In 1942, Australia's prime minister John Curtin launched a "Dig for Victory" campaign as rationing, drought, and a shortage of agricultural workers began to affect food supplies. This encouraged homeowners all over Australia to grow crops to help the war effort. The campaign was well received by the media as well as the large populace, as many Australians were already self-sufficient in growing their own fruits and vegetables. The YWCA created "Garden Army Week" to advertise the newly created "Garden Army" which exclusively supported agriculture and crop production. The situation began to ease in 1943 as fear of invasion lessened; however, home gardens continued throughout the war.[3]
The first formal gardens were influenced by the aesthetics of British settlers who were unfamiliar with Australia and often sought to recreate aspects of where they had come from, such as the English country garden. This included the importation of plants from Europe, initially for food, and the landscaping of broader lands for the cultivation of agriculture, forestry and grazing (displacing maintenance by Australian Aboriginal peoples). Informal and ornamental gardens would be established at private estates, such as small cottage gardens and Mediterranean-climate gardens, while land around settlements would be reserved for future public use and the establishment of important botanical gardens. However, Australia's diverse climate, along with more growth and immigration, meant more diverse styles and philosophies of garden could be grown, such as Japanese gardens.[citation needed]
Over time, interest in rediscovering traditional knowledge and expertise of the uses of Australia's native plants grew. New Australian-style gardens are inspired by combinations of almost any style and are now found across Australia and some other parts of the world. They are usually specific to the particular area they are grown in, whether as private gardens, as parts of or as entire public parks (often emphasising botanical exploration and re-establishment of wildlife habitat), in revegetation programmes for wetlands and grasslands, and as rain gardens utilising smaller spaces on streets. Common features include stone gardens, artworks and shade structures, cultural and historical information, and edible gardens.
