Garden Releaf Day 2021
Get gardening, get healthy, have fun!

Held annually on or around March 21, Garden Releaf Day provides independent garden centres with a way to connect people and communities with the health and wellness benefits of plants, gardens and gardening. This year Garden Releaf Day is themed around ‘Colour for Health’, with all funds raised to be donated to Beyond Blue once again.

“Garden Releaf Day aims to raise awareness of the importance of living greenery in your life,” says Leigh Siebler, Manager of Garden Centres Australia, “Garden centres across Australia come together with ideas, information, inspiration and events to encourage people to celebrate the joy of colour, plants and gardens to enrich their lives.”

 

Colour for health

“Colour has long been associated with influencing our health and wellbeing,” says Leigh, “We wear colour to help create and adjust our moods and influence those of others, we eat and drink colour to get different vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and tastes in our diets. We love colour in our gardens, colour in our homes, colour in our lives. We give the littlest of our children colouring books and pencils and now adults spend time de- stressing by colouring in.”

“Like fragrance and texture, colour is an element of visual language, often popping out and impacting us immediately,” Leigh continues, “What better place is there to get immersed in colour than in our gardens, whether it be flowers outside or foliage indoors?”

Garden Releaf Ambassadors

Garden Releaf Ambassadors help to raise the profile of this annual event. Ambassadors include well-known gardening identities such as Graham Ross, Jane Edmanson and Sophie Thomson.

New Garden Releaf Ambassador Steven Wells is a well-known advocate for therapeutic horticulture and gardens within healthcare settings and the benefits they provide for patients, staff and hospital visitors. Steven has developed the horticultural therapy program and sensory gardens at Austin Health’s Royal Talbot Rehabilitation Centre and has also developed gardens throughout Austin Health’s facilities.

“Gardening is an enjoyable and integral part of my life. When I reflect on the must haves that I include in my personal self-care practices spending time gardening, working on new garden projects in my own little patch and visiting other gardens all rate highly on my list,” says Steven, “These things fill my energy bucket and I find them restoring, rewarding and inspiring. They always reignite my enthusiasm and love for gardening. So perhaps I might see you when I am visiting a nursery looking for plants and garden treasures that I can add to my garden!”

Acorn Nursery

John van den Horst from Acorn Nursery in Surrey Hills, Victoria, says it is a ‘no-brainer’ for a garden centre like his to be involved in Garden Releaf. John himself appreciates the mental and physical health benefits associated with gardening. “I have a large vegie garden at home. This garden allows me to grow food, whilst allowing me to escape from the pressures of running a business for a little while,” says John, “It also provides me with an opportunity to keep fit and stay in shape.”

During the 2020 COVID lockdown in Melbourne, John saw first-hand people’s desire to reconnect with nature. “For many people, their only escape during lockdown, apart from the supermarket, was their back garden or balcony,” John recounts, “People coming into our nursery wanted to get back to basics and start gardening. Our customers wanted information on growing and pruning plants, and they wanted to buy indoor plants, succulents and herbs. They were and are still thirsty for knowledge.”

To celebrate Garden Releaf and raise funds for Beyond Blue, Acorn Nursery will run several activities, including potting up demonstrations for children. A dollar from each ‘blue’ plant sold at the nursery during this time will be donated to Beyond Blue (e.g., blue lobelia or agapanthus), as will donations made by customers to have their purchases gift-wrapped.

How you can help!

Whilst only one official Garden Releaf Day is held each year, Garden Centres Australia promotes Garden Releaf all year round.

Participating garden centres welcome product donations to help raise funds for Beyond Blue, e.g. to offer deals with a rebate built in for this charity or products to raffle or use for in-store events.

For a list of participating garden centres, visit www.gardenreleaf.com.au

If you would like to get involved or to donate product, please contact Leigh Siebler, Manager, Garden Centres of Australia, on 0409 889 779 or email leigh.siebler@bigpond.com.

To stay up to date with Garden Releaf news and events, like the Garden Releaf Facebook page.