Buderim Garden Club

Buderim Garden Club

We're Back! Our first meeting in 2021 was a great, happy meeting!

Buderim Garden Club meetings restarted on Friday 12th February! Apart from our November 2020 AGM that took place on the Buderim Hall verandah and adjacent lawn, this was our first meeting since Friday 13th 2020 - an ominous date.
There were 114 members and 6 visitors, and as the above photo shows, we were blooming - pleased to be back!

Prior to the monthly meeting, President John Lyon held  a General Meeting to put to a vote the expenditure of $2000 for the Council to draw up a suitable plan for the  pavilion/arbour we wish to erect to celebrate our 75 years as a garden club. The President outlined the site and the structure that is being proposed in the Village Green (opposite the Buderim hall).
By a show of hands, this expenditure was approved by the Club members. Funding is being sought for this project, and hopefully it will be finished and opened at our Garden Festival in the 2nd weekend of October 2021.

The retiring committee members were thanked and the 3 new members were introduced:
Marian Upston is the co-ordinator of the Photo Competition, and she gave a magnificent presentation of the Winners and the Highly Commended photos of flowers & fungi - all of which were given a certificate!
Maureen Michael is in charge of the Raffles, and Lynette Valentine is assisting Eunice Worden with the Cut Flowers competition.

Sue Fingleton from Nambour Floral Art group demonstrated how to outline and then "fill in" a large arrangement with different textures of foliage, primary and smaller secondary flowers.  This was most entertaining and enlightening, and Sue donated the arrangement for a raffle prize.
Our 3 Amigos (Ken, Robin and Steve) were as usual, entertaining, as they discussed an old lime fruit, and what vegies and flowering plants should be sown or pruned at this time.
Steve Wikman announced that a Workshop will be held at Bev Schouten's place at 9 a.m. on Wed. 24th March. Names and details will be finalised at the March meeting. Steve will talk mainly on the many varieties of salvias.
Hopefully a bus trip will be organised soon, with people indicating a preference for a bus visit to local gardens.
We're still looking for a Newsletter editor - can someone volunteer soon please!

Due to the absence of meetings from March 2020, all membership fees will carry through to the 2021 AGM.
This year, there will be a lot happening as we celebrate our 75 year anniversary.
 Our numbers are growing - there are currently 11 life members and 278 members. Wow!

Remember, the 2 gardening groups have restarted, and will welcome new members: 
Shedders at the hall on the 4th Friday of the month.  3 - 5pm (with a drink afterwards). Email Teddy on Teddygove@gmail.com to join them.
Community Garden Group meet at the old Buderim P.O. on 3rd Monday each month 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. Convenor: Mike Kelly 0418 739 634

Australia day at Buderim Mt. School Oval - BGC Stall with helpers

The Buderim Garden Club had a marque on the oval and all members were encouraged to come and celebrate this great day.

Many visitors were extremely impressed with the spectacular BGC stall and the cuttings and the 2021 calendars that were freely given out.

This was a good PR event for BGC!

Remember that the Photo Competition will recommence in February 2021, and photos are due in by January 31st 2021.
The February topic is "A close-up of flower, foliage or fungi".  Please send entries to buderimphotos@gmail.com
           Up Coming Events
February
27th Queensland Begonia Soc. at Mt Coot-tha
March 
6-7th Northern District Hort. Soc. Annual Show - Wavell Hts Community Hall
12-14th Queensland Dahlia Soc. Show - Belmont Shooting Complex
April
10-11th  QCGC 'A Garden A.Fair - Mt Coot-tha
17-18th Wondai Autumn Garden Expo

Happy New Year!  Let's hope it's a good one without any..................fear .......of virus.

The first Buderim Garden Club meeting will be held on Friday 12th February, when the speaker will be Sue Fingleton from Nambour Floral Art group.   Please make sure you wear your name badge so we can greet you and remember who you are! 
The good news is that due to the absence of meetings from March 2020, all 2020 membership fees will carry through to the 2021 AGM. Great!

2021 will be a big year as we celebrate our 75 years anniversary. A calendar has been produced to start the celebrations, and all members were given one at the end of 2020.  


Buderim Garden Festival will be held from Friday 15th to Sunday 17th October 2021

BGC CHRISTMAS PARTY 

The 2020 Christmas Party was held on Thursday 3rd December at the Buderim Tavern. It was a huge success - the organisation had everything running smoothly, the raffle prizes were great, the Christmas dinner was exceptional, the table centre-pieces were creative floral masterpieces, the quiz was fun (although many people got stuck on the 1st question) and of course the company was happy, noisy and contented to finally socialise with members, including many new ones. (Our numbers have grown to 253! )
Congratulations to our committee and to the Tavern!

