What's new in ZIWA

They say the sun shines on the righteous; in which case Gardening Group chairladies Heidi and Helga have been very good this year!
In July, they picked a perfect day for a visit to the alpine garden at the Hotel Schatzalp in Davos, and were lucky again on their most recent venture, a visit to a private garden in Stein am Rhein in August.
Fifteen people made the trip to Davos by train, a journey of two and a half hours, but we always enjoy the ride on ZIWA's 'out and about' trips. The regional train ride from Landquart to Davos was truly spectacular, with clear mountain views unfolding around every bend.
From Davos Dorf we ascended with a short funicular ride to the Hotel Schatzalp, a Jugendstil building once home to writer Thomas Mann. Lunch outside on a nearby restaurant terrace was a rather lengthy affair but everyone was able to enjoy the sun and the breathtaking mountain views while they waited.
Then up to the hotel for a peep inside the Art Nouveau interior, before exploring the alpine garden with its numerous varieties of alpine plants and wild flowers from all over the world. Many of the group members are plant experts and there was ample opportunity on this visit to show off one's skill in plant identification by those talented ladies among us. After coffee on the terrace with a distinct feeling of a bygone age, the group split up for the descent to Davos for the return train journey home. Thanks, ladies, for organising another wonderful day out!

Last week the gardening group ventured north to the border with Germany, to the picturesque town of Stein am Rhein with its open air cafes and colourfully decorated houses and hotels.
Another group of fifteen, many of them gardening regulars, took the train and then crossed the Rhein into the old town centre, where we were lucky enough to visit a private family home, a listed building, where we enjoyed tea and coffee and a selection of home-made cakes provided by our chairladies. Many people had missed lunch, so we tucked in greedily to the delicious goodies while admiring the river views.
Then Heidi led us along to the Villa Violetta, family home to Basel man Reinhard Behrens, who has renovated the century-old villa as recently as 2002.
Star of the show was the 6000m_ garden, lovingly planted by Reinhard, a member of the Swiss Perennial Society, with numerous plants, trees and shrubs sourced from garden specialists all over Europe. His idea was to recreate a strolling garden complete with pavilions, English roses, shrubs from France and Italy, and even a Californian sequoia and a Chinese wisteria. ReinhardÕs garden is one of several belonging to the Swiss private garden group, who open their own gardens to other group members on request. We spent a leisurely hour discovering many familiar and unusual plants with our knowledgeable guide. Then there was just time for a pleasant glass of wine in the town square before we headed off to catch the return train connection to Zurich.

Someone mentioned to me recently that she was surprised that the gardening group didn't get together to do gardening, but if you ever need a garden or plant expert, or just want to chat to another enthusiast about her colourful terrace or balcony, then this is the group for you. Thanks to Heidi and Helga for making it all happen in their informative but very relaxed manner.

Make a date for next month - 10 September's Wednesday afternoon visit is to the Egli Garden Centre in Hombrechtikon, when the chances are that it will be sunny.