2025 was the year I tended my neglected backyard veggie garden and went wild.

In 2024, my TL and I (mostly my TL because I hate gardening) abandoned the veggie garden due to the rodent plague and possum party. Now with three years of Aussie landcare under my belt, I was horrified that my veggie patch had been overtaken by every exotic weed known to box gum grassy woodlands and natural temperate grasslands. So much fleabane (the weed you never walk past) and Gamochaeta (the latter an exotic cudweed)! I’m not sure whether the soil is so good because of the Gamochaeta, or the Gamochaeta so happy because of the soil. I also had some Euchiton (local cudweed), oxalis and other weedy natives, plus one small kangaroo grass (Themeda) tussock, a remnant of a bigger patch that I had exterminated due to the seeds not agreeing with the dogs at one point! Dogs now shut out due to noise issues associated with their favourite prey – rodents.

Our backyard soil is what’s known as “seasonally damp”. In summer 2025, I took to the weed whacker with gusto. I planted a couple of native forbs but they didn’t thrive due to the summer sun sapping the life out of the soil. I also threw in some Euchiton seedheads from plants growing up through my pavers. Anyway, by Spring 2025 I had lots of Gamochaeta and Euchiton. Ta da!

That dead looking shrub in the background of the above photo is a Tumut grevillea. The birds and insects loved it. A week ago I saw its tiny offspring in the Euchiton patch! I hope it survives the heatwave.

Anyway, have you ever seen so much Euchiton in your entire life?

Themeda, Dianella, and a glimpse (back right of photo) of the Indigofera. Also, Euchiton ….

I am keeping some pink salvia because the Blue-banded bees love it. They are experts at buzz pollination. Varroa mite has recently spread to Canberra so the honeybee population is likely to collapse and their numbers not expected to rebound for several years. Blue-banded bees will also pollinate your tomatoes so please keep the pesticides and herbicides to an absolute minimum to support our native bees.

The next step will be to cull some of the Euchiton to make way for some other local forbs and to give our cheeky (and apparently declining) wrens, a space to forage. The native crumb weed (Dysphania pumilio) has now begun its surge. Gosh, the wrens love it. It will also keep some shade over the bare soil when I pull out some Euchiton. Canberra landcarers, please get in contact if you need a colonising species.

Take care, everyone, and happy landcaring.

Kind Regards.
Tracy.