Are you a Scottish Rock Garden Club Member?

[Maggi Young]

Do you regularly read the Forum or the Bulb Log ? Do you really enjoy visiting the Forum and have registered to enable you to take part?  Do you just come here as a happy "Lurker" to read and enjoy the Forum?
Here is a request to those of you reading this who are not fully paid up members of the Scottish Rock Garden Club, but who nevertheless are able to search these pages and benefit from them:
Please seriously consider joining the SRGC....  it is easily achieved online, see here: http://www.srgc.org.uk/member/member.html 

As part of the remit of the SRGC to encourage the interest in  and knowledge of rock garden plants, the website and forum is (with the exception of a tiny area only for registered forum members) open to all to read, enjoy, register and contribute to the Forum.
Provision of this facility  does not happen by magic, however: it takes effort, and, as with most things, certain amounts of cold hard cash! While the costs of hosting the website and forum, (the payments for bandwidth and so on) are minuscule in comparison to the costs of producing the Journal  (and capable of reaching far larger numbers, it must be said)  they are still costs which must be met by the SRGC.
It is testament to the regard  in which the website is held , both as a plant  resource and as a networking arena, that the likes of Luit Van Delft donated  surplus bulbs to be sold from Cees Breed's Connoisseur Collection to make a gift to the Club in thanks for its existence.
Such individual generosity is both touching and very gratefully received by the Club.
All of the work of the SRGC is done by vounteers, of course.
I would like to urge all  of you who  appreciate this website and Forum to give thought to how, very simply, you might easily help to support its future.... Join the SRGC.... you will not only have the satisfaction of knowing you are contributing to the upkeep of this place, but also you will receive the super twice yearly journal, be eligible to take part in the seed exchange, have free entry to all SRGC Shows, the chance to become a member of a local Group for those of you in the UK .....goodness me.... how could you resist?

[Paul T]

I am a member, have been for a couple of years.  I've still never managed to take part in the seed exchange (my own fault, no other reason) but I joined because it was my way of saying thanks for all the information I have received on this forum, and all the lovely friends I have made here.  The SRGC has to pay for the bandwidth etc, so I subscribed to help cover some of the costs at least.  Where would we be without the forum!! 

Thanks to everyone for making this place so enjoyable.

[Anthony Darby]

I will second that, but let us not forget that there are many members for whom the Forum is not an option. Perhaps there should be space in the Bulletin for a really memorable thread or an extremely useful tip from the Forum?

[Maggi Young]

I will second that, but let us not forget that there are many members for whom the Forum is not an option. Perhaps there should be space in the Bulletin for a really memorable thread or an extremely useful tip from the Forum?

Why not indeed? 

[mark smyth]

I tried to reply to this last night

On reading this I rejoined the SRGC. The cost? Half a good snowdrop 

[Maggi Young]

That's the spirit, Mark.  Your support is much appreciated.

[Michael J Campbell]

Maggi,forgive my ignorance but I thought that all the fourm members were paid up members of the SRGC. I must get out more.

[Luc Gilgemyn]

I've been a member for over 10 years and have not regretted it for one minute !
The forum didn't exist yet at the time, but when it appeared in cyberspace it was a great bonus !
Even being an Channel hopper... I don't have the opportunity to attend to all the shows/meetings/gatherings etc... I would like to - but this forum largely makes up for it and I bet it does so for many overseas members !

This reminds me... I have to take care of renewing my membership..  
I'll get to it right now !  

[Maggi Young]

A great many are, Michael, but there are those who find the Forum by other means than being an SRGC Members and anyone may register for the Forum.
Since the object of the exercise is not only to provide this service for members, but to use it to enthuse other folks too, then it has always been the case that the Forum is open to be read by all and for all to join..... in the hopes that they might like what they find enough to become full SRGC Members, of course, but at least to give them an entry into our plant world!


 It can be scary when you remember how long you've been a member, can't it Luc....... good to know that Junior memberships were popular ten years ago, too, huh?!!

I realised recently that I have been a committee member of the Aberdeen Group for over 20 years......hard to believe..... other people get time off! I could have murdered several people and been out of prison before now!

[Paddy Tobin]

Maggi,

How many website members are there who are not in a position to participate physically in club activities? To clarify: I am sure there are a good number of SRGC members who are simply members through the website and cannot, because of location, attend meetings in Scotland. What portion of the SRGC membership fit into this category, I wonder.

Now, Maggi, don't go running off looking for statistics from the membership secretary. I just want your impressions of what the balance of numbers is.

Paddy

[Luc Gilgemyn]

 It can be scary when you remember how long you've been a member, can't it Luc....... good to know that Junior memberships were popular ten years ago, too, huh?!!

Should I feel flattered now... or doubt your mathematic skills Maggi ?? 

[Maggi Young]

Well , Paddy, I'm sure that Graham Bunkall, the indefatigable membership secretary would be happy to help.... but I'll go with some info known to me.......about a third, perhaps slightly more, of the total SRGC membership is inside Scotland....... so already the numbers of members able to attend events in Scotland is thinned down.
Now, as to how many website members there are who are unable to attend group meetings or shows..... well, that's a tricky one..  There are certainly web members who may be in Scotland but who are not mobile for whatever reason.... and the break down of the membership of the Forum is weighted against UK members, I think, even though it is those members who might be most visible.

 

[Paddy Tobin]

Many thanks, Maggi, for satisfying my curiosity. I am surprised that, in fact, such a small portion of the membership is within Scotland. Perhaps, I shouldn't be but the name identifies the club very clearly with Scotland while the membership is obviously an international one and I am very happy to be one of the international members. I have dropped my membership of the AGS and the RHS as I simply was not getting anything out of them but the internet activity of the SRGC is of huge interest, a daily involvement in a club.

Paddy

[Maggi Young]

Yes, I think the name gives a skewed impression to many.... the Club has always had a large membership outside Scotland . We Scots do tend to spread ourselves around the globe .... we really are everywhere, so I suppose that draws people in to something with a Scots title!

[Paul T]

And bear in mind that "members" reading this forum are vastly outnumbered by visitors who never register to join the forum, let alone contribute, let alone join the SRGC.  At any time there are almost always far more "guests" reading the forum than there are members. If all of the guests as well took the time to join (both the forum and the SRGC) then the result would be truly amazing.  In fact, I reckon that if even 5% of the guests who read this were to join the SRGC there would be a lot of new members, probably way more than we realise.