Photos of this luncheon can be viewed under the ALBUMS heading above.

Our A.G.M. was held at 2 pm on Friday 13th November
President John Lyon's Annual Report can be viewed under the heading above
and
Our plant stall was very successful

Many thanks to Steve Wikman and the BGC committee for organising the plant (covid) trail and pricing of all the contributed plants.
Below, Vonnie gave her Treasurer's report.  Photo Competition Co-Ordinator, Merryn Jooste presented the winner's trophy to Elizabeth Hales
and equal-second prize certificates to Nev Douglas and Steve Wikman

The new BGC committee for 2021 was elected

The BGC Management committee for year 2021.
President John Lyon, Treasurer Vonnie Young, Secretary Rosemary Simmons, Kim Bendall, Cassie Burlington,  Robin Porter,  Patricia James,
Mike Kelly, John Sargaison and  new members Marion Upston, Lynette Valentine, and Maureen Michael.
John thanked 4 retiring members, Leanne Crowe,  Merryn Jooste, Lesley Doyle and a very special thanks went to hard-working secretary Monika, who will have a role as Assisting Committee person.
Retiring Newsletter editor Patricia James was officially thanked for her excellent collations.

Check out Patricia James'  November 2020 newsletter -  many thanks Patricia

Calendars were given out on friday 23rd, and the Shedders tidied the hall gardens before enjoying a social drink and chat afterwards


Many ordered calendars were picked-up at the BWMCA Memorial Hall  on Friday Oct 23 and at the Plant Stall and AGM on Nov 13 2020…

There will be a very limited number for sale at the Plant Stall or before  at $10.00 each.

 Old Buderim Post Office working bee

Photo shows Nev, Denise and Rosemary at the working bee to beautify the gardens around the old P.O.
Co-Ordinator Leanne Crowe would love some more people to join the group on the 3rd Monday of the month at 6 am.
Remember, many hands make light work.
Nev reckons there is a begonia in the garden there with a trunk that's older than he is!

Buderim Bendigo Bank Spring Display

John Lyon and Steve Wikman have set up a Spring Plants Display in the Buderim Bendigo Bank which remained till the end of November as part of the Bank’s Spring Home Loans Programme.
Many thanks to Teddy Gove, Steve and Ken Evens for the supply of some items for the Display.
We are very pleased that the Bendigo Bank is giving the BGC a $1000 donation for creating this display.

Check out the Photo competition results (under the Photos heading above)

***Patricia James has done a magnificent job on the September Newsletter. . 
We are so fortunate that she has continued to do this whilst we're not able to have monthly meetings. Many thanks Patricia.

*** A Wildflower walk at Kathleen McArthur Park (Currimundi Lake Conservation Park) happened on Monday,  Aug 17 2020 at 10:00.

*** Birdbath Demo and Workshop on Aug 26th..  A repeat performance went ahead on October 7th, since the numbers had to be reduced.

*** On Friday 31st July, the S.C. Regional Council organised a promotional video (titled SCC Cultural Heritage Discovery film) to showcase some historical sites within the shire. 
In our area, Buderim Pioneer Cottage was chosen, along with

Buderim Krauss Loco,  Buderim Forest Park, Buderim Palmwoods Heritage Tramway walk, Maroochy Regional Bushland Botanic Garden,   Yandina Historic House and museum, Mt Coolum, Big Pineapple & train,  Mt Ninderry, Nambour Genealogy Sunshine Coast Resource Centre.

Below is a photo of some of the Pioneer Cottage  and  Buderim Garden Club members who maintain this historical treasure.

More photos can be seen under the Albums heading above.

***  New Members’ Morning Tea was held on Wednesday 12th August at the Botanic Gardens.

Cancellation of our Buderim Garden Festival

*** 28th July 2020 News:  Sad, but not unexpected news!
The BGC management committee have decided to cancel the Spring Flower Show and Plant Market, as the the restrictions on the BWMCA Hall could not be met. The hall management committee did not think the restrictions would be eased any time soon, so it was decided to cancel and put all our efforts into 2021, our 75th Anniversary year, to be the best ever.
The aim is to hold a plant sale at our AGM on November 13th, so please keep potting up and growing on your contributions to this. The Plant Sale will be the only source of income for the club this year, so it is very important that people keep potting.
*** The Council have donated $2,000 to the BGC to help with funding. Since the Festival has been cancelled, this will be used in 2021, probably for the production of the 75th Anniversary calendar.

