Toronto & Districts Garden Club

The meeting at the Scout hall, Excelsior Pde on July 15 will be a quick annual meeting and 2nd Anniversary celebration! 

The speaker will be horticulturalist Michelle Garvey on winter plantings for all gardens. 

The visit on July 22 will be to the protea flower farm and wholesale nursery at Brandy Hill when the flowers will be out this time. From 10am. BYO everything for morning tea and a chair.

The August hall meeting speaker is still to be confirmed, while the August 26 visit will be to the Macadamia Farm at Medowie when they will be harvesting and husking under shelter. There’s a cafe on site for morning tea.

Local happenings

• Toronto & District Garden Club continues to meet 3rd Thursday of the month at the Scout Hall 9.30am-12.30pm, 17th June this month. All Welcome

• At the Landcare Resource Office, Teralba 
• Thur 10th June Biological Control of Bitou Bush Workshop 9.30am-3.30pm
• Tue 15th June Fungi Talk with Skye Moore (CMA) 6-7.30pm
• Sat 19th June LM Landcare Team Leader Training 1-4pm 

Contact the LRO For more details and bookings (essential) phone 49210392.

Toronto Garden Club Events

The next club meetings are as follows:

• Thursday, May 20: 9.30am -12.30pm, in the Toronto Scout Hall, 74 Excelsior Parade. Speaker is Janet White, from Wangi, a retired horticulturalist TAFE teacher who will talk about Soil and Soil Preparation.
• The May 27 outing from 10am to noon will be to Wallsend Nursery at Lake Rd Wallsend, to hear the guru David Peterson speak on Propagation and beyond. BYO morning tea and put a chair in the car in case they run out, if you can.
• For the June 17 meeting at the hall we are lucky to have Doug Twentyman, TAFE teacher at Kurri who will talk on Crop Rotation.
• The June 24 visit will be to Wyee Nursery for a tour and morning tea in the award winning cafe, „Lilly Pond‟. They can do a scone and coffee for $5.50. Glazed pots will be half price by then and the roses may be in. You can join their free garden club which has some benefits.
• The July 15 meeting at the hall will be the AGM with our guru Michelle Garvey, telling us about winter planting for all interests.
• The July 22 visit will be to The Propagators, Protea Farm and Nursery at Brandy Hill when proteas will be in bloom. Some protea plants may be available.

Dates For Doing in April

Meaningful meetings

• Transition Town Steering Group– Monday 12th April 4-6pm Progress Hall

• Annual General Meeting of Coal Point Progress Association–Progress Hall & celebratory shindig  Monday 12th April 7-9pm

Toronto Garden Club
Scout Hall, Excelsior Pde, 9.30am-12.30pm

• Thursday April 15 –Weed Identification and Eradication
• Thursday April 22 visit to The Wetlands Centre, Shortland.

Landcaring  every Thursday

• April Gurranba
• May Burnage
• June Threlkeld
• July Laycock St
• August
• Stansfield Reserves

Transition Town Movie Festival

• April 16th Friday- 6-9.30pm
• May 8th- Saturday Noon-4.30pm
• June 20th Sunday 11am-4.15pm
• July 16th Friday 6-9pm
• August 14th Saturday Noon-5.30pm
• September 19th Sunday 11-5pm

Toronto Garden Club

The Toronto Garden Club is powering along at the Scout Hall, Excelsior Pde on the 3rd Thursday of each month, 10am with the trading table opening at 9.30am. Friends of members are welcome as is anyone wanting to join up. There’s always a raffle, trading table and great camaraderie. Don’t forget to bring a mug for tea and coffee and also a chair to the club meetings.

The March 18th meeting has guest experts from the Herb and Garden Club at Adamstown talking on Growing Herbs and Their Uses. A week later is a visit to the Wallis Water Garden at Mulbring one of the best collections s of water garden plants in Australia with almost two acres of unique gardens with many ponds displaying a huge collection of plants.

