Council verges no longer the Cinderella of urban streetscapes

Households that tend their street verges gain extra shade and cooling, privacy, connection to nature, and social interaction, a Perth study has found.

Researchers
from the University of Western Australia led by Dr Natasha Pauli reviewed the
online verge policies of 31 Perth local councils and conducted stakeholder interviews
to uncover the benefits and challenges of managing these “liminal” spaces more
effectively.

Dr Pauli
said while they may be small compared with other sites of urban greening and
restoration, verge gardens were highly visible in neighbourhoods dominated by
vehicle and foot traffic.

The study found
a growing trend for residents to transform their verges to native gardens – in
line with the 31 councils now permitting native verge gardens.

“When you
think about street verges or nature strips, you may think there’s not much to
be inspired by,” Dr Pauli said.

“But there
is a growing number of keen Perth gardeners who see these spaces as blank
canvases ready to be transformed.”

Dr Pauli
said people started verge gardens for a variety of reasons.

“For some
it was a sense of environmental responsibility, others were motivated by
incentive programs, such as those run by local councils.”

Insect surveys also found evidence of native bees, flower-visiting wasps, and hoverflies visiting flowering native plants in street verge gardens.

Dr Pauli
said the research could be used to better target programs to maximise community
interest and meet local social and environmental goals.

“By
providing residents with the means to improve the potential ecological and
environmental values of verge gardens, these small sites may also collectively
contribute to habitat for wildlife, and to other sustainability goals.”

Click here to learn more about the UWA study.