Spring wellbeing calendar of activities

It’s simple to take part!

• Download the calendar to print it out
• On a phone or tablet, tap and hold the image below to save it to your device
• On a desktop or laptop, right-click to save

Find extra information to help you take part in individual activities below.

1. Send a photo of spring flower to a friend. It could be a photo you've taken in your garden, on a walk, or a photo you've seen in a book or magazine.
2. Choose a nature photo as your phone background. Bring a daily nature reminder to you every time you look at your phone. If you are not sure how to do this on your phone, you can usually change it from the settings section.
3. Take a nature walk with a loved one. Head out and admire all that's happening in nature. This could be in your local area, at a nearby park or around your own garden. Bring a friend, family member, neighbour or even the dog, if you have one.
4. Make a plan for your spring garden. Planning and anticipating can be as much fun as doing! You could make a sketch of your garden and plan anything you would like to try growing this year and where it will go. Our guide to creating a plan for spring is full of helpful hints.
5. Listen to bird song. Birds are in full song in spring. Spend some time quietly listening to their song. You could challenge yourself to try and identify some of them. There are now apps including Warblr and BirdNet that help record song and offer suggestions on which bird it's from.
6. Sow some seeds. This is the perfect season for seed sowing. Whether you would like to grow flowers or food, enjoy the process of sowing seeds and the anticipation it creates for the future. Read our guide to sowing seeds in trays for advice and tips.
7. Give a plant or seeds to a loved one. Giving has been identified as one of the five ways to wellbeing. If you have spare seeds, you could gift those to friends, family or neighbours. Or, you may have a plant to pass on.

1. Take a walk and admire people's front gardens. Front gardens don't always get as much recognition as back gardens. But wonderful things can be done in small spaces. Enjoy looking around your local area and appreciate what people are growing and how they have designed their front garden space. Think about how a well looked after space with plenty of nature makes you feel.
2. Notice tree buds and blossom developing. From the end of winter into spring, we see buds appear on some trees, followed by flower blossom. Enjoy noticing what is developing and what is in bloom. Notice the different shades of blossom, most commonly seen in colours from pure white through to bright pink.
3. Deadhead your plants. There is typically less deadheading to be done in spring compared to summer. But you may well have some spent flowers that would benefit from a little tidy. Read our guide to deadheading for advice.
4. Read about the 5 ways to wellbeing. The five ways to wellbeing were developed to help improve the mental health and wellbeing of the whole population. Read more about them here.
5. Take a walk somewhere with a nice view. Some walks involve more beautiful views than others. This is often a very personal choice. You might love the view across the countryside from a hill, or a view of the sea from a beach walk. Find somewhere where you can appreciate the beauty of nature.
6. Make a bird feeder. Give your garden birds something to enjoy as they get busy preparing for the nesting season. If you could use some tips to do this, follow our guide to creating a simple apple bird feeder.
7. Grow sweet peas or broad beans. Both sweet peas and broad beans are deep-rooted and can be sown into toilet toll tubes. Follow our step by step guide.

1. Lie under a tree and look at leaf patterns. Find a tree, sheltered spot. Bring a blanket, or sit in a chair in lying down is not possible. Enjoy gently looking up and noticing how the leaves look from beneath. Observe the different patterns, shadows and light.
2. Draw a plant. Share your drawing. You could do a sketch of a plant using pencils, crayons, paints or any other medium. When you're finished, show your work to someone else. You could always take a photo of it and share the photo.
3. Try growing herbs. Herbs are fantastic to grow. You can grow herbs on an indoor windowsill, or out in the garden. Our guide to creating a herb garden indoors is full of advice if you're looking to keep yours in the home.
4. Fine 5 plants that feel nice to touch. With plants, our sense of sight is often the main one we engage. But, plants can be amazing to the touch too. Try and find 5 plants that feel pleasant to touch. Our guide to engaging your sense of touch in the garden has suggestions. Be careful of any plants with thorns, or that could sting.
5. Make grass hand prints. Grass seed germinates quickly. This is great in the garden. It can also make it perfect for some creative artwork! Try creating your own hand print out of grass. Follow our step-by-step guide for advice on how to do it.
6. Pot up a plant. If you have a new plant from a garden centre or shop, enjoy potting it up into its permanent pot. If you have houseplants, another option is to see if any of them have outgrown their current pot and could use re-potting into a bigger one. Enjoy providing a new home for your plant to thrive.
7. Sow microgreens. The brilliant thing about microgreens is how quickly they grow. Almost every day you can observe some new growth! They are also extremely nutritious. Follow our guide to sowing microgreens.

1. Go on a walk and observe wildlife. Use all your senses to discover all manner of wildlife. You could pause quietly at certain points and try to spot smaller creatures - like the insects that aren't immediately obvious. What is the wildlife around busy doing?
2. Write ways you could connect more with nature. Try and come up with 3 ways you could connect more with nature once you've finished this wellbeing calendar. Could you plan a regular sensory walk? Perhaps you could create more areas in your garden for wildlife?
3. On a local walk, pick your favourite tree. The more we get to know trees, the more incredible they are. Try and choose a favourite in your local area. What do you like about it? Is it the shape, colour, form or something else?
4. Smell 5 plants. In week 3, there was an activity around touching plants. Now, it's time to let your nose be your guide. Get up close and smell 5 different plants. What scents can you pick out? Are there ones you like more than others? Our article on creating a scented garden has lots of suggestions of interesting smelling plants.
5. Make a nature collage. Head outside and see what fallen pieces of nature you can collect - sticks, leaves, spent flower heads. Collect them up, head back inside and create a collage using them. Find ideas and inspiration for your collage here.
6. Prick out or pot on seedlings. If you are growing plants from seed, at some point they may outgrow their first pot. This is a good time for potting on your seedlings, supporting them through the next stage of growth.
7. Sow sunflower seeds. If you didn't include sunflower seeds in your seed sowing earlier this month, try them now. Sunflowers bring such joy in summer - and our Gardening Club voted them their most reliable plant to grow from seed! Follow our guide to growing sunflowers for advice.