Weed Out Hate Day

Weed Out Hate Day is April 3rd

Weed Out Hate Day has an interesting origin. This holiday was started by Marc Daniels in honor of his grandfather Ross Daniels. Ross Daniels invented the Ross Root Feeder in 1946. This irrigation tool was revolutionary in the way it allowed nutrients to get to the deepest roots of trees and other plants. His grandson took this idea and brought it to the next level. The main goal of creating Weed Out Hate Day was to connect gardeners and kindergarteners with the natural world around them and help improve society in the process. Feeding the roots of a tree allows the tree to better absorb nutrients and have a more bountiful harvest. Weed Out Hate Day removes the obstacles that prevent children from reaching their full potential. This allows all who participate to learn how to remove negative influences in their lives and look for more positive aspects.

History of Weed Out Hate Day 

The first Weed Out Hate Day was not in April but in August. This holiday was established on August 28th, 2010 by the mayors of both Des Moines and Springfield, Iowa. For this day the mayors asked each child to go out into their lawns and remove a single weed. The ceremony for this new holiday was held at the Lincoln Home National Historic site in Springfield Iowa. Marc Daniels calls Abraham Lincoln a big inspiration for him and his cause and having the holiday he created be celebrated at this site made it even more special. During this ceremony they also used Marc’s grandfather’s root feeder to feed the trees surrounding the Lincoln home where his roots began. 

Weed Out Hate Day is not just an American holiday, in fact, it has inspired people around the world. One man, located 6,000 miles away, became inspired by this holiday. His name was Ulrich Sahm and he was a German journalist. He was so inspired that he started the transfer of the Schindler’s list historical documents to a Holocaust history museum in Israel. Sahm is a respected journalist and has spent much of his career covering both sides of the conflict in the Middle East. For his efforts he received a commemorative Weed Out Hate Feeder in 2010. 

How to Celebrate Weed Out Hate Day

The easiest way to celebrate this day is to show kindness. This can be a small gesture like holding the door open for a stranger or something larger like donating time or money to a charity. Today is also a day to teach kindness to younger children. Here are some tips on how to effectively teach a child about kindness.

1. Model - Children learn through example, and the way they learn kindness is no exception. Being overly kind to everyone around you when a child is present helps them learn how they should act in the future. Being kind in a difficult situation may also end up helping you feel better as well. 
2. Relationships - Sometimes we learn more from our friends than we do teachers. Encouraging healthy friendships and teaching children how to treat their friends is very important to help foster kindness. Children should also learn how to be kind in any relationship, not just friendships. Show you being kind to your spouse, a family member, or a coworker to help them understand the importance of being kind and how it affects other people. 
3. Empathy- Being kind to others is great, but children need to understand why. They need to learn when kindness may be needed more times than others and why others may not be kind. Teaching your children how to understand other people’s feelings will only make them more kind in return.