Pangarinda Arboretum, Wellington, South Australia

Today we travelled south to the Pangarinda Arboretum at Wellington East. This is about a half hour drive from home here in Murray Bridge. The arboretum is quite close to the River Murray and consists of a series of sandhills overlooking the marina on the eastern side of the river.

The planting of native Australian plants was established over a decade ago by local residents and members of the Australian Plants Society (APS). It is very well established with many 100s of examples of different Australian plants species. Some areas are quite spectacular; I particularly like the area planted up with banksias. These amazing plants have stunning flowers that I have used extensively in my photographic pursuits.

The arboretum is always open to the public; all we ask is that the gates are kept closed at all times – to keep out the rabbits. Rabbits love to chew off the fresh growth on newly planted plants. There are several tracks through the establishment and, although you can drive through, it is far better walking. This way you are able to stop and really appreciate the plants and their beautiful flowers. Don’t forget your camera! At present there are no public toilet facilities but we hope that this should be corrected by the local council soon.

Another reason for taking your time to walk through the plantings is to appreciate the rich birdlife in the area. There are hundreds of honeyeaters, pigeons, finches and a wide cross section of other species present. For a more in depth review of the birds present go to my birding blog by clicking here. Other postings about this place can be found here and here and here and here.