SRGC Travelling Speaker Tour: October 2010

[Maggi Young]

Travelling Speaker Tour: October 2010

The 2010 Travelling Speaker is  a Forumist from New Zealand: Dave Toole. He will be visiting/speaking to the following Groups:

Monday 4th October Borders Group

Fiordland - Flowers, Foliage and Form

Tuesday 5th October Perth Group

Plants of the North Southland and Beyond

Wednesday 6th October Highland Group, joint meeting with Moray Group

Fiordland - Flowers, Foliage and Form

Friday 8th October       South West Scotland Group ( Threave Garden Visitor Centre, Castle Douglas)

  Plants of the North Southland and Beyond


Monday 11th October West of Scotland Group

Plants of the North Southland and Beyond

Tuesday 12th October Edinburgh Group

Plants of the North Southland and Beyond

Wednesday 13th October Ayrshire Group

Fiordland - Flowers, Foliage and Form

Members wishing to take the advantage of hearing Dave speak should contact the relevant

Group Convener as to venue and times

[ranunculus]

Very best wishes to Dave ... have a wonderful tour and enjoy the experience!

[Lesley Cox]

Dave, if you're able to check in here from time to time, I wish you a wonderful time talking to these groups and every success in promoting our native flowers. I know you'll do a great job. Have a great time but don't forget Hilda would like to do some shopping.

[t00lie]

Currently in Aberystwyn, coastal Wales after a wonderful weekend with our daughter who lives down in Taunton Somerset  .

Amy took us to the Dorset coast,(in our rental of course   ) and the wonderful village of Lyme Regis --NZ native shrubs/trees all over the place.

Hope to talk Hilda into taking the train up to the top of Mount Snowdon tomorrow --yes i know, our waistlines tell us we should walk it   however time is limited........

Both of us are loving the people,history and culture.

Thanks for the best wishes Cliff/Lesley

ps i'm just about matching 'her indoors' ?? in the shopping department...spent last night and this morning  in Hay on Wye ,(mid Wales) --famous for the number of bookshops in the village  ...........

[tonyg]

Dave - you are in a beautiful part of the UK.  I know the area very well.  If you don't get to Snowdon there are other steam railways at Tywyn (Talyllyn Railway 10 miles North but a longer drive) and Porthmadog / Blaenau Ffestiniog (Ffestiniog Railway) ... but the views are not quite as good as from the top of Snowdon.  Mind you looking at the weather forecast i'd leave Snowdon until Thursday or later!

[Lesley Cox]

Dave, if you get up Mt Snowdon, look for Pinguiculas. I'm not sure if P. vulgaris or grandiflora but either way, having grown them in a wet saucer, it's a wonderful thing to see them growing in their natural habitat, probably vertically and dripping with water. They won't be in flower now but the sticky, glandular leaves are very distinctive.

[t00lie]

Thanks for the info Tony .We only have tomorrow planned for this area so if the weather is suspect will look at your other options .

As you say a beautiful part of the country --as a child i would often get up half way through the night to watch/listen to the All Blacks as they played at different venues through out Wales --i can remember comments being made of the strong coal men from the deep valleys and as we passed a road sign today stating 'Bridgend ' i suddenly remembered that the great fullback JPR Williams came from there.

Cheers dave.

ps Crocus Group seed has arrived in Somerset --thanks to all involved .  

[Paddy Tobin]

Hi Dave,

Have a good time during your visit. Paddy

[TC]

Just back from the talk by Dave Tool at the Ayr Group meeting.  It was a pleasure meeting him and Hilda and seeing the plants and scenery of Fiordland in the South Island.  When I saw the terrain he had climbed to get the pictures, it was rather him than me !  I think I prefer armchair travelling now.
They are on their way to Penrith in the Lake district tomorrow for a few days before hitting the "Big Smoke" and then home.  When I next see one of his postings on the forum, I will be able to put a Kiwi accent to the writing.  Here are a few pictures to prove he was here!!

[Lesley Cox]

Golly Tom, Dave's a big enough lad. Are you standing on a box or something?

[t00lie]

Well thats the official side of the visit over.
We would like thank all of you --for the wonderful friendship .warmth and humour we have shared.

Cliff Booker made mention recently ,in thanking the USA folk after his visit there, of being treated as royalty--we also experienced that  here in the UK as well ,plus a sense of belonging --belonging to the Scot Rock fraternity and with our historical blood ties, a sense of belonging or connection to this, the 'old' country.

A warm hearted regards

Dave and Hilda.

[Maggi Young]

This picture of Hilda and Dave was taken by SRGC Journal Editor, Anton Edwards, at the recent Discussion Weekend......

[ichristie]

Hi Dave and Hilda, great to know you have arrived home, I will bet you are Christmas crackered after your whirlwind tour, I have one problem you did not manage to get here well watch out Ann and I will be with you soon we leave here on 30th Oct will be in New Zealand by 10th Nov hope to see you, cheers Ian the Christie kind.

[TC]

Golly Tom, Dave's a big enough lad. Are you standing on a box or something?

Dave was leaning against the wall and I was standing up next to him.  Anne Sinclair, who took the picture, took it at her eye level which is about below Dave's chin level, fore-shortening the scene.  To my shame, my body mass index is much greater than Dave's although he was muttering something about cutting back his food intake when he got back home !!

[Lesley Cox]

Don't believe that though Tom. I've seen him attached to a chocolate cake!