Garden Day Celebrations
Plant for the sake of your neighbours
Nurture your garden to nourish others
Celebrate your garden on the 20th of October.
South Africa’s National Garden Day is about being one with the growing world.
While many of the events planned for this day focus on the joy that a beautiful garden holds for you the owner and gardener, there are also a few that emphasise that gardens and green spaces are meant for sharing.
The Homemakers top five Garden Day celebrations:
Host a golden-oldy garden party
What better way to share your green fingered glory than to showcase your garden to people who are sure to appreciate it.
Excuse the stereotyping, but it seems to be a fact that as soon as people hit the big seven-oh (70), they suddenly have a newfound passion for all thing growing and garden related.
Arrange a morning tea for a couple of elderly ladies, or even ask around if there are any septuagenarian garden afficionados living in your area and get them over to give you advice on your roses, clivias or fruit trees.
By doing this you’ll be creating a safe social space for our more mature fellow South Africans, and providing some distraction and a sense of purpose, which can be so lacking when you are confided to a small room or apartment at an old age home.
Ensure you have enough shaded seating, tea cups and biscuits, and we can promise you – you’ll be spreading joy and making a difference in so many lives. … And who knows, you might just learn a thing or two!
Involve the little ones.
If you have children, or have access to them through friends and family, why not get a whole swarm of them to come and garden with you? Nothing makes kids happier than getting dirty and helping out, and you’ll get free (albeit frustrating) labour out of the deal.
Adjust your activities to suit the age groups and be sure to have enough supervision to keep the tikes safe. (cover all open water and hide anything sharp or poisonous well out of reach – kids are quick and devious!)
Have them plant some sturdy seedlings for a border or overseed a patch of lawn and then walk around on it, dino-stomping to compact the seeds. Let them harvest fruits, veggies or herbs and experience the garden with all their senses
Ensure that you have shade, water, snacks and sunscreen on hand to keep them hydrated and safe. The kids (and their parents) will love you for this!
Embrace your community garden
These communal shared spaces are amazing places for neighbourhoods to come together and foster important bonds. Look up your local one, and organize a group of fellow gardeners to volunteer a day there. Whether you weed, harvest or expand, be sure to work with the final goal in mind. Providing a safe space for people who might be experiencing food-insecurity is key, so plant sensibly, and commit to maintaining your share of garden.
Community gardens are inherently unselfish spaces and any idea of self-importance or possession and control should rather be left at home. Be lekker, be generous and always keep Ubuntu front of mind.
Host a house (plant) party!
A garden doesn’t HAVE to be outside. If you live in a smaller space, but you are keeping a fiddle leaf fig tree alive indoors, more power to you! (those things are notoriously tricky).
Why don’t you host a house party, and make the entrance cost a potted plant? In the end, each guest gets to take home one plant and spread the green goodness one Ficus at a time.
Crowning glory.
Whatever you choose to do, just remember your crown. Garden day can’t be celebrated without a flower (or leaf) grown and we suggest that you make a whole stack and hand them out to everyone who comes to join in your Garden Day festivities.
Even if you aren’t inviting people over and you don’t even have a single houseplant, you can still get in the mood with a great flower crown…be inspired!
