What'll you be doing on Wattle Day?
National Wattle Day is on Sunday, the first day of spring, but there are events in Canberra over the whole weekend.
WATTLE CORNER
The Wattle Day Association is hosting its annual 'Wattle Corner' at the National Arboretum Canberra from 9am to 4pm on Saturday and Sunday.
There will be some blooming wattle on display to smell and enjoy in the visitors centre.
You can also snap an Insta-worthy photo at their wattle selfie-spot
And why not try growing your own wattle at home? Wattle seeds collected from the arboretum's very own Golden Grove are available to purchase from The Curatoreum (the arboretum shop).
Each packet of Golden wattle (Acacia pycnantha) seed has enough to grow 10 trees up to eight metres tall.
WATTLE WALKS AND TALKS
You can also take a Wattle Walk and Talk tour on Saturday and Sunday at the National Arboretum from 11am to 12 noon.
See more than 10 types of beautiful wattles coming into bloom and hear stories about the national floral emblem on the one-hour guided walk in Forest 20, the Southern Tablelands Ecosystems Park (STEP).
Meet your guide at the STEP flag near the main lower car park.
You will need a water bottle, sturdy enclosed footwear and dress for the weather.
SPRING WATTLE MARKET
The Old Bus Depot Markets are hosting the main Wattle Day celebration on Sunday from 9.30am to 2.30pm.
Old Bus Depot Markets manager Richard Vagi said it was a great way to mark the changing of seasons from winter to spring.
Chief Minister Andrew Barr and members of the National Wattle Day Association will be there.
"On National Wattle Day, we'll adorn the market halls with green and gold, we'll have stallholders featuring wattle and wattle seed food and sweet treats including wattle seed chocolate, and there will be wattle-themed homewares and unique arts and crafts," Richard said.
Wattle Day Association president Dr Suzette Searle said Wattle Day was a "unifying day as we all share the wattle wherever we live in Australia or wherever we may have been born".
"This is a day to celebrate the good fortune we all share living in this remarkable land of the wattle," she said.
"We are thrilled to be showcasing this happy day and what it means with Canberrans at the Old Bus Depot Markets."
LIGHT UP THE GREEN AND GOLD
Landmarks and institutions will be lit in green and gold on Sunday night for Wattle Day, including the Captain Cook Memorial Jet, Questacon, the National Carillon and National Library, The Canberra Times Fountain in Civic and the Malcolm Fraser Bridge in Fyshwick.
100 WATTLE IDEAS
And if that's not enough, the Wattle Day Association has 100 suggestions on how to celebrate the day at wattleday.asn.au/top-100-ways-to-celebrate-national-wattle-day.
WATTLE THE FUTURE HOLD?
The Wattle Day Association works hard to promote National Wattle Day, the Golden Wattle (Acacia pycnantha) as Australia's national floral emblem and wattles, in all their varieties, as symbols of Australia.
But the volunteer-run organisation is still aiming to achieve many other goals, including making National Wattle Day, September 1, an Australia-wide public holiday.
It would also like National Wattle Day to be included as a day when national honours are announced, if not awarded, to those in recognition for their service to Australia.
And the committee is working on Wattle Day being an annual feature of assemblies at all schools.
