Native Planting

Plants and trees provide food and cover to our birds, reptiles, bats, reptiles, insects. UWEN promotes native forest/ngahere restoration. Our community groups and community nurseries are key actors and allow us to obtain ecosourced plants that will thrive in our environment. As easy as planting a tree in the ground can seem it is a very complex process that does not take place lightly.

“Native forest that would have once naturally occurred in an area can be recreated by actively replanting the area with the right plants, or by allowing natural succession and regeneration to occur. To restore an area successfully takes planning, effort and time. A successful restoration planting should create conditions where native plants can regenerate themselves, so that eventually the planting can become self sustaining like a natural forest. The right selection of plants will attract and provide habitat for native birds and other wildlife.” Our community groups and community nurseries are key actors who allow us to obtain ecosourced plants that will thrive in our environment.

All our groups take part in restoration projects and we have a wide ranges of planting projects taking place every year thanks to community groups, volunteers, schools and residents. If you would like to be a part of one of these projects head to our calendar. If you believe you know an area that would need restoration and planting let us know and we may be able to support you.

As a private landowner you can also make a big difference. Nowadays, our Environment does not consist only of forest and reserves and our backyards play a huge role in providing linkage and resting zones between forests. You will find information in the Resource section of this website to help you with that and if you need further assistance we are there to help too.

So, what should I plant in my backyard?

You can help Aotearoa’s wild creatures by planting the right plants in your garden to provide lots of different types of homes and food for them. Birds don’t just eat bugs – they eat fruit, foliage, nectar, insects and sometimes seeds, tree sap, flowers – and even lizards! Our lizards eat nectar, fruit and certain insects. And our bugs eat leaf litter, lichens, mould and wood! Native trees and flowering plants give wildlife nectar and fruit at different times of the year and lots of native plants on the ground makes safe places for lizards and insects to hide from predators.