Saturday 19 December 2015

Christmas Celebrations



Party Time
Friday Forum started celebrations with a Christmas Quiz with a seasonal theme set by Maggie and Kate.  There were mince pies plus a Christmas flower arrangement workshop; a selection of the finished products are shown below.
 
Display Table
Ann shared a Christmas card she had received from Doug Simpson, who introduced Red Kites into Yorkshire showing some of the items which have been found in their nests.  Read the back of the card for other extraordinary finds.  Incredible!

Gill brought a sprig of lonicera fragrantissima (winter-flowering honeysuckle) in flower
Gill also reminded us about the daffodil 'Rijnveld's Early Sensation which offers cheerful colour at this time of year. In milder winters, or in particularly sheltered gardens, this trumpet daffodil can be in bloom in late December or early January.  I have put a note in my diary for next year but some like the daffodil to herald the spring.  Any thoughts or personal preferences?
Next Meeting
Jan 15th       Presentation – Quetzals, Hoatzins and Incas by Peter and Barbara Murphy  
Please note that this is the only Friday Forum meeting in January.  For the full programme for 2016, please see the tab at the top of the blog.       

Tuesday 8 December 2015

Winter Warmer



Speaker:  Susie Hart MBE, Craft Aid International 

Susie began her presentation by singing a Tanzanian song in her amazing voice while signing in deaf language.  Susie told us how the whole family moved to Iringa, where she set up workshops to give sustainable skills to the disabled who were stigmatised and lived in undignified conditions.  Along with her husband, a vet, they set up social enterprises making paper from elephant dung and various handicrafts along with a cafe and guest house, providing employment and training opportunities for local people with disabilities.  A facility providing physiotherapy and disability aids was also set up.
This model has been adopted in Peru and Craft Aid International also runs craft sessions for adults with disabilities in the UK.
We were all touched by the difference Susie made to the lives of so many people across the globe. 

Display Table
Examples of flower arrangements were brought in to give ideas for next meeting
Gill’s wreaths
 
Judith’s arrangements in flower pots and Norma’s pink arrangement in a teacup
 
Also on the table:

Jenny’s creeping wire vine Muehlenbeckia axillaris (Australian Ivy) and Barbed wire plant Calocephalus brownii

 
 

Ann’s Miscanthus sinensis Cosmoplitan, Actea Cimicifuga , Restio quadrates and Restio Cannomois grandis (Bell Reed) which grow to over 7ft. 

Gill’s iris lazica and Iphion

 
Notice Board

Margaret D thanked those who provided refreshments and helped in the kitchen at what was the last Paxton Show for this year.  Despite the bad weather, the sales table was successful.

Next Meeting
18th December:  Quiz, festive flower arrangements and mince pies.  Members are requested to wear red and/or green!
Please keep your eyes open for the page giving the new programme for 2016 as the dates in January may be subject to change.