“Springtime is the land awakening. The March winds are the morning yawn.” ― Lewis Grizzard

Friday Forum held its AGM and free raffle this week.  Minutes have been emailed to members.  Our Chairman, Kate, the committee and all members were thanked for their valuable contributions to the group.

Members were asked to bring in the Acer seeds which were given out with instructions from Peter Williams last Autumn.  Although they were kept in the fridge for the stipulated amount of time, only one member managed to get them to sprout!

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 (Left)Ann’s Orchid Spiranthes 'Chadd's Ford', 

(Right) Dorothy brought a posy of Bellis perennis, the whiteRibes alpinum, Iris reticulata. Cyclamen coum, Muscari, Helleborus niger plus other hellebores, Pulmonaria, Galanthus nivalis. This would make a pretty Spring bed.

Chrisitine’s Andromeda polifolia 'Blue Ice' aka Bog rosemary 

Norma’s Skimmia, Hellebore plus Hellebore seedlings

Judith’s Coleus

Next Meeting

There will be no meeting on Good Friday.

April 21^st: Mini Spring Show.  We encourage all members to have a go.  More details and sent by email.

“Friends, like flowers, make life more beautiful.” ― Michele Farabee

Presentation by Suzie Rush: Picked at Dawn, the On Growing Story.

With a background of studying art and working in a garden centre, Suzie started growing her own flowers first in a walled garden in Thirsk before taking on a much larger hayfield in Kilburn. Passionate about flowers and reducing carbon footprints, Suzie took us through the process of growing and tending her flowers which are then made into arrangements for weddings and events. Suzie will only use the flowers in season and has now diversified into flower arranging workshops and supplying well rooted plug plants. We were all interested in how her business developed through perseverance and hard work, especially as she has only used the media to publicise her services.

HOME (pickedatdawn.co.uk) is her website and About - Picked at Dawn (substack.com) keeps you up-to-date with her news.

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Ann brought Mandrake, Mandragora officinarum, and told us an amusing tale, details of which can be found here.The plant that can kill and cure - BBC News , 
Narcissus cyclaminens, olsynium douglasii sisyrinchium (grass widow), scilla biflora and corydalis malkensis

Maggie Y brought an assortment of daffodils: Snow Baby, Minnow, Tête á Tête and Jetfire

Kate brought Pachyphragma, Brunnera Jack Frost, Pulmonaria Blue Ensign and various Primulas including Primula marginata, the Silver-Edged Primrose

Gill E brought Primroses, Chionodoxa, Cardamine, Lonicera fragrantissima, Pulmonarias, Snowdrops, Cyclamen and Scilla

Gill J’s Iris reticulata

“The February sunshine steeps your boughs, and tints the buds, and swells the leaves within.” – William Cullen Bryant

Talk: Mountain Flower Holidays in Eastern Europe 

Michael Myers gave us a fascinating talk on Mountain Flower Holidays in Eastern Europe. After researching the best places to visit, Michael told us about his journeys since 1990s to view the alpine horticulture. We learnt about the wild flower meadows of Slovenia and the Trenta botanic gardens in the Alps on the Austrian border. We heard about the bears in Romania, which only the communist dictator, Nicolae Ceaușescu, was allowed to hunt. We saw the fabulous palaces built after his regime, the flora of the Maritime Alps and the two week Prague Alpine Show. It was interesting to see some rare plants and where some more common plants originated such as saxifrage, Leopard’s Mane, Pulsatilla and Hepatica, to name but a few. 

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In Suzanne’s vase are plants that grow in the same bed in her garden. The colours blend well together and the plants give out a strong fragrance. Helleborus hybridus, pink speckled and white with pink speckles, Helleborus niger with petals which turn green as it ages, Skimmia rubella, Skimmia confusa Kew Green, Sarcococca humilis, Euonymus Fortunei emerald and gold and Choisya ternata Sundance

Ann brought Synthyris missurica var. stellata, Leucojum vernum var. carpathicum with its yellowtips and Leucojum vernum Vagneri with green tips, Puschkinia scilloides, Hepatica ballardii, Galanthus f.p, Crocus tommasinianus and crocus Gypsy Girl 

Gill J brought Hellebores, Arabis, Anemone blanda, Jasmine nudiflorum, Muscari, Heather, Snowdrop S. Arnott and Wallflower 

Margaret H’s bowl of Hellebore heads 

In her bid to deter slugs and snails from her hostas, Kate has purchased some copper collars. We are following her progress with interest.

Next Meeting

3^rd March with a talk by the farmer florist Susie Rush: Picked at Dawn, The On Growing story. HOME (pickedatdawn.co.uk) .