*** President John Lyon has been liaising with the BWMCA Hall committee and at this stage there is no possibility of holding Monthly Meetings in the near future. As soon as the way is clear, we will be back to normal!! In the meantime we are organising small events, to enable members to get together. Please let the members without emails know.

***Karen O/Connor has passed on info from Funtastic Tour Company, who have lots of variety on offer.
 https://www.thefuntastictourcompany.com.au/day-tours/

  • Skydrive Transfers have organised a tour to Carnival of Flowers..
  • Penny Hegarty has a number of tours available.

*** The committee has decided to carry over all memberships to Nov 1 2021, hence your 2020 fees will cover 2 years. 

Old Buderim Post Office and Pioneer Cottage Garden Working Bees July 2020.
See photos in ALBUMS heading above.

Buderim Garden Club Get-together 15th July at Caryll's home and garden.

Over 20 people enjoyed meeting together and exploring the now-stabilised plants in Caryll's extensive garden.  What a transformation from 2 years ago (when it was pouring with rain, and cuttings were just planted)! It was a very sunny, happy morning.
Many photos can be viewed under the Albums heading above.
President John Lyon announced that there is still uncertainty as to whether our Garden Festival will go ahead in October. If it does, there will be no Open Gardens, and if it is cancelled there will still be our Garden Stall - somewhere.  So, he asks that we keep potting plants for this, and now is the time to prune as plants finish flowering.
It was great to see John Sargaison and wife Paula there, after recovering from his surgery.
*** The 2 gardening groups have restarted, and will welcome new members: 
Shedders at the hall meet on the 4th Friday of the month.  3 - 5pm (with a drink afterwards). Email Teddy on  Teddygove@gmail.com to join them.
Community Garden Group meet third Monday of each month, 6.30 a.m to noon (or until you need to leave). 
Leanne Crowe wrote after the July working bee:
New members would be more than welcome to join this group.  We meet on the third Monday of each month for roughly an hour at 6.30 am. 
A great place to learn about pruning and gardening that suits our climate. There are a couple of photos in the Albums section above, showing work being done to the gardens prior to a film being made.  

Last Weekly Digest

*** Monika has compiled, editored and sourced the last Weekly Digest.  I'm sure we are all grateful for her mammoth efforts and also we thank the writers of the different subjects that have been presented.

***Check out the June Photo competition results under the PHOTOS heading above.

The topic for July is... Visitors to the Garden, and Entries close June 30th.


*** Next year is a very special year for the club, as we celebrate 75 years. We are one of the oldest garden clubs in Australia, and have submitted an article for GCA Spring Our Gardens magazine. The committee is busy thinking of ways to commemorate the occasion, such as a Commemorative Calendar, 75th Anniversary book, documenting the club's history, as well as fitting donations to other local groups, and also beautify Buderim.

Please let a committee member know of any ideas that you might have by emailing  buderimgardenclub@gmail.com


*** We welcome 2 new members this month, Cammie Pettiford and Sandra Montgomery.  


*** The Buderim Garden Club newsletter is now on line on https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nUNfOS6Fz0zysXNnJsfH8vP6KYo6EphW/view?usp=sharing
Patricia has collated a most interesting lot of news and photos for you to enjoy.

These contain interesting items, e.g. the fees that have been paid for the 2020 year will now include 2021 - that is a good move, since meetings are cancelled until further notice.
Check out the Newsletter, the Minutes and also the previous Weekly Digests on:

John and Kathy Lyon have been creative in their garden. Great wheelbarrows!

Weekly Digest no. 8 is online and includes all previous Weeklies

 Ken Evan's Patrea , and flowers of DragonFruit, Medanilla and Hippeastrum

Teddy Gove's garden

Below are Bev Schouten's camelias

****Monika has sent out the 7th Weekly Digest link below, as well as the QLD Council of Garden Clubs and Gardening Clubs of Australia links.(these are also found under the FB heading above for easy access. 
This week's Digest is very diverse with articles on orchids, cake baking, fire ant control, Mooloolaba Spit petition, Photography calendar, plants to give away and even a joke.

*** I have added some photos from a few people's gardens above, and also under the "Cut Flower" heading above. Please send any photos of flowers (that you would have liked to enter in our monthly competition) and I’ll put them on the web.

OR, you could ask me to come round and take some photos and perhaps give me a cup of tea!.

                                                                                                                                           Bev Schouten bevyart99@gmail.com  ph: 5444 8675








Nev Douglas's stand for his flowering plants (mainly orchids) on his back porch.


*** Check out the 6th Weekly Digest on this link:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ueY1RyXdkjdAxZsgSetit--0QP84J6bm?usp=sharing

Note: This link is easiest seen from the FB Links heading above.

