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What a lovely morning we had in late February at Lyn Tanner's Garden, with 53 attendees! We enjoyed a beautiful morning tea in a peaceful garden setting, surrounded by stunning views over the lake and large, shady trees. It was so cool and relaxing—we could have stayed there all morning! Next, we visited Tony Smith’s front garden, which featured beautiful trees and plants. Our third stop was Kathie and Brian Wragg’s garden. This lovely, spacious garden had fantastic views of the lake, plenty of trees, and well-maintained garden beds. A big thank you to all the Mitchell Street garden owners for sharing their beautiful spaces with us! Photographs - Sandie Chrimes We wrapped up the day with an enjoyable lunch at the Royal Hotel, where the conversation continued. It was wonderful to meet our new members and welcome back familiar faces—a great way to start the year with happy company! 27th March – Bus Trip to Blue Lotus Water Gardens Meet at Benalla Rose Garden (near the Royal Hotel, Benalla) at 7:45 AM. Cost: $74 (includes bus travel, entry, lunch, tea, and coffee). Our numbers are a bit low, so if you know anyone who may like to attend, please let me know. Payment is due before March 12th. Money can be left at RedB4 Bookshop (next to Hide Bakery in Bridge Street). Please place it in an envelope marked "U3A Garden Appreciation" with your name and phone number. Gwen Turner 0438 627 010 (Text) or [email protected]. Welcome to our new and current members! I'm looking forward to seeing you at our first outing on 27th February. Please meet at the U3A car park at 9:30 AM. We will be visiting three beautiful gardens on Mitchell Street, Benalla. Mitchell Street is a small street with lovely plane trees.
Our first garden is at 14 Mitchell Street (Lakeside), the home of Lyn Tanner. We will have morning tea there, so please bring a small plate to share. The second garden is at Tony Smith’s. We will only be viewing the front garden, as the back is currently being renovated. The third garden is at the home of Kathie and Brian Wragg (Lakeview), located at 8 Mitchell Street. Afterward, we will have lunch at the Royal Hotel, Benalla. On March 27th, we will have a bus trip to the Blue Lotus Water Gardens. The bus will leave Benalla at 7:45 AM from the Benalla Rose Garden, next to the Royal Hotel. The cost is $64 per person, which covers entry, lunch, and bus travel. Please make payment by the end of February, at our next meeting. Alternatively, you can pay at Red4 Book Shop next to Hide’s Bakery. Please leave the money in an envelope with your name and Garden Appreciation on the form. It is very important to let me know if you are attending, as I need to confirm numbers. Please also inform me of any food allergies. Gwen 0438 627 010 Email: [email protected] Hard to believe this is our final newsletter for the year! What a great year it has been. We’ve visited fantastic nurseries and beautiful private gardens, both large and small.
Looking ahead to 2025, mark your calendars for March 27th, 2025—we have a bus trip planned to the Blue Lotus Water Garden in Yarra Junction. More information will be available in January. I’d like to extend my heartfelt thanks to Heather Wallace, Len Jeffree, Corrie Witlox, Geraldine McCorkell, and Bev Lee. Your help throughout the year has been invaluable. To our Garden Appreciation members—you are such a lovely group and wonderful company. Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a happy New Year. Stay safe! Gwen Turner On October 24th we visited Sable Park Garden, the beautiful garden of Les and Rosemary Bolitho. We had a lovely morning exploring five acres of gardens, including a pond lined with yellow irises, 700 roses, and various sculptures. After two hours in this enjoyable setting, we headed to the Pinsent Hotel for lunch and a chat. On November 28th, we will meet at Benalla Rose Garden at 10:15 am for morning tea. Please bring a cup and a small plate to share. Hot water, tea, coffee, and milk will be provided. The Rose Garden is looking stunning, with vibrant roses in full bloom. Lunch will follow at the Royal Hotel Benalla. This will be our final meeting for the year, and I hope to see you there. Happy gardening!
Gwen Turner 0438 627 010 [email protected]
This is just reminder about our outing on 26th September to Arthur & George’s private Garden 16 Steane Street Wangaratta and Parkland Nursery.
Lunch at R.S.L Wangaratta. B.Y.O Morning Tea Also, we have been invited to the Wangaratta U3A meeting at Wangaratta Race Club 10 am to 12 noon on 10th October. They have a guest coming to display and sell Garden Art. If you wish to attend either event please email text or phone me on 0438 627 010 [email protected] Gwen On Thursday 26 September we will visit the private garden of Arthur and George at 16 Steane Street. Wangaratta, followed by a visit to Park Lane Nursery, Wangaratta. Meet at the U3A car park at 9.30. BYO Morning as well as tea, coffee and milk. Lunch will be at the Wangaratta R.S.L.
