Getting started: plan your planting project

Apr 27, 2023 | Information & Resources

We’ve gathered a collection of resources and advice to help you plan your planting project. Whether you’d like to plant a small feature garden or a vast shelterbelt, the following resources will help get your project off to a good start.

West Gippsland Seedbank has provided advice and guidance to planters in our region for over fifteen years, and we’re pleased to continue sharing our knowledge with the community.

1. Choose your species

If you are reading our guide, you’re probably already familiar with the benefits of selecting indigenous species. Otherwise, you can read our overview of what indigenous and endemic species are, along with some of their benefits:

What are ‘indigenous’ and ‘endemic’ plants?

Which species you select will depend not only on the plant form you would like (such as tree, shrub or grass), but also on the planting location and its conditions.

Baw Baw Shire Council has published a booklet which provides details of plants that are indigenous to this shire, and helps identify which are likely to suit your conditions. You can view this booklet online:

Indigenous Plants of Baw Baw Shire

To find out more about plant species, the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria has a free online database of plant profiles and identification tools on its VicFlora website:

Flora of Victoria: VicFlora

2. Find out if we collect seed from your chosen species

Once you’ve decided on your preferred plant species, find out whether West Gippsland Seedbank can supply these for you. Visit the ‘Our Seeds’ page of our website to find out what species we collect, and learn about the quality of our seed.

West Gippsland Seedbank: Our Seeds

3. Source your seeds or seedlings

There are different ways to purchase your supplies, depending on how you intend to plant your plants. Seed collected by West Gippsland Seedbank is available for purchase and use in a number of ways:

a. Buy seed to sow by hand

Our seed is available for sale from South Gippsland Seed Bank. Buying small quantities of seed is a good solution for those who would like to grow plants from seed.

West Gippsland Seedbank: Buy our Seed

Some indigenous seeds can be difficult to germinate and require various types of pre-treatment to increase the rate of germination. We recommend checking the requirements of your chosen species before you begin. Murray Ralph’s book is a useful resource:

Growing Australian Native Plants from Seed: Second Edition
Murray Ralph, 2011. Bloomings Books Pty Ltd.

b. Direct seeding (for bulk plantings)

Direct seeding offers an effective solution for large plantings. The seed is distributed by a tractor towing special equipment, which keeps manual labour to a minimum. South Gippsland Seed Bank provides direct seeding advice in our region, and can use our local-provenance West Gippsland seed. Contact them to discuss your project and arrange a property assessment.

South Gippsland Seed Bank: Direct Seeding

c. Buy seedlings

The easiest option for a smaller number of plants is to buy seedlings. Several local nurseries in West Gippsland sell tubestock (small seedlings) propagated from our seed.