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Out towards St Andrews on Melbourne’s north-eastern edge, some of the most important habitat isn’t in reserves at all, it’s along the roadside.

In this episode of Finding Melbourne’s Nature, I walk with Wendy Probert, a long-time member of the Australian Native Orchid Society and a director of the Australian Orchid Foundation.

Wendy has spent decades searching for native orchids, and as we move slowly along the roadside, she introduces me to the species that occur around Melbourne, how to recognise them, and what makes them so unusual.

We talk about the role roadsides play in conservation, how orchids depend on very specific relationships with fungi and pollinators, and why they’re such good indicators of the health of a landscape.

It’s a slower kind of walk. A lot of stopping, a lot of looking, and a reminder that some of the most important parts of our environment are easy to miss if you don’t take the time.