Native flora
Local native (indigenous) vegetation provides habitat in the form of hollows, nesting material, shelter and food sources for native wildlife. Indigenous vegetation prevents soils from eroding and protects our water quality. Indigenous plants also look great.
Indigenous vegetation is classified into plant communities and Frankston City has 23 different plant communities on public and private land. A number of these communities are endangered and support threatened plant species.
How can you help?
Private property can be a valuable food source, shelter or provide a linkage between larger patches of vegetation for wildlife. There are a number of ways you can help:
- Plant indigenous trees, shrubs and ground covers on your property to help improve native vegetation coverage. By planting indigenous species you also attract and support native wildlife like butterflies, birds, frogs and insects. A diverse range of indigenous and native plants can be purchased at Frankston’s Indigenous Nursery.
- Control weeds on your property.Weed control is critical to maintaining and improving the conservation values of your property. Vegetation becomes degraded if weeds take over. Environmental weeds stop native plants from regenerating and reduces habitat and food sources for our native animals.
- Register for our free Gardens For Wildlife program for advice on how to create an indigenous wildlife garden on your property.
You can also help us map where plant species live in Frankston City by recording your observation on the iNaturalist app or website. We use this information to inform how we track and protect the flora and fauna we discover as a community.
Visit our Frankston City Biodiversity Project page to start mapping.
Removing vegetation
In some cases you may need a permit to remove, destroy or lop vegetation on your property. Before carrying out works, view our Planning FAQs or Greenery and trees page for more information.
Ecological Vegetation Classes
Vegetation communities are groups of plants that share a common environment. Species are indigenous to that place and naturally occur together because they have similar needs.
Frankston City has at least 16 vegetation communities. These are referred to as Ecological Vegetation Classes (EVCs).