It is full of interesting articles and photos, such as:

Nev Douglas's comments about Softcane Dendrobiums

Eunice’s labour of love in her garden

Discussion by the Amigos of the Sebago Potato and other varieties

Laurel and Peter Asimus say  “Hello” from their Toowong home

Garden photos from Lindsay Conwell, Susan Ellis, Anne and Wal Lanham, comments from Anne Gordon  and Merideth Walker.

Request for gardening help from the Buderim Horse and Pony Club in the Ballinger Sporting Complex. (No horsing around, just gardening and probably earning yourself some manure).

It’s all worth a look, and has prompted me to show some photos of my garden below.

Please send me your photos and I’ll put them on the web.
                                                                                                        Bev Schouten bevyart99@gmail.com  ph: 5444 8675 (web manager)

Bev Schouten's garden views

Elizabeth Hales' Garden (including the Badderam Banksia)


May 2020 Photo Competition Results can be viewed under the heading PHOTOS .

*** Entries for the June Photo Competition of  "Autumn Colours " must be received by 31st May
Send to buderimphotos@gmail.com    iphone photos are acceptable!
***The 5th Weekly Gardening Digest can be viewed from the FB Links heading above. 

***This Link is worth checking out with the previous Digests listed also.

Of special interest to me (Bev) was Steve's recipe of adding a tea spoon of salt to a litre of vinegar and spraying on weeds.   These weeds were in the shade and didn't need the sun to help the process.
This killed my small pavement weeds in a day and got rid of a 10 year old bottle of cider vinegar.  Thanks Steve!

***Many thanks to Patricia James for her informative Newsletter, complete with photos. This can be read via https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1qzFJrlfsEyCfbWPrUq0xcwOYREz4UBH5?usp=sharing



On ANZAC DAY we remember our war heroes, and we pay a tribute to them


Members of the Buderim Garden Club have honoured our war heroes with tributes, placed where the ANZAC service has long been held at the Buderim Mt. State School, but this year's tributes were placed at the closed gates..

 Monika has posted the Weekly Digest no 4. To see the beautiful photos (especially Nev's orchid) use the link

Remember to send in your Fern photos before the 30th April.  Keep gardening and keep happy and healthy.

The April Photo competition results are now posted under the "Photos" heading.

Interesting garden tips

Monika has sent out a bulletin of gardening items that we can read and activated at our leisure.  So, here's items to ponder............
From John Sargaison

When insect pests invade your plants you've got to get on to the problem right away. Colin prefers to use home-made remedies where possible because they're generally safer for the environment and more economical. However he advises, "Be careful of these solutions around children, as they should not be ingested. Don't store them in soft drink bottles and make sure you keep them out of reach of children.

Scale and Mealybugs: Make an oil preparation that suffocates them by mixing four tablespoons of dishwashing liquid into one cup of vegetable oil. Mix one part of that mixture to about twenty parts of water, put it in your sprayer and spray the affected plants.

Aphids, Caterpillars and Other Insects: Add two tablespoons of soap flakes to one litre of water and stir thoroughly until completely dissolved (this is quicker in warm water). There is no need to dilute this further, just spray it on as is.

Black Spot Fungicide: In Queensland, Black Spot's a major problem with roses, but this fungicide mixture works miracles. Add three teaspoons of bicarb soda to one litre of water. Don't get carried away with the bicarb soda because if you make it too strong, it'll cause all sorts of problems. Add a few drops of either dishwashing liquid, or fish emulsion to help the solution adhere to the leaf more effectively.

Fungicide: Mix one level teaspoon of bicarb soda into one litre of water. Add one litre of skim milk and a pinch of Condy's Crystals which you can get from a produce agent (someone that supplies to horse owners). Shake thoroughly.

Grasshopper, Caterpillar and Possum Deterrent: Mix a cup of molasses into one litre of water and spray it over new foliage. 

Nematodes: Add half a litre of molasses to two litres of water and spread over one and a half square metres of affected garden area.

All-round Insecticide: Chop four large onions, two cloves of garlic, and four hot chillies. Mix them together and cover with warm, soapy water and leave it to stand overnight. Strain off that liquid and add it to five litres of water to create an all-round insecticide. 

Pesticide: Crush a whole bulb of garlic and cover with vegetable oil. After two days, strain off the liquid, add a couple of drops of dishwashing liquid and use one millilitre of concentrate to one litre of water. 

Herbicide: Add a cup of common salt to a litre of vinegar. After it's dissolved, brush it directly onto weeds. Remember, it's not a selective weed killer. It'll kill anything it touches so be very careful how you use it. 

