What is the Bush?

The Bush, in Australian usage, means the natural vegetated areas outside the cities and towns. The term is broader and more general than the Outback: it can refer to dry sclerophyll eucalyptus forest, mallee scrub, coastal heath, mountain forest, or any other native vegetation that is not built up or cultivated.

About 17 per cent of Australia is forested, and a further 50 per cent carries other native vegetation such as savanna, mallee, heath, and grass. The Bush is a defining feature of Australian life and folklore. Children's songs, ANZAC traditions, the swagman of Waltzing Matilda, and a long list of sayings about going bush all draw from it. Going bush means leaving the city for a holiday, while bush telegraph means the informal grapevine.

Distinct types of Bush characterise different climate zones. Tropical savannas with widely spaced eucalyptus and pandanus dominate the north. Cool temperate eucalyptus forests covered in tall karri, mountain ash, and blue gum line the wet southern margins. Mallee country in the dry interior of Victoria, South Australia, and Western Australia features multi-stemmed eucalyptus over a saltbush understorey. The wet tropics of north Queensland and the Daintree contain Australia's only true rainforests.

The Bush faces serious pressures including habitat clearing for agriculture and housing, invasive species (especially feral cats, foxes, rabbits, and weeds such as buffel grass), and the intensification of bushfires under climate change. About 6,800 native plant species are listed under federal threatened species legislation. Programs such as Bush Heritage Australia, Australian Wildlife Conservancy, and Landcare networks restore and protect Bush country alongside national parks. The Bush is also central to Aboriginal concepts of country and land management.