Now we’re officially into Autumn, it’s time to enjoy the foliage colour in my garden. The virginia creeper behind me in my video is turning a beautiful burnished burgundy – but I know that in a week or so it’ll dump its entire foliage within about 24 hours and leave me with a slimy mess to clear up. The joys of the season, eh?
The most important date this month is 24th October – the closing date for submitting seeds to the Seed Distribution Scheme – check the website for details on how to save, package and label the seed and where to send them. The seed list will be with you next month with the first edition of our new-look Journal.
Also this month our Group Liaison Day will bring together group leaders (Chairs, Group Secretaries etc) from many of our local and Special Interest groups to share ideas and discuss shared issues. We’re meeting in Birmingham on Saturday 18th October – if you’re involved in leading one of our groups, please do join us as it’s an incredibly useful day.
Watch my video and read below for details of volunteers we’re currently looking for and please do have a think about whether you might be able to offer some time to the HPS to help us spread the word about the joy of gardening with Hardy Plants.
Steve Bustin, Chair HPS
If you prefer to read Mike's message above, the transcript can be downloaded here.
News
- The Seed Distribution Scheme
- Membership fee increase
- Donations and legacies
- New Trustees
Save your seeds
Our Seed Distribution Scheme is open for donations, it is the cheapest way to receive many packets of seeds of plants we all love to grow.
Plants are beginning to set seed, when the weather is dry get them into a paper bag and follow the guidance here on how to label, package and send them in to us for later in the year.
Membership Fee Increase
At the AGM a large majority of members at the meeting in person and voting online supported the resolution to increase the membership fee to £27 for a single member and £33 for a joint membership We are making plans for how this will happen including communications to all members, in the near future.
Watch your inboxes (or letter box) for more details on how to make the change, coming soon.
Donations and Legacies
Some members have asked how they can make a donation to the society, which has been added to the website recently. Visit the online shop Donation page here, choose your amount, checkout and pay.
The society has greatly benefited from the legacy left by Kenneth Black, and any future legacies would enable the society to do more. If you need more information on how to do this please get in touch.
New trustees
At the AGM we had two new trustees join us, Carolyn White who will focus on the societies publishing activity and Samantha Cook who will be developing new member benefits for the society.
Can you help?
Would you like to get more involved with the HPS and bring your time and talents to bear on the future of the Society? We currently have a number of roles open and are looking for people who might like to come onboard and join our large team of much-valued volunteers.
It’s a great way to meet new Hardy Planters, expand your own knowledge and experience and help the Society to thrive.
Shows & Events postholder
We're looking for someone to get involved in promoting the society at shows and events, working with our local and special interest groups.
This is a great way to tell the world about the Hardy Plant Society at everything from the Chelsea Flower Show down to local smaller local shows.
Please drop Steve an email on [email protected] for more details.
Marketing postholder
We’re looking for someone to join the team to help us communicate the great work and the benefits of membership of the Hardy Plant Society. This would be through coordinating marketing activities such as email marketing, advertising, partnerships and the production of print materials to be distributed at events.
This person will work closely with the other postholders mentioned above. Some marketing experience would be an advantage.
If you would like more details on any of these roles or to have a chat about what might be involved, please contact our Chair, Steve Bustin, on [email protected]. We are also very happy to look at people sharing roles as a ‘job share’ to help spread the workload, if you’d be interested in taking on the role with a friend.
New on the website
If you haven't already please take a look at a new articles from our contributors:
Promiscuous Plants and Serendipity
My garden is a permanent compromise between my insatiable plantaholism and the promiscuity of plants, assisted by visiting wildlife.
There are many culprits for the random emergence of flowers and shrubs. Heritage is one. Land carries history. Seeds have capacity to lie dormant in the ground for millennia, certainly centuries, prepared to emerge if undisturbed or in some cases, like foxgloves and poppies, if disturbed
On a Chalk Hillside – September 2025
In this article I am going to show you plants that were here when we moved in, or that I have deliberately planted here that have subsequently self-seeded around. I wonder whether the plants that self-seed themselves around my garden are particular to my chalk hillside environment, or are pioneer species that will pop up anywhere?
Botanising in the land of the Panda and Primula
I was lucky enough to spend over 2 weeks in Western China from landing in Chengdu on May 31st through to landing back in London on June 15th. I had been invited by Seamus Obrien to join a botanical group to walk in the footsteps of Frank Kingdon Ward and to explore new botanical hotspots in Sichuan and Yunnan.
We always want to hear from anyone who can write about plants and gardening. If you have something you'd like to see published, please get in touch.
Events at Local and Special Interest Groups
Below is a listing of Local & Special Interest Group Events around the Country. Most are open to guests for a fee. For more details click the link below and check with the organisers of the specific event for more details including the venue location.
