events
The Auckland Cactus and Succulent Society

Events
Page update 15-03-2023

Coming events

  • National AGM and Conference 25-26 March 2023


    Past events

  • November 26,27 - was our bi-annual Show and Sales.
    held in Albany Village Hall. (See News page)
  • 2019, 30th November was our bi-annual Show and Sales.
    See "NEWS PAGE"
  • 2018, our National get together was 10 & 11 March 2018. held in Auckland. Venue was great (Onehunga Bowling Club) and the food was Fab. Great number of gardens to visit on Sunday. All quite different.

  • 2017, our National get together was 25 & 26 February 2017. held in Taupo. Venue was good and the food was Fab. There is no branch in Taupo, but one member lives just out of town So Sunday was his one garden to visit. Nice relaxing lunch an walk around the garden.

  • 2016 Nov was our public show, and was very successful. People buying plants was in excess of the plants for sale. And we gained quite a few new members.

  • 2016, New Zealand had its turn at hosting the Australaisan conference. Easter, .Thurs evening 25th March ..to.. Sunday 27th March
    ..Host was New Plymouth.

  • Cactus Crawl Sun 29th March - Whangaparaoa area

  • This year, our National get together was 28 February/01 March 2015. held in LOWER HUTT. Venue was great and the food was Fab.
  • Our Bi-Anual show was held again this year Nov 7,8,9, 2014 in the Mt Albert War Memorial Hall.

  • National get together March 2014. It was held in New Plymouth this Year. Great event, lovely gardens to visit.

  • National get together March 2013. It was held in Palmerston North again.

  • Our Bi-annual SHOW & PLANT SALES 2012 was held in our usual place, in the Mt Albert War Memorial Hall, Just down from the corner of St. Lukes Rd, @ 749 New North Rd, Mt.Albert.

  • We had what is termed a National get together March 16,17,18, 2012. This was a great function, great food and great company. Only 40 people attended, so it was quite cosy in a small conference room. No need for microphones etc. Very interesting talks by our NZ members. This was combined with our National AGM.

  • We had another Cactus Crawl & BBQ on Sun 26th Feb 2012, - 27 people attended, what a great day, great weather.

  • We had a Cactus Crawl (Garden Visit) 3rd April 2011. Cracker day with 19 of us travelling in private cars around 5 gardens in South Auckland.

  • We had our National AGM and conference in Wellington March 4, 5, 6, 2011 It was run as a one and a half day conference with garden visits on the Sunday. Very well run, the speakers were great, and the food was excellent.

  • Another loverly Show and Plant Sales just finished, at the Mt Albert Hall,
       Was held November 5,6,7th 2010. (Fri, Sat, Sun)

  • We had our National Conference in Auckland, 26,27,28 February 2010 The whole event went beautifully, The Hotel Grand Chancellor was very good and most obliging with request set upon them. All our local speakers were great. A special thanks to our overseas Speaker Graham Charles as he gave 4 superb talks over the weekend all of them really interesting. Sunday garden visits were also great, and we had fine weather as well. All in all a fantastic weekend, thanks to the committee.

  • Show and Plant Sales at the Mt Albert Hall,
       Was held November 7,8,9th 2008. (Fri, Sat, Sun)
       Click to see  - Photos  

  • We had Another Cactus Crawl -
    on Sunday the 4th October. A great day was had by all with an extra garden squeezed in. Although it did rain on and off a bit, nothing that a coat and brolly couldn't fix.

  • Cactus Crawl held on Sunday 20th April to Hamilton was a great success. We had glorious weather, and didn't hit any unusual traffic, even though we managed to get the same day as the V8 street racing.

  • Branch Show at the Mt Albert War Memorial Hall (Nov 3,4,5, 2006).
  • Ellerslie Flower Show 2000  (Click...)
  • Auckland Cacti & Succulent Society Show 2000  (Click...)
  • Ellerslie Flower Show 2007  (Click...)

     

  • Ellerslie Flower Show 2005   (Follows..on)

       It was a great opportunity to be able to display our interest in cacti & succulents to the masses at such a prestigious garden event as the annual Ellerslie flower show and be fortunate enough to win a SILVER award. The exhibit was in the Hort Galore marquee which had 18 or so societies and other garden clubs. The two main exhibitors in this marquee were the Fruit and
    Vegetable Growers’ Association and Inplantswhich produce new varieties of plants for the market. Their sites were 10 metres by 10 metres and ours was only 3 metres by 3 metres. They both picked up the GOLD awards in our marquee. We were the only society to get a SILVER award so I think that was pretty fantastic!

       The design and build team was Tim & Karen, Peter & Karen.
    Thanks to Martin Walker & Tim Saunderson from COROMADEL CACTI for letting us have the pick of any plants from their nursery. They also lent us their truck so we could safely transport the plants to and from the show.
    Thanks to Kevin at EZI-ROCK who supplied the large grade man-made rocks, which are available from Stone & Water World. We had so many comments from the public as to how we lifted them, then they found out that they were not real.
    Thanks to Bruce from HENDERSON ELECTRICAL for lending us all of the lighting equipment. It looked spectacular at night for the evening visits.
    Thanks to all the Auckland Branch members who supplied plants, and those that volunteered their time to stand in front of the display and handed out brochures to promote the society.

       It all started in Peter’s big shed at Swanson, West Auckland, once we had the large rocks, cacti and succulents, it was a matter of deciding where they went. Next was a free standing plywood boxed frame complete with floor. We constructed the base with thick polystyrene foam blocks that we salvaged from building sites. We then cut holes in these to slot the plants in, at one stage there was so much loose floating polystyrene balls it resembled a snowstorm. Peter was vacuuming these out of his shed for days. The front of the display was made from square wire mesh which, when filled with loose little rock gives that “gabian basket “ effect.
       Meanwhile in Tim and Karyn’s garage, the sunset and rocky canyon backdrop was being spray painted one colour at a time. This was then fixed to the rest of the frame and the plants were placed and moved several times. Peter was very patient at this, especially when his wife Karen bought us cups of tea and buscuits and gave her ideas as to which side looked best. Poor Peter was getting advice from two Karen’s, like “just a little more to the left- no back again “ etc etc.
       After every plant was in place , and the lights positioned. It was time to dismantle it all ready for transport. All we had to do was set it all up again at the Ellerslie flower show site in Manurewa, South Auckland. We arrived on site at 6 AM with the plants in the truck and the rocks and base on two trailers. After 4 or so hours it was all constructed with plants in place and the loose rock scattered all over the polystyrene and complete with lights. Seven days later it came down again, with one extra thing – THE SILVER AWARD !.


    List of Plants used:
    1) Espostoa procerera
    2) Aloe ramissima
    3) Aeonium arboreum “schartzkopt”
    4) Ferrocactus glaucesens scharzii
    5) Echeveria hybrids x 5
    6) Echeveria " "
    7) Pilosocereus pentoadrophorus x 3
    8) Aloe polyphylla
    9) Oreocereus celsianus
    10) Aloe distans
    11) Echinocereus grusonii x 3
    12) Echeveria agavoides
    13) Agave ferdinandi-regis
    14) Echeveria elegans
    15) Opuntia robusta
    16) Stetsonia coryne
    17) Trichocereus chilensis
    18) Espostoa sp

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