Publications

The Garden
August 2003

Summary of the 199th Annual General Meeting of the Royal Horticultural Society
Sir Richard Carew Pole (President) in the chair

The President spoke on the Society’s activities over the past 12 months and was pleased to report that RHS membership now exceeded 320,000 and a new Family Membership scheme had been introduced. He pointed out how vital membership income was for supporting the Society’s charitable activities and objectives, and for enabling the Society to do even more for horticulture and for serving gardeners better.

RHS shows: 2002 had been a good year with shows enjoying a record amount of TV coverage, thanks to the Society’s growing relationship with the BBC.

Commercial activities: He was pleased to report successful commercial activities in 2002, with RHS Enterprises and Horticultural Halls generating record surpluses which were passed to the Society to help fund the advancement of horticulture and the promotion of gardening. These included the new Plant Centre and Shop at Harlow Carr; a major refit for The Wisley Shop; and a refit and increased product range for The Shop at Rosemoor.

Education: The Society’s charitable work for schools had become an increasingly important aspect of its objectives, and there had been a continuing rise in schools membership. More than 200 school
visits were made to the RHS gardens, and 140 teachers attended 10 In-Service Training (inset) days. Thanks to the generous response of members to a local fund-raising appeal, Rosemoor now had a classroom for school visits – the Joyce Stewart Education Centre.

New trainee accommodation had been completed in Wisley village with funding from the Monument Trust. The new building contained 24 en-suite bedrooms together with centralised study and recreational facilities, and was called Hanbury Court.

Environmental and scientific work: He described how the RHS was using its expertise and resources to strengthen environmentally sound practices in horticulture, such as a project on the effects of climate change on gardens with the National Trust; work on biodiversity in gardens with The Wildlife Trusts; and environmental audits of the Society’s gardening practices.

At Hyde Hall, strong links had been forged with the rspb, Essex Wildlife Trust and Essex Biodiversity Partnership. The garden’s North Meadow from locally harvested seed established well in its first season, and 49 species were recorded there.

A peat-free compost exhibit was staged at the Chelsea Flower Show 2002, and the RHS Policy on Trees and Timber Products was launched.

The Society published a comprehensive report summarising all its research and advisory work. RHS scientists also identified five new pests in the UK during 2002 and will be helping to monitor their possible future spread and advise on their control.

Garden developments: In order to keep the four RHS Gardens at such a high standard, the President explained how the Society had to use its charitable resources to supplement ‘direct gate income’.

At Harlow Carr, the Queen Mother’s Lake had been created on the stream to the south of the garden, renovation of the limestone rock garden had started and extensive replanting was being carried out.

A Queen Mother’s Garden was being developed at Hyde Hall with an emphasis on autumn, winter and spring colour. In addition, and thanks to the wonderful generosity of members, planting had started on the Wild Wood - a new conservation area on the estate.

In 2002, the Jubilee Rose Garden had been created at Wisley and the Herb Garden redesigned. The first music festival was held at the garden, with evening events also proving popular at Rosemoor.

Across the UK: He said that the Society had made good progress expanding its activities across the UK to benefit all gardeners. The RHS took sole responsibility for the finals of Britain in Bloom for the first time, which he saw as an important part of the Society’s charitable work aimed at encouraging high standards of local gardening, sustainable horticulture and environmental care. A first-class documentary programme about Britain in Bloom had been shown on BBC2.

Serving members and gardeners: He was pleased to announce that many of the Society’s services had reached record levels of popularity last year. The Lindley Library in London was benefiting fully from its renovation - work made possible by its generous donors. It recorded its highest number of visitors last year, as did all three garden libraries.

The Advisory Services offered help to a record 46,000 member enquiries and met another 16,000 gardeners seeking advice at shows.

The RHS Website (www.rhs.org.uk) was becoming more popular and more useful, and the quality of the website had been recognised through a Garden Writers Guild award in autumn 2002.

After a relaunch, The Plantsman had seen an increase in subscribers.

Thanks: As he looked towards the bicentenary of the Society in 2004, and the many plans that were in hand to use this milestone to celebrate the successes of the past and also to invest for the future of horticulture in all its forms, the President expressed his thanks to members for their generous contribution of time, expertise and money.

He paid a tribute to Lord Aberconway, RHS President for 24 years, and Graham Stuart Thomas, a distinguished Vice President, who had both died during the past year. Congratulations were given to David Gray, Director of Horticulture, who had recently received the OBE, and his predecessor Joyce Stewart who had been awarded the MBE.