“The love of gardening is a seed once sown that never dies.” Gertrude Jekyll

 

Discussion

Judith hosted a lively discussion on gardens and plants from our childhoods. The memories went back to WW2 and included bomb shelters in the back garden and digging for victory, usually rhubarb and potatoes.

Judith remembered Galega (Goats Rue), carnations,, lupins and daisies, picking bluebells, visiting a relative’s allotment where gladioli were grown and sending off for seed catalogues.

Margaret H told us about her father tickling the tomatoes in the greenhouse with a rabbit’s tail. Her grandma grew the Rose Cecile Brunner which Margaret still has in her garden and has passed on to her daughter.

Peter’s family gardened on limestone in Eyam, Derbyshire, reknowned for self isolating to prevent the spread of the plague. Perhaps that’s why he had a resident ghost which passed their garden! His garden also housed cages of budgerigars and canaries.

Many members recalled the flowers of their childhood: Cornflowers, London Pride, Sweet Peas, Dahlias, Sunflowers and Golden Rod. Remembered also were the making daisy chains, testing whether we liked butter with a buttercup under the chin, making perfume from rose petals and the trend for the regimented planting out of bedding plants such as Marigolds, Alyssum and Lobelia.

Suzanne told us how, as a child, she learnt gardening skills from both sets of grandparents and Amanda remembered the scent of Irises.

Dorothy was given a small plot in her parent’s garden on which she grew Sunflowers. The farmer offered her a penny for the seeds for his parrot but, before she could claim her reward, the plants got eaten by the horse in the next field!

Ann showed us the Enid Blyton book, Let's Garden, which sparked her love of gardening.

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The sweet fragrance of early flowering shrubs permeated the whole room. It is clear how they attract and provide food for insects and bees.

Judith’s attractive Hellebore Silver Dollar came from her favourite supermarket

Amanda brought Iris and Witch Hazel

Gill’s posy contains Lonicera fragrantissima, Arum Italicum, Iris, Snowdrops, Pieris, Christmas Box and Pulmonaria

Kate’s posy contains various Snowdrops, variegated Pulmonaria and Iberis.

Ann brought the winter flowering Clematis Freckles, Arum, Puschkini, Hepatica and yellow, white and dark purple Hellebores

Maggie brought Sarcococca hookeriana 'Purple Stem' , Viburnum x bodnantense Charles Lamont, and Viburnum tinus 

Kate’s Hellebore Dorothy’s Dawn and quirky ornamental ducks came from Moss and Moor garden centre in Ilkley

Next Meeting:

The next meeting on 17^th February is a talk by Michael Myers entitled Mountain Flower Holidays in Eastern Europe.

“The wise gardener anticipates June in January.” Anonymous

 Presentation

We were pleased to welcome Brian Dennsion again to Friday Forum. On this visit he took us on a tour around his beautifully designed garden. Members made copious notes on the printed lists when they saw a plant or an idea to copy in their own gardens. Brian also wowed us with the ingenious watering methods which he has invented and showed us how he keeps his lawn in pristine condition. A cheerful slide show on a very cold afternoon.

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There is still a lot of interest in the gardens of some of our members.

Amanda’s Snowdrops: The double Lady Beatrix Stanley on the right and Rosemary Burnham with its fine green lines (currently selling at £45.00 per bulb).  In the foreground, Carol’s Clematis Winter Beauty

Gill’s posy contains Hellebores which she split the stems to last longer, variegated Ivy and single and double Snowdrops

Ann’s basket contains Witch Hazel Hamamelis Mollis, Snowdrops Galanthus Elwesii and Wendy’s Gold, the half hardy Narcissus Elara (n.cantabricus × romieuxii), Cyclamen coum, Iris ungularis, Viburnum tinus and Christmas Box (Sarcococcus confusa) and Muscari Early Bird

Kate brought Smimmia japonica and Kew Green, Hamamelis Arnold Promise, variegated Cistus, Christmas Box (Sarcococcus) and Polypodium cambricum Richard Kayse

Kate’s Helleborus niger

Next Meeting

3^rd February: Plants from our childhoods; a group participation session led by Judith Ladley.

Christmas Forum

What better way to end the year?

A flower arranging and wreath making demonstration with lots of useful tips from Friday Forum members Judith and Peter.

Members then tried their hand at creating their own masterpieces

Home made mince pies and Christmas tree parkin by Liz

Liz also made this Boxing Day Chutney which flew off the sales table

Next meeting will be on 20^th January: Activities and their Results in a Freely Blooming Garden by Brian Denison.

Merry Christmas and Happy New year