While you might not have heard of World Naked Gardening Day (you’re probably not alone), this annual celebration of gardening in the buff is in its 14th year and continues to gain momentum and media coverage around the world. And there also seems to be a growing number of participants, as a quick search on Social Media using #WNGD reveals. So what is World Naked Gardening Day (WNGD) all about?
Held on the first Saturday in May each year, WNGD began in 2005 and was the brainchild of a couple of friends — Mark Storey and Jacob Gabriel — from Seattle, Oregon in the US. Both were (and still are) involved in the naturalist/nudist community and the particular inspiration for WNGD was the World Naked Bike Ride, which was held in Seattle in 2004, the second ride of its kind in the world. (‘What is it about Seattle?’ you might ask!)
Mark and Jacob both felt that a naked bike ride was physically challenging for many people and wanted to create an event that allowed people of all ages and levels of fitness to participate. And so World Naked Gardening Day was born, with the ostensible aim of encouraging people to ‘tend their portion of the world’s garden unclothed as nature intended’.
The WNGD website goes on to explain the philosophy further: ‘Why garden naked? First of all, it’s fun! Second only to swimming, gardening is at the top of the list of family-friendly activities people are most ready to consider doing nude. Moreover, our culture needs to move toward a healthy sense of both body acceptance and our relation to the natural environment. Gardening naked is not only a simple joy, it reminds us — even if only for those few sun kissed minutes — that we can be honest with who we are as humans and as part of this planet.’
While clearly timed to coincide with the northern hemisphere spring, the day has led people from all over the world to throw off their clothes for a day and get stuck into the garden. There are even a number of enthusiastic and regular participants from around Australia, mostly, it seems, from those locations that can expect fairly warm weather on the first Saturday in May. But there’s even a bunch of naturalists from Ireland who get involved — a place that’s not renowned for particularly warm weather at any time of year. Above all, according to founder Mark Storey, the day is about having some light-hearted fun and embracing the spirit of the event – an opportunity to be part of a community and do something good for the environment.
An ardent supporter of the day is one of our suppliers, Yates Australia, who have a post on their website challenging readers to take part and providing some useful tips on getting through the day unscathed, including ‘Be careful with any tools especially the secateurs – be careful when using and where you place them afterwards.’ Mark Storey has similar advice about choosing exactly what jobs to do on World Naked Gardening Day, and what to avoid: “Naked gardening is quite comfortable, assuming good weather, like raking leaves,” he says. “I’ve done it all. But you don’t cut blackberries when you’re buck naked.”
This year’s World Naked Gardening Day falls on Saturday May 5th, however, given Sydney’s weather is predicted to be a mild 18° and cloudy with thunderstorms, you might like to observe it from afar! Whatever the case, get behind #WNGD and show your support for this decidedly quirky celebration of the natural world.
Prepare for World Naked Gardening Day at Seymour Building Supplies, choosing from our extensive range of gardening supplies, including seeds, tools and potting mix, to name just a few. Give us a call on 9816 5999 or visit the website to find out what else we have in store.