The President concluded by thanking the Society’s staff led by the Director General; the 500 RHS Committee members who gave up so much time to help the development of horticulture; external sponsors who enabled the RHS to do more for horticulture and gardens, and the 700 volunteers who helped make the Society what it is today.

Treasurer’s Report

Peter Buckley, the Treasurer, paid tribute to his predecessor Martin Slocock, who had retired as Treasurer last year, and thanked him for leaving the Society in such good and stable financial health. He then shared a snapshot of how RHS funds were being generated and spent.

• Income from membership (£7 million net in 2002) continued to exceed 50 percent of the Society’s total net income.
• A remarkably healthy contribution was made from shows (£3million).
• Trading companies made a substantial contribution to the Society’s net income (£1.8million). He also praised the work of Alan Roe, Commercial Director, in setting up RHS Publications to publish The Garden and other Society titles.
• Donations and legacies (£1.6 million) were appreciated and made a great difference to what the RHS could afford to do for horticulture.
• Gardens with a net expenditure of £4.3million - almost 50 percent - in 2002 represented the most significant item of expenditure.
• Science and Education with a net expenditure of £3.1 million, bore testament to the exciting initiatives outlined by the President.

In summary, the Society was dependent on the strong support of a growing membership income; it was working hard to develop its existing and new activities such as shows and commercial trading interests; it was continuing to manage its cost base down wherever possible; and it was dependent on, and most grateful for, the many generous contributions from members, donors, sponsors and legacies.

Exciting and challenging initiatives were taking shape which demonstrated how vital it was for the Society to build its fund-raising activities in order to deliver them.

Questions and points raised by members included:

• concern about the future of London flower shows, their promotion and whether entrance fees should be introduced;
• how attendance at the AGM could be improved;
• queues at Chelsea Flower Show;
• concern about promotion of different RHS groups;
• public transport to Wisley.

The President, Directors and Council members would address these issues over the coming year. The Annual Report and Accounts 2002–03 were adopted unanimously.

Elections and appointments

The President confirmed the Vice-Presidents for the next 12 months.

Sir Richard Carew Pole and Peter Buckley were respectively re-elected unopposed as President and Treasurer. KPMG LLP were appointed as Auditors for the following 12 months.

Christopher Beard and Andrews Sells were elected to Council to serve until 2008 and Prunella Scarlett to serve until 2004 following a ballot of the RHS membership.

Recipients of awards for 2002

The Victoria Medal of Honour

Awarded to British horticulturists resident in the UK whom Council considers deserving of special honour by the Society

Peter Beales was awarded the Victoria Medal of Honour for his work with roses.

Peter started his nursery, Peter Beales Roses, in Norfolk in 1968 and has built the business up into one of the leading rose nurseries in the UK. He has bred and introduced some 25 new rose cultivars.

His rose collection includes about 1,300 cultivars of shrub roses, climbers and ramblers, and is recognised as one of the largest commercial collections in the world.

A prolific writer, he has written several books, including Classic Roses and Roses - An Illustrated Encyclopaedia. He has lectured extensively in Europe as well as in the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India and Japan.

Peter is currently President of the Royal National Rose Society, and in 1998 he was Chairman of the International Historic Rose Conference in Cambridge. He is a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Gardeners and a Freeman of the City of London, and was elected Fellow of the Institute of Horticulture in 2000.

His Chelsea Flower Show exhibits have won 11 gold medals.

Andrew Dunn has been responsible to a large extent for improving the quality of fruit trees available to commercial fruit growers, thereby raising standards and greatly benefiting the whole industry.

After reading history at Cambridge, he inherited Frank P Matthews Ltd from his father-in-law. He became interested in the research work carried out at East Malling and Long Ashton Research Station, and was soon involved in the introduction of the emla scheme, which pioneered the introduction of virus-free rootstock. He was a founder member of the Nuclear Stock Association.

Since taking over Frank P Matthews Ltd, Andrew has built on the business’ well-established reputation as a source of top-quality trees. Under his directorship, the nursery has introduced many new fruit tree cultivars and now also grows a range of ornamental trees.

At 86, Andrew still works a full day on the nursery with particular involvement in the company’s fruit trials, which have introduced several successful new apple cultivars into the amateur market.

Peter Seabrook received the Victoria Medal of Honour in recognition of his service as a spokesman and champion for British horticulture.

Peter is known to gardeners all over the world for the enthusiastic way in which he communicates with his audiences, both as a television presenter and writer.

