Gardens at night and beyond

Creatures of the night

Do you know what animals are visiting your garden after dark? The answers may surprise you.

Moorabool Council staff have conducted motions sensor camera surveys throughout many reserves in Moorabool Shire and their findings show that even reserves in the center of our small towns provide important habitat for many native species - many of which you won't see during the day.

For example, the surveys showed that Paddock Creek Reserve, in the center of Gordon, supports a sizable colony of sugar gliders that were very keen to have their photos taken.

When you're planning your garden, remember that even gardens in town have an important role to play in supporting our native wildlife, and it's not just the animals that you see during the day that are benefiting. Who knows what other creatures of the night also call your garden home.

Fauna Monitoring with Camera Traps is a handy guide in how to set up monitoring camers in your garden to see what is around at night. Naturally the more expensive cameras that the best photos but the cheaper ones from Bunnings or Aldi also take usable photos so it all come down to being able to identify what you see. The Moorabool Landcare Network has cameras to loan to members.

These camera also help to identify what local cats are not being contained at night and if you have a rabbit in the garden that you need to control or fence out.

Insects of the night

Many creatures come out at night and there will be bats zooming around in the night sky eating up insects that we never see. One way to find out what insects are in the garden is to hang up an old white sheet and a light and see what is attracted to the sheet. This is a fun activity to do in the warmer weather when more insects are active. Try leaving an outside or porch light on after dark, and look for moths on lighted windows or lit walls and fences. Low-energy bulbs attract moths and are better for the environment. A white sheet hanging up with a bright torch shining on it can also be effective. You may also see frogs.

Moths and other insects perform important pollination of flowers at night and are essential to keep our gardens healthy.

You may like to record what insects you see on the iNaturalist App. See this article by the Field Naturalists' Club Ballarat for information on how to get started.

Ballarat Botanic Gardens

The Ballarat Botanic Gardens has a small section of indigenous plants that are suitable for local gardens. The garden is located about halfway along the Gillies Street boundary. The other place to visit while you are in Ballarat is the North Gardens Wetlands, not far from the Botanic Gardens and across the road from Lake Wendouree.

Australian Native Botanic Gardens

If you're looking for inspiration for your wildlife garden, why not take a look at the Australian native botanic gardens in Cranbourne. These gardens are large-scale and take the use of native plants to the next level.

They are a beautiful place to see native plants and smart design used to create a sense of place. They create areas of play, relaxation and exploration; all the while providing the local wildlife (including southern brown bandicoots) habitat and resources.

Entry is free and the kids will love the nature themed play spaces.

Melton Botanic Gardens

Many people are surprised that there is a botanic garden in Melton. The gardens are run by a Friends Group that have a high level of skill and enthusiasm for plants.

They specialize in growing smaller eucalypts and Australian and South African plants that require less water. If you live in Bacchus Marsh, which is drier than the west of the Shire, these gardens are well worth a visit.

There is quite a large area to walk around including some lakes and many of the plants are labelled. If you like bird watching, take your binoculars as there are lots of birds to see. You may also like to take a picnic as there is a lot to see.

Plants are also available for sale check Friends of Melton Botanic Gardens website.

Darley Native Gardens

This is our own public garden which is located beside the Darley oval in Bacchus Marsh, is planted out with many colourful native plants. They are mainly ones native to WA but there are some local species.

Lots of honeyeaters are attracted to the display along with wrens and red-rumped parrots. It is a wonderful place to visit especially in spring. You may like to join the local volunteers who help to look after the area.

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