I’m looking forward to our lovely Spring weather and the joy of new growth, flowers and blossoms. Please contact me if you are attending our outing - email [email protected] or mobile 0438627010 Gwen Turner Our July outing to the Royal Hotel was a nice way to spend a Cold Winters Day. You are a great group; you all love a bit of a chat and a beautiful lunch!  A reminder that there will be no outing in August as we are having our annual winter break. On Thursday 26th September we will visit the private garden of Arthur Hill and George at 16 Steane St. Wangaratta, followed by a visit to Parklane Nursery, Wangaratta. Meet at the U3A car park at 9.30. Lunch to be arranged - details in next newsletter. BYO morning tea.
We have some members who aren’t well - a speedy recovery to you. To those of you who are away, we hope it is nice and warm where you are! Stay warm! Gwen Turner 0438 627 010 What a lovely morning we had at the garden of Petra & Barry Poole in late June. Morning tea (pictured) was beautiful, many thanks, Petra and friends! It may have been cold but after a cuppa and lots of chatting we warmed up. Lunch was at Golf Club, with more eating and chatting taking place. What a great way to spend a cold winter’s day.
Please note that on July 25th we are only having lunch, meeting at the Royal Hotel, Benalla at 12 noon. Please let me know if you are attending. To our members who are unwell, we are thinking of you. Get well soon! Finally, a reminder that there will be no outing in August as we are having our annual winter break. Gwen Turner 0438 627 010 We left Benalla at 8am on Thursday 23 May to go to the Echuca Plant Farm and Nursery, stopping at a lovely park in Echuca for morning tea featuring yummy cakes made by Geraldine. Thank you, Geraldine! Then on to one of the best nurseries I’ve ever been to. Everything was so well grown and presented, the plants just beautiful, the staff so helpful. Lots of plants went into the undercarriage compartment of the bus, which was almost groaning with the load. We then went to the Moama RSL for an excellent lunch where we were looked after superbly by the staff. Wayne the bus driver took us for a drive around Echuca after lunch, dropping us at the wharf. The bus, full of beautiful plants and 49 happy travellers, arrived back at Benalla at about 5 pm. I had so many plants Wayne drove me home and helped me to take them in! All in all, it was such an enjoyable day, and the weather was so kind to us. Thanks must go to Wayne for looking after us so well. Photographs taken at the Port of Echuca - Anne Nelson Coming Up - On Thursday 27th June we will be meeting at 9.30am at the carpark to go to Petra Poole’s garden, 5 Crockford Street, Benalla, where Petra and her helpers will provide morning tea. Thank you, Petra. If you live in the West, you may like to go straight to Petra’s home. Please let me know if you are going to do that. Lunch will be at Benalla Golf Club. If you haven’t already put your name in the book or let me know, please phone to say you will be attending as I need to know the numbers for catering. To those who have gone north for the winter – good luck – and to those who have been unwell and were unable to go on the bus trip, we hope you have recovered.
Gwen Turner 0438 627 010 At our Anzac Day visit to Brookfield Maze Garden and Cafe, we welcomed three new members. The weather was beautiful, the garden lovely to walk in, and our lunch most enjoyable. Some of our members become lost in the maze, resulting in lots of laughter when they came back!. We have a few seats left for our bus trip to Echuca Plant Farm and Garden. Please see the details below. Gwen  We had a wonderful day at the garden of Carolyn and Garry Smith 46 Murray Rd Benalla on 'Easter Thursday'. It is a fabulous and quirky large garden with Garden Rooms and fun Art work made with recycled materials. Great scones made by Garry - thank you! We had a very relaxing morning. Coming up
Thursday 25 April (Anzac Day) Brookfield Gardens, Maze and Cafe There has been a change of venue for the Anzac Day, 25th April Gathering from listed in the first edition of the newsletter. Instead of going to the Cafe at Winton Wetlands as previously advertised, the group is now going to Brookfield Gardens (Maze) and Café, 1121 Benalla-Whitfield Rd. Myrrhee. We will still meet at MITRE 10 car park at 11:30am. Thursday May 23rd - Bus Trip to Echuca Plant Farm and Nursery Our visit to Echuca Plant Farm and Nursery, Northern Highway Echuca West on Thursday 23rd May includes a Bus Tour around Echuca Township The cost is $32 pp to be paid by 30th April, or by other arrangement with Gwen. Money can be left in an envelope at RedB4 Books, next to Hide's Bakery. Please put your name and 'Garden Appreciation Echuca Bus Trip' on the front of an Envelope with your money. Meet at Benalla Rose Garden, Royal Hotel End, at 8 am. Morning tea in Gardens. Lunch at own cost. Please ring, text or email me if you would like to attend April's visit to Brookfield Gardens and Cafe and/or May's Bus Trip to Echuca Plant Farm and Nursery - 0438627010, or [email protected] To all who have been unwell, I hope you are now on the mend and had a very happy Easter. Gwen Welcome back to Garden Appreciation for 2024. It was great to meet new members and catch up with previous members of the group. What a start to this year’s activities! On Thursday 22 February, 56 members and 4 guests were welcomed to My Little Potting Shed in Samaria Road, Moorngag, by Melissa and Guy Mounsey, Melissa’s Mum and two very friendly dogs. It was lovely weather, and the flowers beds were full of brightly coloured Dahlias. Melissa gave a talk on how they started their business, followed by morning tea, then a walk around the gardens. Thank you, Melissa and Guy, for making your garden available to our members to view. Lunch, at the Tatong Tavern, was attended by 53 members. The service and food were excellent. On March 28th (Easter Thursday) we will visit the large garden of Carolyn and Garry Smith, 46 Murray Road, Benalla. We will meet in the U3A car park at 9.30am and will drive into the garden to park when we arrive. Lunch will follow at the North Eastern Hotel.