After training at Writtle College, he joined Cramphorns Ltd where he worked as Trial Grounds Manager and Nursery Director for 10 years. He was among the UK pioneers of container nursery-stock cultivation and garden-centre development.

He began writing for both the trade and consumer press in the 1960s and became a television presenter for Pebble Mill and BBC Gardener’s World. For more than 20 years he fronted an American programme The Victory Garden.

Gardening Editor for The Sun newspaper, Peter has written a number of bestselling gardening books, and in 1994 received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Garden Writers' Guild.

Associates of Honour

The Associateship of Honour is conferred on persons of British nationality who have rendered distinguished service to horticulture in the course of their working life

Barry Champion was awarded the Associateship of Honour in recognition of his work at Trelissick Garden and, more generally, in Cornwall. As Head Gardener, Barry has been responsible for the success of the garden at Trelissick through drought, devastating frost and serious storms.

He trained at Somerset College of Agriculture and Horticulture and, after a period at the Probus Gardens in Truro and as Head Gardener at Tregothnan for Viscount Falmouth, he moved to Trelissick in 1979. Known for horticultural excellence, the garden has been much improved during Barry’s tenure and now holds National Plant Collections of Azara and Photinia. In 1996 and 2003 respectively, Barry Champion had the honour of accompanying HM The Queen Mother and HRH Prince Charles on a tour of the garden.

Barry regularly gives talks and tours to local groups of enthusiasts, and often appears on local radio and television to speak about encouraging wildlife to the garden. He is a member of the RHS Rhododendron, Camellia and Magnolia Group, the Cornwall Branch of the nccpg and the Cornwall Garden Society. He has been Secretary of the Cornwall Rainfall Association for eight years and has been Chairman of the Horticultural Committee of Probus Gardens. He is a member of the Cornwall Orchard Project, the Cornwall Biodiversity Action Group and the Horticultural Advisory Committee for the Duchy Agricultural College.

Barrie has been Chairman of the Truro in Bloom Committee and he has served for 12 years as a judge for South West in Bloom.

David Jones OBE was awarded the Associateship of Honour for promotion of conservation and his tree-planting work for the Corporation of London. After training at Pershore College and RHS Garden Wisley, Peter went on from private service at a large country estate garden to Government scientific research.

He was Superintendent of Parks and Gardens for the Corporation of London for 30 years - a post from which he has recently retired.

An active promoter of conservation and a forerunner in recycling, David achieved his aim that there should be nowhere within the square mile of the City of London where one could stand outdoors without seeing a tree.

He has presented a long-running series of gardening programmes for BBC Wales and many other television and radio broadcasts on horticulture.

From 2001 - 03 he was President of the Royal National Rose Society and is a Fellow of the Institute of Horticulture and a member of the Metropolitan Public Gardens Association, the RHS and the Panel of International Rose Judges.

Mike Pollock was awarded the Associateship of Honour in recognition of his contribution to horticultural education. He trained at Pershore College and the University of Cambridge Botanic Garden, and was awarded Master of Horticulture (RHS). He then pursued a distinguished career in experimental horticulture, joining maff in 1961 as a Horticultural Advisory Officer, and in 1977 became Director of Rosewarne Experimental Horticulture Station. In 1990 he joined the RHS as Technical Liaison Officer and in 1996 he was promoted to Head of the Education Department, a post that he held until his retirement earlier this year.

Under his inspiring leadership, the Education Department has gone from strength to strength and the scope of the Society’s educational work, particularly its examinations, has increased in all aspects.

Mike was the Hon Secretary of the Institute of Horticulture from 1994 -99 and in 2001 he was awarded the President’s Medal for his lifelong career in, and commitment to, horticulture.

John Richardson was awarded the Associateship of Honour in recognition of his work with trees and shrubs. He grew up on the family farm in West Yorkshire, then spent two years at Writtle College, followed by practical experience in East Yorkshire and three years on the renowned market garden of F A Secrett Ltd at Godalming.

In 1964, after three years as commercial horticultural advisor for Fisons Horticulture Ltd in Scotland, he returned to practical horticulture with the purchase of the small Whixley Nursery from Eric Johnson. By 1971 the nursery had expanded significantly, supplying quality trees and shrubs to landscape contractors and local authorities in the north of England.

John is a Fellow of the Institute of Horticulture and growers’ organisations across Europe. He has received the HTA Pearson Memorial Medal for services to horticulture.

Sam Youd was awarded the Associateship of Honour in recognition of his contribution to the restoration of Tatton Park garden.

Sam began work as an apprentice gardener with Liverpool Parks Dept, where he passed the RHS Certificate. He worked briefly in private service, returning to the Parks Department as Training Instructor and later Technical Adviser.

