Wednesday, August 31, 2011

HAPPY WATTLE DAY TO YOU by Kirsty Skilbeck

Wattle Day began September 1st 1910 
on that day the Sydney Morning Herald wrote -

Let the wattle henceforth be a sacred charge to every Australian. Let us foster and protect and cherish it. Let us plant it in all our parks and reserves and pleasure grounds, so that we may make pilgrimages to its groves in blossom time. let us give our schoolchildren wattle plants, and offer annual prizes for the best grown trees, that there may be no Australian who cannot link it with his childish memories....

To the native born Australian the wattle stands for home, country, kindred, sunshine, and love - every instinct that the heart most deeply enshrines.

What wonderful sentiment for the times.
Visit  Kirsty's Bowerbird's Blue - Happy Wattle Day 1st September - for a little bit of Aussie history about Wattle Day, the first day of Spring and lovely photographs. Kirsty, from Victoria, Australia is involved with Junior Landcare - environmental activities for young children. 

1 comment:

  1. I remember being given a wattle tree at school but I got very bad hayfever from wattle when I was young so it didn't have a long life in my yard.... Now I am lucky I live in an area which has wattle trees everywhere and I no longer get an allergy to them ....They are beautiful

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