April 25th (Anzac Day), venue to be announced next month. On May 23rd there will be a bus trip to the Echuca Plant Farm, Echuca West and more. Please note, I'm away until the 14 March. If attending the March activity, please contact me after that date: Mobile: 0438627010 or e-mail [email protected] Gwen Turner The Garden Appreciation group will meet in the Seniors’ carpark at 9:30 on February 22nd to car-pool. Our first outing will be to the garden of Melissa and Guy Mounsey at 1901 Samaria Road, Moorngag. It’s on the left-hand side, the business name is ‘My Little Potting Shed’. Melissa, who is a well-known local florist, and Guy are now growing a wonderful variety of flowers. The flower beds are in the open so you may need hat, umbrella and drink.
Please bring a small plate to share at morning tea and your own cup. Tea, coffee, milk, hot water will be supplied. Lunch will be at Tatong Tavern, Tatong/Benalla Road at I2 noon. It’s very important to let me know if you are attending, also if you have any dietary requirements – 0438 627 010, [email protected]. I’m very pleased to welcome new & old members and am looking forward to visiting private and public gardens with you this year. I hope you all had a lovely Xmas and New Year! Gwen Turner On Thursday 23rd November we visited two farm gardens, the first Karen and Peter Nankivell's garden in Old Lurg Rd. What a relaxing morning - stunning views and garden, morning tea under a shady pergola. Then on to Geraldine and Garry McCorkell's farm garden in Samaria Road to enjoy a beautiful lunch, catered for by the Pink Ladies, as we sat under the canopy of lovely large trees.
Thank you all for your company this year. It has been a very sad year for some of us and your support is greatly appreciated. Thanks also to Bev Lee and Len Jeffers for all your help. Wishing you all a "Very Happy Xmas and a Happy New Year",,, Happy Gardening! Gwen On Thursday 26th October we visited the Garden of Betty Seymour in Yarrawonga. We were greeted by members of the Yarrawonga Garden club with a beautiful morning tea. Their President, Shirley, gave us a short talk about their club and then we viewed Betty’s unique garden. It may have been small, but it sure packed a punch! The garden was full of plants, some in pots on the ground, many very special. Some of us came home with pots and cuttings, Betty is a very generous lady. Our lunch at Tame Cafe was yummy; the service, price and food excellent. We all had a very enjoyable day.
The group will meet at U3A Car Park on 9.30 on Thursday 23rd November when we plan to visit the garden of Karen Nankivell at 265 Old Lurg Rd Benalla. Please bring your own morning tea. Lunch will be at Geraldine McCorkell’s home located at 686 Samaria Road, Benalla. Catering will be by Pink Ladies: cost $15 pp. This will be our last outing for the year. Please let me know if you will be attending. Gwen Turner 0438627010 We visited Sophie Arendt’s beautiful garden on Thursday 28th September. Forty-two of us were greeted to the most amazing garden and a wonderful morning tea - thank you, Sophie, Dawn and Fay. We went on to Sandra's Nursery in Witt Street (some of us leaving with more plants), then lunched at the Benalla Golf Club. It was great to catch up with you all again after a break! On Thursday October 26th we will meet at U3A car park 9.30 to visit the Yarrawonga garden of Betty Seymour, 4 Gilmore St, Yarrawonga, opposite the main gate at show grounds. I have been told 'Betty’s Garden' is one of the best in Yarra. Lunch at Tame Café, Belmore Street, Yarrawonga. Please let me know you are attending to assist with morning tea arrangements.