He moved to Tatton Park in 1980 to take up the post of Propagator and was appointed Head Gardener in 1983. Since then he has played a key role in renovating this significant historic garden and arboretum. He is currently working on the restoration of the Walled Kitchen Garden.

In 1997 Sam was awarded a Churchill Scholarship to visit Japan with a view to gaining a deeper understanding for Tatton Park’s Japanese Garden, now fully restored.

He is a Fellow of the Institute of Horticulture, an honorary member of the NCCPG, a founder and honorary member of the Japanese Garden Society in Britain, and a founder member of the North West Branch of the Japanese Society UK.

The Gold Veitch Memorial Medal

The Gold Veitch Memorial Medal is conferred on persons who have made
an outstanding contribution to the advancement of the science and practice
of horticulture

Martin Bukovac was awarded the Veitch Memorial Medal for his contribution to the science of horticulture, particularly in the USA. He is University Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Michigan State University. He received his BS, MS and PhD (1957) degrees from Michigan State University, and served in the Department of Horticulture for 40 years in research and teaching.

He researched the role of plant hormones on flower formation, fruit growth and development, and on the mechanisms of chemical penetration through plant cuticles.

Martin was a US National Science Foundation Senior Post-doctoral Fellow at Oxford and Bristol Universities, was elected to the US National Academy of Sciences in 1983, received an honorary doctorate degree from the University of Bonn, Germany, in 1995 and was elected to the American Society for Horticultural Science Hall of Fame in 2001.

Michigan State University gave him the Distinguished Faculty Award in 1972, and made him University Distinguished Professor in 1992.

In retirement Martin continues to maintain a research programme working with visiting scientists.

Alan Jellyman was awarded the Veitch Memorial Medal for his contribution to public parks in New Zealand.

Alan is particularly associated with Pukekura Park in New Plymouth, New Zealand. He has devoted his 38-year career in public parks to building quality plant collections.

Alan began an apprenticeship in 1957 at Duncan and Davies Nursery. In 1962 he gained his National Diploma in Horticulture (NDH.NZ)).

In that same year he joined the staff of New Plymouth City Council as Assistant Curator at Pukekura Park, moving up the ranks to become Deputy Director of Parks in 1966. In 1977 he became Director of Parks and Recreation for New Plymouth. In this role his remit expanded to encompass many leisure facilities and he went on to become Community Services Manager in 1989.

He served on the National Executive of the New Zealand Institute of Parks for 17 years and was Chairman from 1987 until 1992.

An Associate of Honour of the Royal New Zealand Institute of Horticulture, he is an active member of the New Zealand chapter of the International Dendrology Society.

Alan recently retired after an outstanding career in public parks but continues to be a strong advocate for ongoing development and training of staff and managers of gardens open to the public.

Barrie Machin was awarded the Veitch Memorial Medal for his work with chrysanthemums over the past 50 years. He gained an Honours Degree in Horticulture from Nottingham University, and in 1955 was appointed Head Propagator at Frampton’s Leythorne Nursery in Chichester, where he soon planted Britain’s first crop of all-year-round (AYR) chrysanthemums. He began breeding such plants in 1963, introducing many new cultivars.

From 1968 - 72 he conducted nearly 50 experiments involving the effect of light, clonal selection and nutrition on chrysanthemums, gaining him the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Horticulture in 1973. His work resulted in a new European method of producing all-year-round chrysanthemums.

In 1986 Barrie was appointed Technical Director at Goldstock Breeding in Hampshire, where he stayed until his retirement in 2000.

He is a long-standing member of the National Chrysanthemum Society. His new book Understanding Chrysanthemums, written for home growers, will be published next year.

Barrie is co-author of two textbooks on AYR chrysanthemum production, Chrysanthemums the Year Round (1957) and Chrysanthemums Year Round Growing (1978).

John Massey was awarded the Veitch Memorial Medal in recognition of his contribution to horticulture as a plantsman, a nurseryman and a National Plant Collection holder. His father bought Ashwood Nurseries in a dilapidated state in 1967. John took over the business and, although he had no formal horticultural training, it soon flourished under his care.

In the early years he was attracted to dwarf conifers. Later his interest broadened to include Lewisia, Helleborus, Cyclamen species, Hepatica and, more recently, Salvia. Ashwood Nurseries now holds two National Plant Collections for the NCCPG.

To date every exhibit by Ashwood Nurseries at an RHS London Show has received a gold medal. Two displays of Lewisia and two displays of Hepatica have been awarded the Williams Memorial Medal.

