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The year ahead
What's on in the garden world
Flower shows, festivals and awareness days for the next twelve months. Dates shown in green were confirmed against the organiser's own website; everything else shows the month it usually falls in.
September
Tulip Time
Tens of thousands of tulips planted in the Southern Highlands and opened to the public each spring.
Floriade
Australia's biggest celebration of spring, a month of massed bulb planting in Commonwealth Park.
Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers
A month of parades, garden competitions and public planting displays, running since 1949.
The September equinox
Day and night are close to equal length again. Autumn begins in the north, spring in the south.
October
World Food Day
A day about how the world is fed. A vegetable bed is a small answer to a very large question.
November
Australian Pollinator Week
A week encouraging people to notice and support native bees and other pollinators.
New Zealand Flower & Garden Show
New Zealand's major show garden event, held in late spring.
National Tree Week
The start of the UK's winter tree-planting season, run by the Tree Council since 1975.
December
World Soil Day
A day for the living material everything in the garden depends on. Healthy soil is the whole game.
The December solstice
The shortest day in the northern hemisphere and the longest in the southern. The turning point of the year for daylight.
February
World Wetlands Day
A day for the marshes, bogs and ponds that hold water and life. Even a small garden pond does a version of the same job.
The Orchid Show
The New York Botanical Garden fills its Victorian glasshouse with orchids through late winter and spring.
Northwest Flower & Garden Festival
One of the first big shows of the American year, held in Seattle in February when most of the country is still frozen.
March
World Wildlife Day
A day about wild plants and animals and the habitats they need. Gardens are a surprisingly large share of that habitat.
EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival
A months-long festival of topiary and display planting running through the American spring.
Plant a Flower Day
An informal day for doing exactly what it says. A good excuse to sow something.
Philadelphia Flower Show
The oldest and largest indoor flower show in the United States, run by the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society since 1829.
Canada Blooms
Canada's largest flower and garden festival, held in Toronto each March alongside the national home show.
Melbourne International Flower & Garden Show
The southern hemisphere's largest horticultural event, held in the Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens each autumn.
Keukenhof
Seven million spring bulbs planted every autumn and opened to the public for roughly eight weeks in spring.
The March equinox
Day and night are close to equal length everywhere. Spring begins in the north, autumn in the south.
International Day of Forests
A day for trees and what they do for us. A single garden tree still provides shade, shelter and food for wildlife.
World Water Day
A day about fresh water and using it carefully. Worth a thought for anyone with a hose or a water butt.
April
National Gardening Week
A week of free events and open gardens across the UK, run by the RHS.
Arbor Day
America's tree-planting day, observed on the last Friday in April in most states and dating back to 1872.
International Garden Festival, Chaumont-sur-Loire
Experimental show gardens built to a new theme each year and left in place for most of the growing season.
Earth Day
A worldwide day of environmental action, marked since 1970. Composting, planting or simply leaving a corner wild all count.
May
RHS Malvern Spring Festival
An early-May show at the foot of the Malvern Hills, known for its plant nurseries and show gardens.
International Day of Plant Health
A day about keeping plants free of pests and disease. Most plant problems travel on plants we move about ourselves.
RHS Chelsea Flower Show
The best-known flower show in the world, held in the grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea each May. The planting ideas shown there filter into gardens for years afterwards.
World Bee Day
A day for bees and the other pollinators most of our food depends on. A patch of flowering plants is a real contribution.
International Day for Biological Diversity
A day about the variety of life and why it matters. A mixed garden supports far more of it than a tidy one.
June
World Environment Day
The United Nations' biggest day for environmental action, marked since 1973.
World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought
A day about land drying out and losing its fertility. The principles that hold soil together in a garden hold it together anywhere.
The June solstice
The longest day in the northern hemisphere and the shortest in the southern. From here the daylight turns the other way.
National Pollinator Week
A week in June encouraging planting and habitat for bees, butterflies, birds and bats.
July
Singapore Garden Festival
A tropical flower and garden show held every other year, known for its indoor show gardens and orchid displays.
RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival
The RHS's largest show, spread across the grounds of Hampton Court Palace in early July.
RHS Tatton Park Flower Show
The RHS's northern show, held in the parkland at Tatton in late July.
National Tree Day
Australia's biggest community tree-planting event, held on the last Sunday in July.
World Mangrove Day
A day for the coastal forests that hold shorelines together and shelter an enormous amount of marine life.