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90th Anniversary Events and Zoom Talks

with Paul Spriggs

Paul has extensive experience of plants and gardening. He has specialised in the development and construction of rock gardens and is joint author, along with Kenton Seth, of the excellent book ‘The Crevice Garden’ published in 2022. Paul was a key part of the team involved in the SRGC project to build a crevice garden at Inverewe Gardens, Wester Ross, Scotland in 2019.

We are pleased to welcome Paul to share his own experiences of gardening in Vancouver Island, Canada which again has a climate with similarities to that experienced by many of our Members.

This talk has now finished...

Saturday 11th February 2023 - via Zoom, 7pm GMT for 7.15pm start
“101 other uses for an SRGC plant” with Sue Gill

We often choose plants for our gardens today based on their flowers, foliage or shape, their scent or autumn colour; but many of our plants have a history of human use stretching back many years, even millennia.

In this talk we’ll explore some of these other uses with a particular emphasis on plants from Scotland or common in Scottish gardens.

Discover unusual ice cream, which plant has the most common names and the oldest wooden tool known, as we look at the practical, the medical and the magical uses of our plants.

You’ll never look at your garden plants in the same way again! 

“A Garden from Scratch – Starting out All Over Again.” with Ian and Carole Bainbridge

A detailed look at the development of our garden over recent years. Starting with an almost blank canvas in moist south west Scotland in 2010, we have developed a range of different habitats to accommodate a variety of plants.

These include herbaceous, shrub and woodland beds, a rock garden, boulder bed, stumpery, several crevice gardens, a pond and scree areas, bulb meadow patches and a woodland wildlife bank.

Alongside these are an alpine house and frames, troughs and a rock gardeners’ chicken run!

We will cover what we have done, how we have constructed some areas and the plants we have used.

This educational event encourages members to meet and celebrate our 90 year anniversary.

There will be a short talk by Colin Crosbie, the SRGC President.

Visit the Rock Garden, Woodland Garden and Alpine Yard where you can meet with RBGE staff responsible for maintaining the alpine, rock and woodland plant collections, including behind the scenes at the alpine yard.

Tea, coffee and Birthday Cake will be provided at the event.

This is a brief summary only, full details are here on our SRGC 90th RBGE Event page.

"90 years of the Scottish Rock Garden Club" with Colin Crosbie

Colin Crosbie, the SRGC President, will give us a rundown of the history of the SRGC from starting over 90 years.

He highlights events and activities in his usual enthusiastic and informed style.

"Gardening in the South Island of New Zealand" with Dave Toole

Dave is well known to many members and our website Forumists.

He gardens in the far south of the South Island of New Zealand, in a climate very similar to Scotland.

Dave says: 'Our property 'Trillium Haven' is situated in a woodland setting and could be described as a garden of 2 halves …we will firstly stroll around shaded areas, home to numerous trilliums and the like, mostly raised from seed and then 'so called' sunnier spots viewing the results of converting existing plots into sand beds to accommodate an increasing collection of alpines.

At times I have been called a hopeless plantaholic , a title I wear with some pride so please be prepared for an overdose of greenery and colour. Sunglasses are optional!'