Jessica Pannett from Shropshire is our speaker for the July meeting on Thursday 13th July at 7.45pm in the Christ Church Centre, Stone. Her talk will concentrate on the use of foliage in the garden.Jessica is a lecturer and broadcaster for local radio on gardening topics.

On July 27th we have a bus trip to Middleton Hall near Tamworth and to a private garden – The Burrows. Further details are on our Events page.

Please note that there is no meeting in August. If you are visiting gardens over the summer why not share your photos with us by emailing (one or two) or downloading onto a memory stick to bring to the September meeting – they can then be added to our Photo Gallery page.

Photos from our June meeting and from RHS Chatsworth can be found on the Photo Gallery page.

Garden Visits.  Don’t forget to check for NGS gardens open locally this month . In addition Barlaston Community Group had such a success with an Open Gardens weekend last year that they are running it again this year. On the weekend of July 15 – 16th a range of gardens across Barlaston will be open from 11am until 3pm. Tickets (programmes) cost £2 from Kitson’s Chemist in Orchard Place.

Our June meeting will be held on Thursday 8th June at Christ Church Centre, Stone at 7.45pm. Our speaker is Jack Swann from Congleton whose talk is entitled ‘The Beauty of Trees and Shrubs’. Mr Swann was responsible for the management and maintenance of the Arboretum at Jodrell Bank from 1975 to 1998. Having taken early retirement he now works as a volunteer with the Cheshire Wildlife Trust surveying the health of Cheshire’s Black Poplars.

On the 22nd we also have our bus trip to Whichford Pottery and Meadow Farm Garden and Nursery – further details on the Events page. There are still a few places on the bus as I write this (June 1st).

For photos of last month’s trip to Wildgoose Nursery see our Photo Gallery page. There are also some photos of dahlia and chrysanthemum displays at Chelsea. Photos from RHS Chatsworth and from Mr Swann’s talk can also be found there.

Garden visits for June – don’t forget to check for gardens locally open under the NGS scheme.  June 17 -18th is Eccleshall Open Gardens weekend, a total of fourteen gardens to see over the weekend of all sizes and sorts with plant sales and refreshments available. Tickets (programme) for this event are £5 which goes towards the cost of maintaining the High Street flowers.

The Annual Plant Sale of General Garden Plants takes place on Saturday May 6th from 9am – 2pm at St Michael’s Hall, Lichfield Street. Lots of bargains and NO admission charge! Further details on the Events page.

This month’s meeting will be held on Thursday May 11th, 7.45pm at the ChristChurch Centre. Our speaker will be Danny Wells with a talk about Joseph Paxton – “the busiest man in England”. Discover more about the man and his designs for gardens, conservatories, parks and lots more.

Also this month is our bus trip to Ludlow and then Wildegoose Nursery and Garden on May 25th – tea and cakes to end the day are promised! Further details on the Events page.

Finalist in the Daily Mail National Garden Competition. 6.8.2015
Gorden Malt

Our meeting this month is on the first Thursday (not the second) – April 6th, ChristChurch Centre at 7.45pm. Our speaker will be Gordon Malt with a talk entitled ‘Salvias I Grow and Love’. Gordon originally trained at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh and says he has spent ‘half a lifetime’ in horticulture/agriculture, including ten years teaching. He loves to propagate his own plants and also opens his garden near Shifnal to visitors.

Nxt month sees the Annual Plant Sale on May 6th – details on the Events page.

We’ve also been asked to provide a link to the Plant Hunters’ Fairs Newsletter for this month – find it here or look on our Links page for a link to their website. It is 48 pages packed with ideas, gardens (and Fairs) to visit, plants to buy, articles about some of the specialist nurseries you will find at the fair . . . and all in glorious technicolor. Of local interest are articles about the Dorothy Clive Garden, Sugnall Walled Garden, Consall Forge, and the Staffordshire Gardens and Parks Trust.