I hope you are all enjoying our spring weather. Gwen Friday 15 September
Just a reminder to let me know if you are attending our outing on 28th September to Sophie Arendt’s Beautiful Garden. Sophie has offered to supply morning tea so I need to know numbers, m/ tea and lunch. What a beautiful day we are having! Cheers Gwen 0438 627 010 On September 28th we are meeting at the U3A car park at 9.30am then going to Sophie Arendt's beautiful garden in Hagenauer Lane, off Witt St in Benalla. Sophie has offered to supply morning tea, after which we will go to Sandra's Nursery in Witt St. Lunch will be at the Benalla Golf Club. Please let me know if you will be attending. I am writing this from Caloundra on the Sunshine Coast. The beautiful street tree in the photos below is called Bauhinid. Cheers!
Gwen 0438627010 Our trip to Violet Town proved to be a lovely way to spend a cold day, The Southern Aurora Memorial Mural Garden & Jackson's Produce Store & Cafe were well worth a visit, the food & coffee at the cafe great. 27 of us walked around the shops after lunch, with a number definitely contributing to the economy of Violet Town!
There will be no Garden Appreciation sessions in July and August due to family commitments. Our next outing will be on Thursday 28th September 2023. Stay warm and safe! Gwen Turner Our next meeting is on Thursday 22nd June. We will meet at U3A car park.at 10.30.
Please note the later start time. We are off to Violet Town, visiting the Garden at the Library as well as the Southern Aurora Memorial Garden by Benalla’s Tim Bowtell. Lunch is now to be at Jackson’s Produce Store & Café 20 Cowslip Street. This is a family run business with home cooked meals. If you would like to meet for a coffee at 9.45 some of us will be at R/R. Gwen Turner On May 25th we visited ‘Two Town Gardens’ in Benalla. The first was the garden of Corrie Witlox. Corrie has many unusual plants in her garden, including an Orange Rhododendron Beautiful! After morning tea, we visited the gardens of Glenice and Bill Broderick in Grant Drive . Large trees and garden beds. Wonderful! Their home is on the market - we wish them well in their new home. Lunch at the Benalla Golf Club concluded a great outing on a beautiful late autumn day with nice people.
On June 22nd we are heading to Violet Town, visiting the garden at the Library and the Southern Aurora Memorial Garden Mural by Benalla’s Tim Bowtell. Lunch will be at the Violet Town Hotel (formerly the Ellen Frances Hotel). I will send an email with meeting times beforehand. If you are interested in attending, please contact me on [email protected] or 0438627010. To those who are off on your winter holiday, have an enjoyable time; to those of you who are unwell, take care and get well soon! Gwen Turner The details of our Thursday 25 May visit to ‘Two Town Gardens’ have now been finalized.
Meet at the U3A car park at 9:30am. The first garden we will visit and morning tea will be at the home of Corrie Witlox, 3 Ibis Court, Benalla. Corrie has a lovely garden and collection of Bonsai. Please bring a small plate to share. Milk, tea, coffee, hot water will be supplied. We will then visit the large garden of Glenice and Bill Broderick, 71 Grant Drive, Benalla - it's a beautiful garden set back off the road. Lunch will be at the Benalla Golf Club. Please let me know if you are planning to attend for hospitality purposes. If you have already put your name down, that's OK. Phone 0438 627 010 or email [email protected]. Gwen The April Garden Appreciation outing was a bus trip to Bendigo to visit the Great Stupa of Universal Compassion. On arrival at the Visitors' Centre, we were informed that a power outage meant morning tea by candlelight and no coffee! On a brighter note, the light drizzle cleared in time for a stroll around the extensive Peace Gardens, photographing its many and varied sculptures representing different religions. Inside the amazing Stupa itself, we received detailed information on Buddhism tenets and the history behind the erection of the Stupa, built with generous donations as well as a Govt. grant. The interior and exterior decorations are a work in progress. After lunching at Bendigo R.S.L., Gwen allocated time to visit Bendigo Pottery on the way home. Thank you, Gwen Turner and Bendigo Bus Lines for an interesting day out. Bev Thornell Coming up on Thursday 25 May –‘Two Town Gardens’. Meet at the U3A Car Park at 9.30am. The first garden we will visit is at the home of Glenice and Bill Broderick, 71 Grant Drive, Benalla - a beautiful garden set back off the road. The second garden and morning tea is yet to be arranged. Lunch will be at the Benalla Golf Club. Please let me know if you are planning to attend for hospitality purposes - 0438 627 010 or email [email protected].
‘Lost & Found’ - Left at my place at the February ‘Small Gardens’ visit - 1 white dinner plate. Contact me on the number above and I will get back to you. Cheers! Gwen Turner |
Garden Appreciation
Meeting Times4th Thursday. All day (approx 9.30 - 3.00). Meet at the Seniors Car Park at 9.30 unless otherwise advised by Gwen - check Newsletter for further details.
Convenor and contact Details
Gwen Turner
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