Secret gardens for rare Aussie natives threatened by feral pigs
$13 million of bushfire recovery funding has today been allocated to protect and revitalise the Greater Blue Mountains environment.
The funding will support habitat and wildlife recovery, including the protection of rare plant species like the beautiful pink and purple Megalong Valley Bottlebrush.
Environment Minister Sussan Ley told Deborah Knight an exclusion fence has been built in two secret locations to keep out wallabies and feral pigs.
“Part of what we’re doing in response to the fires is to protect animals, but also plants.
“The Megalong Valley … is the only place in the world that these pink bottlebrush have been found. They’ve just adapted for this region and nowhere else.”
A grove of Wollemi Pines came under threat during the fires, with specialist RFS firefighters leaping into action to save them.
Ms Ley admitted even she doesn’t know the secret location where they grow.
“We know that when bushfires strike, people and property come first, but the Wollemi Pine was quite high up the list because it is very special.”
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Image: Getty