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The year ahead
What's on: New Zealand
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.
November
Garden Marlborough
Four days of guided garden tours, talks and workshops around Marlborough, ending with a free garden fete in Blenheim.
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.
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.
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
Earth Day
A worldwide day of environmental action, marked since 1970. Composting, planting or simply leaving a corner wild all count.
May
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.
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.
July
World Mangrove Day
A day for the coastal forests that hold shorelines together and shelter an enormous amount of marine life.
September
Spring Festival, Wellington Botanic Garden
A month of free open days, guided walks and talks celebrating spring at Wellington Botanic Garden and Ōtari-Wilton's Bush.
World Ozone Day
Marks the treaty that repaired the ozone layer — one of the clearest cases of an environmental problem actually being fixed.
The September equinox
Day and night are close to equal length again. Autumn begins in the north, spring in the south.
October
Taranaki Garden Festival
Ten days of open private and public gardens across Taranaki, now in its 39th year, with a fringe festival of home gardens on the same days.
World Food Day
A day about how the world is fed. A vegetable bed is a small answer to a very large question.