Predator Attractor: Predators that prey on pests are great things to have in the garden. Lacewings are particularly desirable because they consume aphids and many other pests. To encourage them into your garden, dissolve one teaspoon of a yeast based sandwich spread in water and spray it all over the plants.


A good Facebook site for gardeners - Jerry Coleby-Williams 
This is https://www.facebook.com/238444853764/posts/10159339481203765/
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From Ken Evans

VEGETABLE GARDEN  -  Plantings and Problems;   Vegetables need a rich well dug soil with ample quantities of compost,  manures and blood and bone added prior to planting out.  Ensure you leave space for the plant to grow (try to picture what the mature vegetable would be like and allow sufficient space between plants otherwise they become leggy and tough)  Large vegetables like cauliflower, cabbage and tomato require more space than lettuce and herbs. It is best to broadcast seed of lettuce, coriander and Chinese greens in their permanent beds and thin out to allow sufficient space.  This overcomes the set-back they suffer if transplanting.

Remember to do successive plantings of your favourite vegetables each month from now until July.

Now is a good time to plant sweet peas and strawberries.

While the weather is still fairly warm keep a watch for caterpillars especially in brassicas (cabbage family).

Lawn grub is very prevalent at the moment but if you see the orange wasp flying over the lawn you should be happy as it lays its eggs in the grubs which kills them.  Hey presto!  Natures chemical control.                               

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From Nev Douglas

Orchid Talk                Crucifix   Orchids          
 
Crucifix Orchids belong to the Epidendrum family. This particular family of orchids originated in South America.
They come in a number of flower colours and  can be found in most older gardens. Despite their widespread use in past days there seems to be little written about them.
A couple of pointers that I have found to be helpful are as follows. 
Leaving them in their pots, plant them in the garden preferably facing north to north east .
When they have finished flowering cut the stem back to about a couple of inches from the base.  If you don’t kikies will grow from the old stem and in no time you will have a tangled mess of stems. 

 If you want to multiply the plants  take the cut stems , put a label on them with the flower colour and put them under a bench  in the bushouse,  and in time ,you will have the kikies come away. Wait till the roots are about two inch long, cut off the stem   ( an inch or two either side of the Kikie )and repot the new plant.

To control their growth I used a mesh frame to contain them,  and I found it works well. You can buy this mesh from Bunnings. 

In the old days I used to get old cow  pats and placed them around the pots  and the orchids thrived on it.
Today , I use old potting mixture and feed with a mixture of granular and organic fertilizer.

In recent years the Japanese have carried out a extensive breeding program and their selections are much shorter in growth with  strongly coloured flowers. 

Some of  these Epi  varieties  are called Max Valley, Sunlight Valley, Crystal Valley etc. 

These are available at our local Orchid Nusery at West Woombye.   ( Robertson’s)
There has been a similar breeding program in  America . Their plants at more robust and have a bigger flower head

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Thanks goodness for our gardens! In these self-isolating times, at least we can work and enjoy our gardens.

*** Some good news is the purchase of a defribulator for the Buderim hall, (thanks to a 50% grant), which we can have in the Hall and take  on bus tours. We are also able to have some first aid training through St John’s . 

*** The Animal Rescue Collective demonstrated how generous the club members are. 

A magnificent sum  $780 was raised at the February meeting  ... well done everyone.

                                                                      Thank you to Vonnie and Merryn for organising this.

***The 2020 Buderim Australia Day parade was a huge success with just a sprinkling of rain at the start which kept us cool. There were about 20 Garden Club members, and we gave away herb posies, rosemary sprigs, heliconias and an assortment of flowers from Ken's and John's wheelbarrows.
We met some new members and loved the Caring Clowns antics as they followed us in the parade.
Photos can be seen under the heading ALBUMS above. Also Merryn Jooste took a lot of photos that can be viewed under the FB Links heading above or click here https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1JSnNkHv2qQmvQpv2RnDl-wdLsnJUJBgZ   
Use arrows on the RHS of the photo to move through them.

Buderim Garden Festival
Friday 18th October to 1 pm Sunday 20th, 2019

Check out the Festival photos under the Album heading and the Reports under Festival heading above.

    Gardens of Buderim Book

The “Gardens of Buderim” book was officially launched to the members at the BGC Christmas Lunch on Friday 8th December 2017

“Gardens of Buderim”  is on sale at Manawee Garden Centre and at the Old Post Office-Buderim. Price is now $10

OR,  Contact John Lyon, President, Buderim Garden Club, on Email john.lyon1@bigpond.com  or Mobile: 0448714561 to order copies.

Many thanks to Sarah Seeberg for all her hard work.
Below is a photo of the contributors for the Gardens of Buderim book.