Succulents to enhance the small garden June 26, 2009

Eric Harley, currently Emeritus Professor in the Faculty of Health Sciences at UCT, will talk about how well succulents can do in Cape Town gardens at the next meeting of the Cape Horticultural Society.  A specialist in chemical pathology, Professor Harley’sinterests range across an extremely diverse spectrum, from the botanical, such as orchids, to research programmes relating to bats, cheetah, leopard toads, geometric tortoises and many other other species.

The meeting will be held at 20:00 on Monday, July 6, and will start with a display, discussion and sale of interesting and unusual plants.  Visitors are most welcome at R15 each, and tea is included.  No booking is required, and the venue is the Athenaeum, 154 Campground Road, Newlands. For further information, telephone Glenda on 021-531-5713.

Plants for People June 18, 2009

Plants for People

Talk on indigenous food gardens June 17, 2009

30 June 2009

7:30 pm at Josephine Mill,

13 Boundary Road, Newlands, Cape Town

Cynthia Marais from the Natural Food Foundation (Pty) Ltd will be giving a talk on the wild possibilities offered by indigenous food gardens. The NFF runs mentoring programmes for mentors within groups and organisations which want to create indigenous edible gardens and works with the uniqueness of each situation.

WESTERN LEOPARD TOAD PUBLIC MEETINGS June 9, 2009

WESTERN LEOPARD TOAD PUBLIC MEETINGS

The Western Leopard Toad Amietophrynus pantherinus breeding season is fast approaching and the City of Cape Town in partnership with the Western Leopard Toad Conservation Committee are planning public awareness meetings to address the public on the plight of this endangered amphibian and to discuss the importance and forms of public involvement in the conservation of this animal.

Tied to low lying coastal areas, this local amphibian is threatened by destruction of breeding sites, as well as further urban developments and expansion. Predominately living and foraging in urban gardens, the conservation of this species is almost entirely dependent on the actions of these urban landowners. Major threats to the toads include wetland destruction, urbanization and the death of adult and sub-adult individuals through road kills during the breeding season around August month. One centimeter sized toadlets emerge and disperse from these breeding sites around December month, when many are also killed by oncoming traffic.

Please find the venue, date and time for the meeting closest to you in the table below.

Your attendance is of great importance and I look forward to meeting you!

Many Thanks

Mark Day

Coordinator: Awareness, census and volunteer work
Western Leopard Toad Conservation Committee

082 516 3602

Toad Suburbs	Venue	Date	Time	Address
Tokai/Steenberg	Tokai Library	Monday 22nd June	19H30 – 21H00	Tokai Rd, Tokai
Phillipi	Edith Stevens Wetland Park	Tuesday 23rd June	19H30 – 21H00	Lansdowne Rd, Phillipi
Fish Hoek/ Sun Valley/ Noordhoek/ Capri/ Kommetjie	Fish Hoek Library Hall	Wednesday 24th June	19H30 – 21H00	Central Circle, Fish Hoek
Constantia	Alphen Hall	Thursday 25th June	19H30 – 21H00	Constantia Main Rd, Constantia
Obs/Pinelands	Valkenberg EE Center	Monday 29th June	19H30 – 21H00	Valkenberg Hospital, Off Liesbeek  Parkway Rd, Observatory
Hout Bay	Hout Bay Library	Tuesday 30 June	19H30 – 21H00	20 Melkhout Crescent, Hout Bay
Glencairn	Southern Right Hotel	Wednesday 1st July	19H30 – 21H00	Entrance of Glen Rd, Glencairn
Grassy Park/ Zeekoevlei	Rondevlei Nature Reserve	Thursday 2nd July	19H30 – 21H00	1 Fisherman’s Walk, Zeekoevlei.
Kirstenhof/Lakeside/ Westlake	The Barn	Monday 6th July	19H30 – 21H00	The Sanctuary, Kirstenhof
Bergvleit/ Meadowridge/ Southfield/ Retreat	Meadowridge Library	Tuesday 7th July	19H30 – 21H00	C/o Howard Drive, Meadowridge

Cape Horticultural Society – June Meeting May 25, 2009

INTERESTING USES FOR INDIGENOUS PLANTS

Cherise Viljoen, nursery supervisor of the Wholesale Nursery at Kirstenbosch, will discuss the enormous range of interesting uses for indigenous plants at the Cape Horticultural Society’s next meeting on Monday, June 1.

The meeting will start at 20:00 with a display, discussion and sale of interesting and unusual plants. Visitors are most welcome at R15 each, and tea is included. No booking is required, and the venue is the Athenaeum, 154 Campground Road, Newlands. For further information, telephone Glenda on 021-531-5713.

“Your Garden” – We have a winner!! May 10, 2009

Flourish’s first photo competition has a winner!!

Congrats to Jo Reidy for your great pic of the hummingbird moth. Your subscription to Garden and Home is being arranged right now!

Thanks so much to all our entrants who’ve submitted such gorgeous pics.

Watch this space for news about the next photo competition for Flourish members!

Your Garden Entry Number 7 May 8, 2009

Nikki’s lovely rose is our next entry in the competition. Please leave a comment to vote.

Gorgeous rose

Your Garden Entry Number 6 May 8, 2009

Shaune has submitted these lovely floral photos.  To vote please leave a comment!

A lovely suprise as it's the first time it's flowered and I didn't know it was there

The beautiful bell-shaped flowers of pigs ear

A VISIT TO MONET’S GARDEN April 26, 2009

A glorious visual treat is in store at the Cape Horticultural Society’s next meeting on Monday, May 4, when Sue Hillyard, well-known conservationist and photographer, describes her recent visit to France in a presentation entitled “Lessons from Monet – a photographer’s visit to Giverny”.

The meeting starts at 20:00 with a display, discussion and sale of interesting and unusual plants. Visitors are most welcome at R15 each, and tea is included. No booking is required, and the meeting is held at the Athenaeum, 154 Campground Road, Newlands. For further information, telephone Glenda on 021-531-5713.

Intro to fynbos ID course April 21, 2009

From Wendy Hitchcock:

I have been running Introductory fynbos identification courses for the last few years and they have been very well received. I have recently presented the same course to botanical artists in Joburg and Pretoria and will be going to Pietermaritzburg to introduce interested people to the principles of plant identification. I am running the next course 11-14 May and have other workshops scheduled for the rest of the year.

 

I would really appreciate it if you could inform interested members about the course by passing on the information in the attached files.

 plant-id-and-drawing-courses-for-2009

registration-form-for-plant-identification-and-botanical-drawing-workshops-2009

 

 The workshops are all very practical and I have a dissecting microscope with a camera attached so that the image can be put up on a screen and everybody can see the flower being dissected. The only requirement is that participants are keen to learn about flowers, what the different parts are and how they are used to classify them.

 Should you want a morning demo for a rainy day to unpack the insides of flowers I would be very happy to schedule a time.

Thanx in advance

 

Wendy