Native or indigenous: do you know the difference?

My family has a large hobby farm out west and since buying it several years ago we have fenced off the creeks and mountains and planted well over 10,000 trees and other plants. We have learnt a lot from all of this, but in particular 2 things: 1. I hate planting and never want to plant another in my life (which is something I repeat even as I dug more holes in the rain on the weekend), and 2. There is a very important difference between native and indigenous plant species.

So what is the difference? Well native means that the plant is native to anywhere in Australia. But indigenous means that it comes from a certain area, like the Grampians or even more specific such as one valley.

Why is this important? Well just planting native species in an area, without checking if that plant is indigenous, is bad for the surrounding ecosystem. Native species can become weeds in areas where they aren’t originally from, and can take over habitats. This can alter the whole ecosystem by not being the plant that species like birds or small mammals feed off, they can change ground water levels by taking up too much water, and they can cross pollinate with the indigenous species, creating hybrids.

Cootamundra wattle: Note the silver feathery leaves which are characteristic of this species.

Image from http://www.flickr.com/photos/8144244@N08/1147172748/sizes/z/in/photostream/

A great example that exasperates my mother is the cootamundra wattle (Acacia baileyana) which is indigenous to a small area in southern New South Wales. It has been planted extensively in Victoria and is now considered a weed as it outcompetes indigenous species. “But councils, people and even Landcare still plant it here!” my mother points out loudly, and rather angrily.

The coast tea-tree. Image from http://www.flickr.com/photos/tgerus/3929111838/sizes/z/in/photostream/

A more complex issue is that a species can become a weed even in its indigenous area. For example the coast tea-tree (Leptospermum laevigatum) is indigenous to Wilsons Promontory, but because of the suppression of fire it has taken over its habitat, suppressing other plants.

Therefore, before you merely buy a pretty looking native, make sure you ask if it is indigenous to the area where you are going to plant it. If you do this then it can help the indigenous fauna and flora by providing more of the right habitat. A great nursery to get all the information you need and the right plants for Melbourne is this one.

For more information on what native and indigenous means: http://www.wsvic.org.au/node/27 and http://www.abc.net.au/gardening/stories/s1366322.htm