Garden Club visits local cacti garden

A stunning garden was the venue for Narrabri Garden Club’s May meeting.

Trish and Kevin Lawty are avid collectors of cacti and succulents, and many rare and unusual species take pride of place in their garden.

Members enjoyed a walk around the garden and were astounded at the size of some of the cacti.

Trish shared many tips for the successful growth of these plants, the main one being it is myth that they don’t need watering.

In our climate, they practice a weekly watering regime.

When potting new plants, cuttings are left for two weeks to dry off before being planted.

Trish uses a well-drained home-made mix, and prefers to use terracotta pots as the basic black plastic retains too much heat.

She advocates the use of moisture meters to prevent over watering, and applies a diluted solution of fertiliser at regular intervals.

Thank you, Trish, for a very enjoyable morning.

Our bloom competition was won by Trish Lawty, with Wendy McNair taking second place, both with beautiful roses.

Irene Tomlinson and Janet Baylis won the monthly raffle, taking home plants donated by our hostess.

Wendy McNair thanked those members who helped out at the Narrabri Show, and asked other members to consider volunteering.

Next year will be the 150th anniversary of the Narrabri Show and the committee are hoping it will be the best ever.

Wendy brought along a large selection of her Chrysanthemums, and explained the different types, from very large exhibition varieties, down to the tiny button ones.

It is incredible how many varieties there are. Chrissies aren’t just Chrissies!

It was lovely to see Elizabeth Spicer back with us after a lengthy illness. Welcome back, Elizabeth.

Our June meeting has been changed to a Tuesday (this month only).

Clare Felton-Taylor has invited us to her garden and Jojoba farm on Tuesday, June 10 (as advertised).

To get to Clare’s farm, travel approximately 10km on the Stoney Creek Road, and turn into McCutcheon’s Lane.

‘Yarran Clump’ is number 22, on the right.

If you would like to take a guided walk through the Jojoba plantation, closed-in shoes must be worn, and they will be sprayed, for biosecurity reasons.

Visitors are always welcome at our meetings.

Please bring your mug for morning tea. Hope to see you all there.

Please contact Sue on 0459 629 190 or Noeline 0427 922 340 with any queries.