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A Short History of the MGS
The beginning
In 1992 the British journal Hortus published 'Letter from Attica' by Derek Toms, in which he complained about the problems of gardening in the Mediterranean. This prompted a letter from Trevor Nottle, the Australian garden consultant and writer, who pointed out that the problems faced by Mediterranean gardeners tended to be shared by others in similar climate zones elsewhere in the world. He had just begun to write a book on the subject and asked whether he could send Derek a questionnaire. Derek subsequently placed a letter in The European newspaper inviting other mediterranean gardeners to participate, and copies of the questionnaire were sent out some 30 people.
From their responses and ensuing correspondence it became clear that gardeners throughout the region faced broadly similar problems, namely:
- Climate: summer drought, high temperatures, high winds, salt-laden winds on the coasts, frost risk at higher altitudes.
- Soils: often poor in nutrients, stony, alkaline, frequently only a thin covering over rock.
- Plants: a limited selection of plants suitable for local conditions available from nurseries, plants often imported and suitable only for temperate climates, inadequately labelled, many plants of Mediterranean origin not commercially available.
- Labour: a lack of horticultural training at all levels and hence a shortage of qualified labour.
- Information: very few books written specifically on Mediterranean gardening, the information in books written for temperate Europe and America being rarely applicable.
- Design: the conventions of temperate landscape design are not always appropriate to the Mediterranean and new approaches to an indigenous garden style need to be explored.
- Contact: many gardeners struggle by trial and error in isolation.
All this suggested that some kind of regional network to share information and experience would be welcome. The idea was tentatively proposed to one or two people and evoked a favourable response. Then, early in 1994, Caroline Harbouri (one of the respondents to Trevor's questionnaire) took Derek to see the garden at Sparoza. This garden, created by Jaqueline Tyrwhitt nearly 30 years earlier and now the property of the Goulandris Natural History Museum, had been very much a pioneering effort; moreover Jaqueline Tyrwhitt had kept a record of her experiences with a view to publishing them. Sally Razelou, custodian at Sparoza and herself a keen gardener, supported Derek's idea enthusiastically. Sparoza seemed a natural home for a regional gardening society.
The infant society was christened and a bulletin prepared setting out its aims. The next task was to publicise the project. This was a slow process but it was accelerated by the visit of Professor William Stearn to Sparoza that summer. Professor Stearn took back news of the nascent society to Hugh Johnson at The Garden and its publication in that journal brought in a wave of enquiries. No money was available for advertising but the newly founded MGS was generously given mentions in a number of publications, including Hortus, Pacific Horticulture, Gardens Illustrated, The American Garden Journal, Giardini and The European.
In the meantime, we had embarked on the lengthy process of registering the society in Greece as a non-profit-making association. Twenty founder members were co-opted to sign the application, plus others whose contributions were needed to help meet expenses. In addition to founder members resident in Greece, the final total of 27 included Heidi Gildemeister, Trevor Nottle and Marina Adams, the UK-based landscape architect whose first commission on qualifying in 1963 had been the design of the garden at Sparoza. A constitution was drawn up in June 1994. The society finally received official notice of registration in December 1994. On the 1st of January, 1995, the MGS opened its subscription membership.
The Journal
Starting life without financial backing or sponsorship, the MGS was very much a case of creating something from nothing. After issuing two 8-page newsletters, it was felt that the time had come to publish a quarterly journal and in the summer of 1995 the first issue of The Mediterranean Garden appeared, despite the society's precarious finances. The bank account was emptied to print and dispatch the first two journals - it was only in the second year that membership grew sufficiently to ensure a running surplus of cash over expenses. The first three issues were edited jointly by Derek Toms and Caroline Harbouri; thereafter Caroline was persuaded to take over as sole editor with Derek as the main illustrator. From an initial sixty-four pages the journal expanded in 1999 to eighty pages with a longer issue in January when the index for the previous year is included. An innovation in 2007 was to publish an annual MGS Newsletter containing Branch reports, the seed exchange list and the report of the Scientific Committee. The journal is now illustrated by the work of many talented members.
