Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum
General Subjects => General Forum => Topic started by: Ian Y on February 26, 2008, 10:30:58 AM
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It has often been mentioned how nice it would be if all the forumists could meet up.
So I will start the ball rolling by asking just how many of you would seriously consider coming to Scotland to have a weekend gathering.
The format that I imagine is that we would all stay in a hotel and have a series of talks, by forumists, discussions, swapping of plants, etc, and generally have a good time.
If enough people are interested I will proceed to look into costs for the hotels.
Please let me know if you are interested - there is no commitment at this stage - by email or through this post.
Also make any suggestions or comments - for instance would it be better arranged in central Scotland for ease of transport - what time of year would be best, etc.
Also what year - it may be too late for this year unless it was later in the year, so I am looking at 2009.
If there is sufficient interest then the next stage will be to make a firm fully costed proposal with dates and locations. It is at that stage that we will invite bookings.
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I'm for it in theory, but then I've never actually made to one of the discussion weekends yet. :(
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Me too.
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Count me interested from across the pond...
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me also but I feel it should be in southern England and close to an Easyjet airport. Think of those who will travel from Europe. And please no discussion weekend prices
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With all due respect to Mark KEEP IT IN SCOTLAND!
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While I can see Mark's point, I have to say (before Maggi bursts a blood vessel) that as a gathering of the Scottish Rock Garden Club forum members, it obviously has to actually be in Scotland.
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Great idea Ian - you can count me in from across the other (somewhat more modest) pond ;D
2009 also seems a better year to aim at.
As to timing ???? Surely that will be the difficult part, but I would try to fit it in somehow...
Obviously, Belgium would not be a very suitable location so I'd settle for Scotland ;D
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I would just to point out that Easyjet, and other lower cost airlines, DO FLY TO SCOTLAND :o
As to "Discussion Weekend Prices" the plain fact is that to get a venue of suitable size for a Discussion Weekend, the choices are limited and with the tourist industry being as it is , then hotel prices are not cheap. HUGE efforts are put in by all Discussion Weekend organisers to provide fab weekends at as low a cost as possible.... AND, for those who say University accomodation/facilities are cheaper, I can assure you that in Aberdeen we found that the University prices were WAY above those of the hotels. :P
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I will come, it´s always nice to go to Scotland.
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The Management Centre at Stirling University is good, and has an excellent restaurant which is being refurbished. They cater for business and weddings and has conference facilities.
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Great idea, keep me posted.
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We are possibles.
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Count me in.
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If I can get time off for good behaviour at this end, I'll be there!
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I think June/July would be best due to day length
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Bugger day length...what about peak flowering time? If we're in Edinburgh, that's sure to be earlier than June/July--especially in the rock garden.
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Peak in N Ireland would be May so Scotland could be June?
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Count me in (& the boss). Central Scotland best as I can then do some family visiting. Any time of year is OK but please avoid existing show weekends south of the border unless it's one of the ones in the deep south
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Sounds good Ian, but lets not just copy the Discussion W/E. Great as Disussion W/e is, once a year is enough.
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In or near to Edinburgh and the botanical garden sound good to me. Easily accessible by road, rail and (I assume) air. Fantastic botanical garden. Handsome city. But if it's more than a weekend one-nighter, it'd suit me best if it was school hols, maybe around Easter. I guess, though you're thinking of a one-night stay?
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Flybe go into Edinburgh .... and as they fly from Norwich I'm all for Edinburgh :) :) Avoid Bank Holiday weekends, travel is always a nightmare then and expensive too.
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I'd love to come if timing permits....
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On the structure of a gathering of forumists, could I suggest going for something not too structured and lecture-oriented or discussion-weekendish, but leaning more towards informal socialising and chatting, with a visit to a good garden like Edinburgh B.G. as the highlight. I like the idea of being in or near (e.g. public transport near) a city like Edinburgh as, if the weather turns out really awful then there are other things to do and to see.
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And I'm sure I'm not the only one with contacts at EBG.... We'd probably be able to arrange for a guided tour, including the highlights of the moment...
In my mind it's the best botanical garden I've been to.
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You won't have those contacts long if you call it the EBG Carlo? ;) :D ;D Perhaps more like the summer outings we have with visits to a garden, a nursery etc followed by barbecue or pub of an evening?
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Begging her royal pardon...
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Hi, Folks, catching up after a great evening at our local group meeting.... John Mitchell (of RBGE, Carlo, not the EBG!!) gave us a great talk on his travels in Iran.... most enjoyable "trip".... scenery, people, architecture, anecdotes and wonderful plants. Dionysias dripping along rock fissures, acres of Fritillaria imperialis, Tulipa, Merendera, IRIS!! Super evening, Thanks, John!!
For Gathering of the Forum Clan: Central Belt is best bet, easiest to get to, more choice.... it would be fun to have little talks from forumists about their favourite plants / how they got involved in the forum etc... all very informal. Nice chatty meals, chance to learn more about eachother and where we do our gardening...must be pleasant social event to enable partners who aren't as plant daft as we are to have a fun time, too.... that way, they are more likely to let you come along !!
Several folks have sent messages privately, too... so response is good so far!
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Great idea - count me in.
If we can include RBGE then so much the better.
