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Hines

WHERE URBAN LIFE MEETS
LIVING LANDSCAPES

Welcome to the 600 Collins Nature Activation — an immersive nature experience in the heart of the city. This activation explores innovative ways of integrating planting into the urban environment, from hoarding to streetscape planters, to support biodiversity and spark conversation about nature in the city.

Inspired by the Australian Naturalistic Movement, the planting palette embraces naturalistic design and seasonal change.

Hines and collaborators acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung People of the Kulin Nation as the Traditional Owners of the land and pay respect to Elders past and present.

Our hero plants

The planting palette supports biodiversity through a mix of native and Indigenous species, as well as introduced plants, including the City of Melbourne’s critically endangered floral emblem, the Swamp Everlasting (Xerochrysum palustre), with selections drawn from key City of Melbourne planting guides.

SWAMP EVERLASTING:
XEROCHRYSUM PALUSTRE

The Swamp Everlasting, Melbourne’s floral emblem, symbolises resilience. Though threatened, this native species shows remarkable tenacity in survival.

DUNE FAN FLOWER:
SCAEVOLA CALENDULACEA

The Dune Fan Flower is a resilient coastal ground cover with powder‑blue blooms. Scaevola spans Australia, the Pacific, and Africa.

BLUE KANGAROO GRASS:
THEMEDA TRIANDRA
‘TRUE BLUE’

Blue Kangaroo Grass is an iconic Australian native perennial grass with blue‑green foliage and soft, feathered seeds that add texture and movement. Found across Australia, Asia, and Africa, its seeds can also be ground into flour.

AUSTRAL BUGLE:
AJUGA AUSTRALIS

The Austral Bugle is a spreading Australian perennial with purple‑mauve flowers, forming dense, resilient groundcover. It creeps through plantings, covers planters, and acts as living mulch to conserve moisture and suppress weeds.

CAT’S TAIL:
BULBINELLA NUTANS

Bulbinella Nutans is a winter‑flowering yellow geophyte that brightens urban plantings before retreating in summer. The introduced Cat’s Tail resembles the native Bulbine Bulbosa but flowers at a different time.

The full plant list

Plants

Native to Australia

Indigenous to the Greater Melbourne Region

Acorus gramineus ‘Ogon’

Adenanthos cuneatus

X

Ajuga australis

X

X

Arthropodium milleflorum

X

X

Astelia nervosa ‘Westland’

Austrostipa elegantissima

X

X

Bergenia cordifolia

Bulbine bulbosa

X

X

Bulbinella nutans

Chorizema cordatum

X

Chrysocephalum semipapposum

X

X

Correa ‘Choc Leaf’

X

Dichelachne micrantha

X

X

Dodonaea procumbens

X

X

Eutaxia microphylla

X

X

Gastrolobium praemorsum ‘Brown Butterfly’

X

Geranium solanderi var. solanderi

X

X

Hibbertia dentata

X

Kunzea pomifera

X

X

Linum marginale

X

X

Pelargonium australe

X

X

Pimelea humilis

X

X

Plectranthus parviflorus

X

Scaevola calendulacea

X

Spyridium parvifolium

X

Themeda triandra ‘True Blue’

X

Themeda triandra ‘Mingo'

X

Thryptomene saxicola

X

Veronica gracilis

X

X

Xerochrysum palustre

X

X

Xerochrysum viscosum

X

X

Look Out For These

With the proximity to the Yarra, we hope to attract native bees and butterflies to the site, and to encourage the local community to record insect species observations via citizen science, utilising platforms such as www.inaturalist.org.

For further information on insects you might see in the Melbourne CBD, visit the City of Melbourne Insects of Melbourne Guide. Here’s a small selection of some of the City of Melbourne insects…

COMMON BROWN:
HETERONYMPHA MEROPE

DAINTY SWALLOWTAIL:
PAPILIO ANACTUS

IMPERIAL JEZEBEL:
DELIAS HARPALYCE

AUSTRALIAN PAINTED LADY:
VANESSA KERSHAWI

LESSER GRASS BLUE:
ZIZINA OTIS

GREEN GRASS DART:
OCYBADISTES WALKERI

CHEQUERED CUCKOO BEE:
THYREUS CAERULEOPUNCTATUS

BLUE-BANDED BEE:
AMEGILLA SP.

EUROPEAN HONEY BEE:
APIS MELLIFERA

Our Collaborators

The 600 Collins Nature Activation has been brought to life by Hines in collaboration with the following team:

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