April 15th  meeting at the Scout hall will feature a talk on Weeds – Their Identification and Eradication
April 22 visit out will be to the Shortland Wetlands Centre.
Contact Jan Hissey 4959 1382 for more information

What’s On Locally In February

Monday 1st: Progress Committee meeting 7-9pm at Hall
Monday 8th :Transition Steering Group 4-6pm at Hall
Monday 15th:Fit n Trim Challenge starts– Hype Fitness
Thursday 18th :Toronto Garden Club,10am Scout Hall
Wednesday 24th: Landcare-Where to now– 4.30-6.30pm Landcare Office
Thursday 25th -Landcare for Youth,4-5.30pm Landcare Office 
Saturday 27th and -Sunday 28th Transition Town Training—venue to be confirmed.
Tuesday 9th March Lake Macquarie Landcare Network AGM  4.30-6.30 at the Landcare Office

GYO-Grow Your Own

The local Toronto Garden club has an action-packed year planned designed to help your grow your own. The club's next meeting will be at 10am on Thursday, February 18 at the Toronto  1st Scout Hall, 74

Excelsior Parade. The meeting consists of a trading table from 9.30am, a guest speaker on Water-wise Gardening and a raffle with a $30 prize.

The next outing is on the fourth Thursday of the month, 25/2/10, there will be no formal meeting. The  visit will be to the Constable Garden and Cellar Door at 205 Gillards Road, Pokolbin, between 10am and 12.30pm.

Speakers for meetings in the hall that are coming up include
March: Growing Herbs And Their Uses
April : Weeds
May: Soil Preparation and
June: Crop Rotation.

Visits out will be to Wallis Creek Water Garden at Mulbring in March and to Shortland Wetlands in April.
For more information contact Jan Hissey

Toronto's Trees

Where do you stand on the trees of Toronto town?

The Lakes Mail has been raising awareness over the past few weeks on the possible fate of the Toronto figs. The issue has been described as one that will divide the community, but how will it be divided, it's a little bit more than Treehuggers v's treeloppers.

It could be divided by personal comfort factors?

• People who enjoy sitting in the shade or those that like sweltering whilst they dine in the sun.
• People who like walking along a shady and cooler boulevard or those that like to tan and feel the heat radiating off the footpath.
• People who like to window shop with the sun on their back, or those that like to linger longer in the shade.

It could be divided by cost?

• Business owners whose air conditioners don?t have to work as hard because of the extensive shade coverage or those business owners who like to hear the hum or the air-con cranking, and pay accordingly.
• Businesses who are prepared to pay thousands of dollars to remove the trees or those that will pay to treat the pipes to prevent root growth and blockages and keep the trees.

Or maybe it will divide along the lines of those with a more natural bent?

• Those who think a tree lined boulevard is aesthetically appealing and makes Toronto unique or those that don?t.
• People who appreciate the birdlife and the rarity of the roosting trees or those that see the birds as noise and mess.

On this point there are some places like Currumbin Bird Sanctuary in Queensland and more closer to home the Wetlands Centre that make money off encouraging bird and people interaction, such as breakfast with the birds. Perhaps the Toronto Chamber could investigate getting some funding to promote this rare attraction?

And has anyone considered where will the birds roost if all the trees go? The lorikeets that need these trees are the ones that frequent our gardens and make our backyards buzz with life and are a part of our bushland suburb.

This is a very similar situation to what?s happening with the Laman Street Figs in Newcastle, a quick fix solution is being touted by a few without a full investigation of a variety of options and the impacts on the many who have not been given a chance to voice their opinion.

Make your views known to the Toronto Chamber of Commerce, PO Box 382 ,Toronto 2283,  Phone 4950 5216, Email co-ordinator@torontochamber.com.au   and Lake Macquarie City Council Postal Address: Box 1906 Hunter Region Mail Centre 2310 or council@lakemac.nsw.gov.au

This issue will also be discussed at the monthly meeting of the Progress Association on Monday 7th December 7pm.

Toronto & Districts Garden Club

The next meeting will be at the Scout hall, 74 Excelsior Parade, Toronto on Thursday, 19th February 2010 from 9.30am to 12.30pm.

There will be a speaker talking about rotating veggies. Don't forget to bring a chair if you can, a mug (no, that doesn't mean your spouse!) and your name badge if you have it at home please ... and of course bring your friends, neighbours and rellies and some goodies for the trading table.

Our next visit out, is to the Constable garden, vineyard and winery at Pokolbin on February 26. It is at 205 Gillards Rd, Pokolbin, with cellar door sales.

Some topics that are being considered for the 2010 program are herbs & their uses, weeds, soil  & preparation, water wise gardening, chooks bees & possums, gardening in pots, propagation beyond ,no -dig garden, fruit trees, succulents, home remedies, roses ,climbers,flowers in a vase, grasses & foliage, landscape design &  architecture,painting flowers and bulbs for warm climes.

Contact Jan Hissey  janhissey@hotmail.com for more details