- Wed 1st Oct at 19:00 Cornwall group: A Buzz in the Garden, Gardening for Bees – Richard Rickitt
- Wed 1st Oct at 19:30 South Pennine group: Five Centuries of Women Gardeners – Richard Rallings
- Thu 2nd Oct at 19:30 East Yorkshire group: Topic TBC – John Grimshaw
- Sat 4th Oct at 14:00 Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire group: 60 Plants to Grow before you are Compost (the Connoisseurs Collection) – Dr Andrew Ward
- Sat 4th Oct at 14:30 Shropshire group: Barnsdale after Geoff: 1996 to the Present Day – Nick Hamilton
- Sat 4th Oct at 14:30 Northamptonshire group: Do Your Roots Need Doing – Andrew Mikolajski
- Sat 4th Oct at 14:30 Devon group: Wildflowers of the Meadow – Paul Jupp
- Sat 4th Oct at 14:00 Herts Group: Wildside – Landscape of Memories and Dreams Wildside Garden, Devon – Keith Wiley
- Mon 6th Oct at 19:30 Cheshire and Friends group: Hardy Exotics – Kristofer Swaine
- Mon 6th Oct at 19:30 Middlesex group: A Brief History of the Pleasure Garden – Steve Bustin HPS National Chair
- Fri 10th Oct at 19:00 West Yorkshire group: The Development of a Garden – Eddie Harland
- Fri 10th Oct at 19:30 Nottingham group: Cliff Bank Nursery – Ben Preston
- Sat 11th Oct at 14:00 Herefordshire and Mid Wales group: New and Worthwhile Introductions – Josh Egan Wyer
- Sat 11th Oct at 14:00 Worcestershire group: Modern Methods of Pest and Disease Control – Reg Moule
- Sat 11th Oct at 14:00 Monmouthshire group: The Winter Garden – Marion Stainton
- Sat 11th Oct at 14:30 West Midlands group: Choosing and Planting bulbs, corms and tubers all year round – Karen Gimson
- Sun 12th Oct at 14:00 Essex group: Cyclamen, from Seed Pod to Show Bench – Diane Clement
- Tue 14th Oct at 19:30 Clwyd group: Confessions of a Plantaholic, Plants I couldn’t do without’ – Razvan Chisu
- Tue 14th Oct at 19:30 Rutland group: Every Dog has his Day – Colin Moat
- Tue 14th Oct at 19:45 Berkshire group: Judging Chelsea – John Hughes
- Wed 15th Oct at 10:00 Sussex group: A Fungal Forest – Walk & Talk MEMBERS ONLY
Sat 18th Oct at 14:00 Derbyshire group: The Alluring Beauty of Japan’s Gardens and the many Cultural Idiosyncrasies – Roger Roberts - Sat 18th Oct at 14:00 Wiltshire and Avon group: Group AGM followed by The Secrets of Successful Water Gardening – James Allison
- Sat 18th Oct at 14:00 South Wales group: Garden 365- No Excuses- Roger Lloyd
- Sat 18th Oct at 14:15 Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire group: Cyclamen and Hepatica, Jewels of the garden – Diane Clement
- Sat 18th Oct at 14:30 Fenland group: The ‘Late Show’ Autumn’s Floral Finale – Andrew Ward
- Sat 18th Oct at 19:00 Cornwall group: Hydrangeas – Harvey Stephens
- Sun 19th Oct at 14:00 Sussex group: Parham Gardens, Moving Forward – Andrew Humphris
- Mon 20th Oct at 19:30 North West group: A Garden for all Seasons – Diane Clement
- Tue 21st Oct at 19:30 Galanthus group: White Gold – Hester Forde (Ireland)
- Sat 25th Oct at 13:45 Western Counties group: Preparing for Spring and Best Ever Borders – Tamsin Westhorpe
- Sat 25th Oct at 14:30 Dorset group: The Ascension Islands – Martin Young
- Sun 26th Oct at 14:30 Kent group: Talk – ‘What makes a Good Garden Plant?’
Join the Hardy Plant Society
Help us spread the benefits of plants and gardening. Our members tell us they feel relaxation, happiness, satisfaction, calmness and love from plants and gardening. We want to see these benefits reach everyone, and at the same time improve our environment.
Since 1957 we’ve been promoting plants and helping our members adapt to changes in our environment. Entirely member funded, we run a network of local groups around the country and are always looking to start more.
All memberships provide many benefits including
- The option to join any of our local or special interests groups
- Three copies of The Hardy Plant (in full colour, by post)
- Immediate access to the members area of our website with access to all our news and articles
- Free plant advice through our advisory service
- Participation in the Conservation scheme
- Participation in the Seed Distribution Scheme
- The option to subscribe to Cornucopia for an additional fee
Thank you for reading!
