INVERAWE EXPERIENCE
Spring attracts a certain type of visitor to Tasmania: garden tourists who either take tours or plan their visit to coincide with peak flowering times.
Viewing flowers in gardens and parks is just one element of garden tourism, as visitors also enjoy seeing birds and insects.
Blooming Tasmania chair Jane Teniswood says tourists who come to see our gardens spend longer in the state than other tourists. To highlight the importance of birds in gardens, Blooming Tasmania is launching a bird trail that highlights gardens with abundant birdlife.
The Bird Trail will be launched by naturalist Peter Tonelli at the Tasmanian Arboretum at Eugenana, in the North-West, at 2pm on Friday, and will include a talk by Philip Milner on bird-attracting plants for gardens. All are welcome but you must RSVP on 6427 2690 for catering purposes.
Download the Blooming Tasmania Flower & Garden Festival program at bloomingtasmania.com.au to follow the trail. There are 13 gardens on the trail, but Jane expects that number will grow as more gardeners realise how bird-friendly their gardens are.
Some gardens are open throughout the year while others have special openings or events on this month. The Tasmanian Arboretum (46 Old Tramway Rd, Eugenana) is offering guided bird walks next weekend. Viewing birds has been a passion for garden owners Bill and Margaret Chestnut at Inverawe at Margate, a 9ha native garden that is open daily to visitors in the warmer months. Bill has observed 102 bird species in the garden.
“We must be doing something right,” says Bill, who runs regular workshops on planting for birds and on bird-spotting.
“I get out in the garden first thing and just stand still for a few minutes. The birds get on with their lives and swirl about, ignoring me. I am constantly surprised at not just the variety of birds but also the quantity of them.” PLANTING FOR BIRDS Encouraging birds to visit your garden takes more than just putting out a birdbath – but that’s a good start. Birds need water, especially when times are dry, but they also need food, shelter and safety.
As different birds eat different foods – nectar, seeds, insects or small animals – offering food sources in a garden means growing a variety of plants. Plants such as banksia, grevillea or correa with nectar-rich flowers also attract insects, which become food for insect-eating birds. Many birds also feed insects to their young, so having a garden vibrant with insects, particularly at nesting time in spring, is important.
One of Bill’s planting tips is to include a range of plants so there’s always something in bloom. He recommends long-flowering natives such as grevilleas and to plant drifts of nectar-rich plants for food as well as shrubby plants for birds to use as shelter.
While trees are recognised as places birds hang out and are important canopy, smaller plants – especially dense prickly shrubs – provide a vital haven and nesting places.
Always check a shrub carefully before pruning as it may be harbouring a nesting bird. If there is, delay pruning. Learn how to create a bird-friendly garden at Inverawe Native Gardens, 1565 Channel Hwy, Margate, with Bill Chestnut on Sunday, September 17, from 1.30-4.30pm. Bill will discuss plant selection and landscaping tips. The workshop costs $30 and includes afternoon tea and take-home notes. The workshop will be repeated on March 4. Bookings are essential. Phone 6267 2020.