George Ogden was awarded the Veitch Memorial Medal for his work designing and landscaping public areas and parks in Bermuda. Born in the Wirral, Cheshire, his formal training was at RHS Garden Wisley. He was Horticulturist and Parks Superintendent for the City of Hamilton, Bermuda for 40 years from 1962. He restored Fort Hamilton and established other park areas, receiving the Queen’s Certificate and badge of honour in 1992 for the ‘Beautification of Hamilton’.

George has been associated with the Bermuda National Trust since its formation, and is an active member of its Gardens and Nature Reserves Committee. In 2000 he received the Silver Palmetto Award from the Trust for his efforts to improve and maintain the natural beauty and parks in the City of Hamilton. He served on the Government’s Parks Commission from its formation in 1986.

Piet Oudolf was awarded the Veitch Memorial Medal for his refreshing approach to planting herbaceous plants, his plant breeding and his writing. Known worldwide as a pioneer of the ‘new European Garden style’, Piet has designed gardens and parks for 25 years. His designs incorporate formal features and informal, naturalistic plantings with grasses and bold perennials.

Piet’s work includes Dream Park in Enköping near Stockholm, Staudenmaschsee Park in Hannover, the entry to the Pensthorpe Waterfowl Park in Norfolk, and two long borders at RHS Garden Wisley.

He is co-author of a series of garden books published in the Netherlands, Sweden, Germany, France, the UK and the USA. Two new books, Designing with Plants and Dreamplants for the Natural Garden, have recently been published for the English and American markets.

Plants of his own breeding that have become popular include monardas, astrantias and veronicas.

Martin Rickard was awarded the Veitch Memorial Medal for his work with ferns. He gained a BSc in Special Botany from London University and pursued a career in agricultural research from 1963 until taking early retirement in 1993.

He developed an interest in ferns in the mid-1960s, and in 1988 started a small fern nursery in Herefordshire. In 1991 the nursery exhibited for the first time at the Spring Malvern Show; since then it has exhibited at more than 40 RHS shows and has won about 35 gold medals, including 10 consecutive golds at Chelsea.

His work has been a great factor in the current popularity of ferns, through his articles and his books - most notably The Plantfinder’s Guide to Garden Ferns, and Ferns in the RHS Wisley Handbook series.

Lady Emma Tennant was awarded the Veitch Memorial Medal for her work with National Trust Gardens. She read History at Oxford and taught the subject in Kenya in the 1960s, but has since lived in Roxburghshire for more than 30 years.

In 1982, Emma became Chairman of the National Trust’s Gardens Advisory Panel - an office she held for nearly 20 years. The work combined two of her greatest interests: history and gardening.

During those two decades, the Trust acquired 40 gardens and parks, including Stowe, Biddulph Grange, Sheringham, Belton and Cragside. Sometimes the problems seemed daunting, but the Trust’s gardening staff always rose to the challenge.

Robin Williams was awarded the Veitch Memorial Medal for his contribution to raising the standards and profile of garden design. He has more than 40 years’ experience in garden design, since 1978 with his own practice based in Newbury in Berkshire. Robin has designed more than 2,000 gardens worldwide, including commissions in USA, Europe and Japan, and has lectured extensively in the UK and overseas.

He has written and illustrated several books on garden design, including Garden Planning, published in 1996 in the RHS Encyclopaedia of Practical Gardening series.

The Lawrence Medal

Awarded for the best exhibit shown to the Society during the year
UK Horticulture for an exhibit of UK-grown fruit, flowers, vegetables and plants at the Chelsea Flower Show 2002.

The Williams Memorial Medal

Awarded for a group of plants and/or cut blooms of one genus (fruit and vegetables excepted), which show excellence in cultivation, staged at one of the Society’s shows during the year
M C Dickerson/Choice Ornamental Plant Nursery for an exhibit of Japanese maples at the Chelsea Flower Show 2002.

Holford Medal

Awarded for the best exhibit of plants and/or flowers (fruit and vegetables excluded) shown by an amateur or group of amateurs at one of the Society’s shows during the year
Shunji Mitsuhashi for an exhibit of orchids at the London Orchid Show 2002.

Memorial Cup

Awarded to encourage the production of new, hardy hybrids of garden origin
Peter Cox for his work with rhododendrons.

Wigan Cup

Awarded for the best exhibit shown to the Society during the year by a local authority
Southend on Sea Borough Council for an exhibit entitled A View From a Hot-air Balloon.

 

 

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