Such is the reputation of our home-cooked meals at the ex-restaurant known as Marsh Barn that many members were disappointed in not being able to be part of those who met there on a damp August lunch time.
A choice of light salads and sumptuous sweets were enjoyed by all and appreciation was expressed to the members of the Social Committee who cooked and served the meal.
This has become a popular regular event with the next one planned for the spring of 2011.
On a showery day in August a coachload of members travelled first to Barnstaple for lunch and a quick look round then on to Marwood Hill Gardens Despite travelling through several heavy showers our time in the garden was blessed with dry weather and crowned by a cream tea served in what used to be the owner's front room.
At Marwood Hill there are over eighteen acres of landscaped gardens with a large collection of trees, shrubs, herbaceous and alpine plants. The gardens were started in the 1950s Dr Jimmy Smart. At that time they consisted of a neglected walled garden and its immediate surround. Over the years many new areas have been planted and new features added such as the Folly and the Scented Arbour. Today, with many genera planted in close association (Eucalyptus, Betula, Sorbus, Malus etc.) and most plants clearly labelled, there is much of the botanic garden about Marwood Hill.
They hold three National Collections: Tulbaghia, Japanese Iris and Astilbe. We visited the garden just as the Astilbes were going over but still a magnificent sight. It is one of the biggest collection of astilbes and occupies a large area by the middle lake as well as being planted by the streams. The moist soil provides ideal growing conditions for the 140 different kinds in the collection.
We were really fortunate in welcoming Professor Sir Ghillean Prance, FRS as our July Guest Speaker.
He told a packed hall that climate change is without doubt the greatest challenge facing mankind but damage to remote rainforests can sometimes appear to have little bearing on our everyday lives.
However, Professor Sir Ghillean Prance, FRS, Scientific Director of the Eden Project and former Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, left us in no doubt as to the seriousness of this issue.
In a highly informative address, Sir Ghillean presented compelling evidence of the very real impact that climate change is already having on our planet, its flora and fauna, and the ways in which it is adversely affecting the lives of people around the world. He spoke of the growing concern within the scientific community that climate change is starting to degrade the eco-services of our planet i.e. the very services that are needed to sustain life itself - fresh water supplies and the quality of the air that we breathe.
Burning fossil fuels is just one cause of climate change. Another is the rampant deforestation of the rainforest which accounts for 20% of the increase in CO2 in the atmosphere as well as the extinction of countless precious plants and animals.
However it is not all doom and gloom. Deforestation in Brazil is on the decline, the use of renewable energy is growing and multinationals are increasingly using raw materials from sustainable sources.
Whilst governments, scientists and industry have pivotal roles in addressing this problem, we as individuals also have an important part to play by reducing energy consumption, cutting out waste, recycling more, and lobbying our politicians to maintain their focus on this most important of all issues.
(Report written by Gordon Simmons)
Professor Sir Ghillean Prance, FRS, Scientific Director of the Eden Project and former Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew with our Chairman,Yvonne Welch
If you're looking for a relaxing way to enjoy the countryside then there's nothing better than a sunny summer afternoon cruise along the Tiverton Canal sitting on a horse-drawn barge.
Prior to the cruise members enjoyed a lunch at Bickleigh Mill - Devon's shopping, eating and recreation destination housed within a 18th century historic working water Mill.
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