Today – Why do we celebrate

National Wattle Day – 1 September – first day of spring

National Wattle Day – why do we celebrate?

National Wattle Day is a happy day when we celebrates Australia and Australians
Acacia pycnantha (Golden Wattle) is Australia’s national floral emblem (since 1998)
Wattle is a symbol that comes directly from our land; this is a day to celebrate the beauty and wonder of the natural world around us
Like our people, wattle has great diversity (with more than 1,075 described Acacia species)
Wattles are resilient, drought tolerant and grow well on poor soils
Wattles are great pioneer plants, being among the first plants to regenerate after fire and other soil disturbance, and then return nitrogen to the soil as they grow
Wattles welcomes in the spring, reminding us of the importance of renewal as it paints our national colours of green and gold across our land
Wattle is a unifying symbol for all Australians. There is no other symbol that says so much about us and our land, Australia

So join the celebration of National Wattle Day – 1 September

Suzette Searle
President (2019- )
Wattle Day Association Inc.

Golden wattle, South Australia

Photo: ©S.D. Searle

Acacia pycnantha (Golden Wattle)
Photo: ©S.D. Searle

Golden Wattle (Acacia pycnantha) is native to South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory. Photo: ©S.D. Searle

History

In the 21st century National Wattle Day is celebrated as a day to celebrate Australia – its land and its people.

In 1910 wattle day was celebrated on 1 September in NSW, Victoria and South Australia.

In 1988 the Golden Wattle (Acacia pycnantha) was officially gazetted as Australia’s national floral emblem.1992

In 1992, the first day of September each year was officially declared
‘National Wattle Day’ throughout Australia by the Commonwealth of Australia.2010

2010 was the centenary of the celebration of wattle day on 1 September 1910 in NSW, Victoria and South Australia.

Wattle Day is also used to raise money for community causes such as local volunteer rural fires brigades, and charities for women, children and disabled people. More than a century ago, sprigs of wattle and wattle badges were sold to raise money for wounded soldiers in the First World War.

National Wattle Day is a day that unifies all Australians in a celebration of the land that sustains us and all that we enjoy as a multi-cultural society living together in Australia.

Recommended reading about the history and practice of National Wattle Day:

‘Australia’s Wattle Day’* Current Issues Brief 1995-6 is a wonderful description of the Golden Wattle and National Wattle Day written by Dr Rod Panter (then with the Science, Technology, Environment and Resources Group) 29 August 1995 and updated 19 August 1997. Dr Panter suggests what to do on Wattle Day and a role for the Federal Government.

Dr Rod Panter is a founding and life-long member of the Wattle Day Association Inc.