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Sorry Maggi, but as a staunch republican it'll always be Edinburgh Botanic Garden to me. That's what my dad called it when he took me there age 12 and that's how I think of it. ;)
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As a past recipient ( with Ian) of the "Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Medal" for services to Scottish Horticulture from the Royal Caledonian Horticultural Society, I am in a delicate position here :-[
I think we all speak about the "Edinburgh Botanic Garden", or even just "the Botanics", which must infuriate those folks at the Glasgow Botanic Garden, >:( since Glaswegians are never keen to allow Edinburgh the upper hand in anything :-X but the name of the place is RBGE, as the Caley Society is the RCHS... would you speak about the HS, rather than the RHS? ::) Isn't that carrying your constitutional beliefs a smidgen far? ;)
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Ah yes Maggi, but truth be told we can't even agree on the names of our plants half the time...
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AND...MAGGI...I suppose we'll be heading back to Margaret...
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We could base the event around Edinburgh show. Forumists could visit the show and the RBG(thats what I call it) followed by an evening function. Edinburgh has lots of B&Bs etc for lower priced accomadation and we could meet up again on the Sunday for more fun. If members like Carlo do come across I would guess that it would not just be for the W/E! Willing Scottish members could let their addresses be know for individual garden visits before and after the big event.
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Didn't mean to wind you up quite that much, Maggi. Just joking. I don't really deliberately miss out the Royal part. I also call RBGK "Kew" by the way, and I call the RHS by its initials, "the RHS". You don't want to know what I call HRM. ;D
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Embra would be a good base. :P It's only 45 minutes from Central Scotland.
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Central BELT is better, I think, and perhaps likely to be a little less expensive..... :P
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Okay Maggi and Anthony. You've completely lost me now. Is this an in-joke?
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No, indeed..... I suggested that the central belt of Scotland was a good area to hold the get together..... this got transmuted to "Edinburgh"... Anthony pointed out, obliquely, that Edinburgh (Embra... as it is commonly called) is not exactly "central" Scotland.... I reiterated that I thought the central BELT... (that is to say, a common term for the area crossing the (lower) middle of the country ) was the most favourable region to seek a venue...
How's that?
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Yikes, who knew it could be so complicated...
...and the Scots are supposed to be such practical sorts.
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Uh-huh, that was the literal meaning I read into it. Just wasn't sure if there was some other Scots in-joke thing going on. I was obviously reading between too many non-existent lines.
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Thanks for confirming the geographical distinctions though, Maggi. It explains the exchange between you two. I still fancy Edinburgh (for the city and the RBGE) or somewhere close enough to access Embra. But I guess cost may be a factor. Perhaps it'd be possible to look at two alternatives - being in the city and being somewhere out of the city but within striking distance of the botanical garden?
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Rest assured Gang; no stone will be left unturned....or perhaps I should say... every avenue will be explored.... or, we will investigate all possiblities.... so, are we all clear on this one? ::)
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Ja. Ich verstehe.
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That's good, Martin..... mind you, I knew the Germans would understand, it's the native-English-speakers I'm having trouble with! :P
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Now then Maggi, tha knows yavfot sey things reet, then we'll mind you. ???
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For a moment there, Shelagh, I thought you were chatting to your Estonian friend ::) :-[
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Martin,
Think of all those quaint Scottish kings Macbeth and whats his name. They must have a garden. ;D
Apart from that I would love to come but would probably try to catch the ferryboat to Newcastle and drive.
that would allow me to visit nurseries.
Göte
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There isn't really a thread suitable for this, so I'll just whack it in here as a lot of you will be watching this thread. Anyone else in England feel the earthquake last night? Tony, you must have been pretty close to the epicentre. I was watching TV and it felt like someone was pushing the settee backwards and forwards. I thought one of the kids had got up and sneaked into the sitting room and was messing around. Upstairs Ivi said the bed was shaking and she was so freaked, she clung onto one of the bed posts.
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Flybe go into Edinburgh .... and as they fly from Norwich I'm all for Edinburgh :) :) Avoid Bank Holiday weekends, travel is always a nightmare then and expensive too.
Ok - they go to Glasgow too! (see later posts re 'Central Belt')
Yes Martin, we did feel the earth move last night. I jumped out of bed looking for the truck I thought responsible for the vibrations that rattled the windows and doors only to find no-one there. It was quite sinister, a low grumbling noise and everything shaking. As I was wondering if we should vacate in case our dodgy chimney came through the roof it subsided. Don't want another one for at least another 25 years!
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It was awful here and I woke up in the middle of it with the house shaking and groaning.I jumped up and said 'what the bloody hell was that' and Mrs W. said 'I did not hear anything. Difficult to beleive the epicentre was a 150 miles away.
Best quote I heard on the BBC was a young woman in the midlands who said ,it woke up me and my boyfriend.Its the first time I have ever felt the earth move.
I bet she is not popular when he sees her on tele.
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Sounds like a bit of indigestion Tony...what did you have for dinner?
Seriously though, I'm glad to hear that despite the scare, everyone appears to be ok. Funny thing this ball of dirt we live on...
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Good point, better check that any venue is not on fault line. :-\
Apart from that I would love to come but would probably try to catch the ferryboat to Newcastle and drive.
that would allow me to visit nurseries. Göte
Those Swedish guys think of everything 8)
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Our reaction to the quake -
Husband sleepily "Was that me?"
Me "Well it wasn't me"
Husband "It must have been me then" and we went back to sleep.
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We were going to have an early night. HA. At 1 o'clock I, fearing the house was about collapse, was rushing around outside with the torch. All around me the estate slept peacefully on.
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The earth failed to move for me, or indeed for anyone in Devon
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"The earth failed to move for me"
Geez David, I'm so sorry...
And the whole town too...we'll have to talk to those significant others...
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Anne, we're still giggling at that :D
Carlo, it is worse than you think... Devon is the whole COUNTY! :o