Annual General Meeting and Zoom lecture
Monday 28 June 2021 5.30pm for 6pm
The Annual General Meeting will take place this year again as a Zoom videoconference, at 5.30pm for 6pm on 28 Jun 2021. After the AGM there will be an opportunity to hear a talk by Alastair Fitter entitled “The Answer lies in the soil”. Please complete a booking form to indicate whether or not you will attend and to record your votes – there will be no provision for voting in person again this year.
Summer Gardens Tour
Sunday 4 to Thursday 8 July 2021 – a few places remaining
This garden tour in Yorkshire, organised by Geoff and Maddy Hughes, will, we hope, include a wide range of vists from Parceval Hall in the Yorkshire Dales to Scampston in the east plus others not normally open, such as recently designed gardens of Littlethorpe Manor, near Ripon. Members will stay at Hazlewood Castle, near York. To reserve a place contact Madalyn Hughes to confirm availability and complete the booking form.
Oxford Botanic Garden and Merton College
Wednesday 18 August 2021 from 10.30 for an 11.00 am start
Botanist Dr Chris Thorogood, deputy director and head of science for the University of Oxford Botanic Garden and Arboretum will be our guide along with Curator Mark Brent for a tour of the gardens and herbarium. After a sandwich pub lunch locally members will visit the gardens of nearby Merton College, with head gardener and MPG member Lucille Savin. Merton is one of a few Oxford colleges to have its own garden team. Member Cathy Rollinson will lead the trip on the day.
The cost of the day is £21 inc. lunch. We will meet at Oxford Botanic main entrance at 11.00 you can get entry from 10.30 and there is a coffee kiosk on site, but no other catering.
Aberglasney Ninfarium Orchids
The beauty of Mediterranean flora in Wales – from wish list to reality
Sunday 12 September (dinner) – Wednesday 15 September (breakfast)
For members within the UK there is the possibility of seeing an outstanding collection of Mediterranean plants without travelling abroad. We’re organising a trip to the National Botanic Garden of Wales at Llanarthne, which has been on our wish list for years. As well as the National Botanic Garden we will visit three or four less Mediterranean but extremely interesting gardens. This will, of course, be subject to following government guidelines and requirements. This is now fully booked. Please contact Heather to be put on the waiting list.
Trip to Eastern Sicily
Provisionally, Monday 27 September to Monday 4 October 2021
Visit both public and private gardens in and around Taormina, Mount Etna, Catania and Siracusa, together with wildflower walks, visits to nurseries and archaeological site and historic sites; staying in both Catania and Siracusa. Our trip will be led by local horticulturist, Sergio Cumitini.
A Greek Island
2022 – Provisional
It is impossible to plan trips to the Mediterranean with certainty under current circumstances but we have provisional plans in place for a visit to Corfu, Evia or mainland Greece for wild-flower botanising and visits to a small number of gardens. One of these will be finalised and notified to members when Covid regulations allow. Picture shows an infinity pool near the sea in one of the Corfu gardens.
Other provisional plans are as follows:
- The Maremma Italy – spring 2022. Walking and botanising in the southern part of the province of Grosseto.
- William Dyson Salvias at Great Comp, Kent – 17 September (postponed from 2020).
- Armenia – June 2022. Exploration of the rich endemic flora, guided by Dr Anna Asatryan, who led our previous visit.