Things got started for Neighbour Day on the 27th March with Jenny doing the neighbourly gesture of giving vegetables to Tom. Sharing produce over the fence, gifting a potted plant, or dropping off a bunch of flowers from your garden are all random acts of kindness and ways to say thank you for being a good neighbour to people in your street.

Neighbour Day is an initiative of Relationships Australia and supported by the City of Mandurah and community groups like Mandurah Community Gardens. 
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We are spending more time at home and in our neighbourhood, so it is great to wave, smile and ask people how they are going. You never know you might appreciate the help from your neighbour one day.

The video below was created by the City of Mandurah to promote Neighbour Day. MCG President Jenny Boivin and Garden Coordinator Cheryl Ivey give some neighbourly advice on how to participate, and an invitation to get involved with your local community gardens.

​Thanks to Tom and Emma from the City of Mandurah for enlisting our help to promote and celebrate how gardening can bring neighbours together.

Local business and refund point for the Containers For Change scheme, Containers For Cash Mandurah added Mandurah Community Gardens to their website and Facebook page in support of the organisation. 

Your recycable containers can be dropped off at Mandurah Community Gardens, where they are collected by Containers For Cash Mandurah on a regular basis. You can also drop off your containers direct to Containers For Change Mandurah, and by giving our scheme number, you will ensure that Mandurah Community Gardens receives much needed funds from your donation.

Mandurah Community Gardens' Containers For Change participation No. is C-1027-1362

As MCG is a non-profit organisation that is exists through member's fees, generous donations and grants, the money earned from this helps MCG to keep going, providing a wonderful place for community involvement and healthy activity in our local area. 

The flower Epiphyllum Oxypetalum flowers only once a year at night, taking approximately 2 hours to fully open, then wilting before the sun comes up.

The flower has an outer mane of petals, with lotus-like nest of petals in front, and a brush of stamins in the centre defined by the bright white filaments and butter yellow anthers at their tips. The flower can be up to 25cm (about 9 inches) across when in full bloom.

​The fragrant scent of this flower can travel quite far in the night, up to half a kilometre away. The scent could be described as a delicate floral perfume with a hint of sweetness like that of the mango fruit. 

This video is of the flowering at Paul & Roz's home on the 7th March 2022. It was taken with a mobile phone on a tripod using a time-lapse setting of 30 second intervals, and then increased in speed when producing the video.

Why not try grow these yourself? They can be easily propogated from cuttings and they grow well in a small pot with little fertiliser or water needed. The majesty of this flower and the smell of its perfume is worth waiting a year for!

Enjoy!