environmental weeds! It's possible that you could have them without even knowing it. However, this means that you can help make a positive difference to your local environment, by simply removing them from your garden. Below is a small beginners list of common garden escapees that cause environmental damage along the Great Ocean Road.