Growth
By the end of 1995 there were 241 MGS members in 18 countries around the world. A year later membership stood at just over 500, and passed the 1500 mark in the year 2005 with members in 40 countries. Since then membership has fluctuated depending on the exchange rate of the Euro and the state of the world economy. Membership has not been confined to individuals: botanic gardens as far apart as Adelaide and Santa Barbara in California, universities and other societies have all joined the MGS. It was the aim of the fourth President, Cali Doxiadis, to encourage membership of the MGS beyond the conclaves of expatriates from northern climes to include gardeners native to the Mediterranean. Despite the language barrier 'native Mediterraneans' now form a significant proportion of members.
Administration
During the first months of the society's existence the various administrative roles were undertaken by Derek Toms and Sally Razelou but in December 1995, in accordance with our legal obligations, a five-person Administrative Committee was elected and Sally became the society's first President. Heidi Gildemeister (Spain) took over as President in October 1997, Katherine Greenberg (USA) in January 2001, Cali Doxiadis (Greece) in October 2004, Caroline Harbouri (Greece) in 2007 and Jean Vaché (France) in 2010. By 2001 the work of the Administrative Committee had become such that it was decided to get the Reserve Members involved and they were subsequently invited to the AC Meetings and when necessary took on set tasks. Email messaging was used heavily between AC members, but those outside Greece were unable to participate actively in meetings unless they were visiting Athens. Fortunately, with the use of Skype, all AC members have been able to participate in meetings since 2008.
Branches
Faced with a widely scattered membership, the development of local branches was a logical step which Heidi Gildemeister took in 1997 and Katherine Greenberg continued throughout her presidency. At present the MGS has branches in the mediterranean climate areas of Australia (South Australia and Victoria), Cyprus, France (Languedoc and Provence), Greece, Italy, Spain (Andalucia, Balearic Islands, Catalonia, and Central), and the USA (Northern, Central and Southern California). In addition groups of members meet in Portugal (Algarve and Beira) and Greece (Crete and the Peloponnese). Some members live outside the mediterranean climate areas but have their own local branches: in Germany & Austria, Scandinavia, the UK and the Pacific North West, USA. Each branch and group has its own programme of meetings, garden visits etc., and some have their own newsletters. Details of these activities are to be found on the MGS web pages.
Website
Another of Heidi Gildemeister's innovations was to get the MGS on to the internet. Seán O'Hara, the Northern California Branch Head, had already set up a web site for mediterranean plants. He agreed to add pages to his site for the MGS and made the original design. Subsequently, with the help of Fleur Pavlidis, the site took off on its own and expanded into a 'shop window' for the MGS. The site is now managed professionally by Truetype Web Solutions and is edited by Jean Vaché. In 2010 the site went through its second major overhaul and two new sites were born so that the society now also has shop windows in French and Greek.
Promotion of Principles
MGS members are introduced to the society's principles via the journal and the website and many of the events organised by the branches. In addition the Annual General Meeting has become an opportunity for an educational as well as an administrative and social and gathering. Right from the beginning the first president, Sally Razelou, realised that for members to be persuaded to attend the General Assembly in Greece she would have to offer some kind of additional events. As the presidency passed outside Greece so the range of venues expanded - to Spain, France, Italy and Cyprus and across the Atlantic and the American continent to California. From small beginnings, up to 120 members now participate in each AGM, learning how gardeners in countries other than their own handle the challenges of the climate and conditions.
The promotion of the MGS principles of environment and climate–compatible gardening to the general public is perhaps even more important. The MGS has participated in various garden fairs, for example Primavera alla Landriana (1996), BBC Gardener's World Live (1998), Les Journées des Plantes de Courson (1999), the San Francisco Flower & Garden Show (2000), and the Kifissia Flower Show, Greece (2005, 2006, 2007). The society has been a co-sponsor of the 'Gardening Under Mediterranean Skies' Symposium in Northern and Southern California since 2002. Representing the society, its UK Branch organized an exhibition entitled 'The Mediterranean Garden' accompanied by lectures at the RHS Lindley Library, London in 2004, while in 2007 it put on a display for the March Flower Show of the Royal Horticultural Society, which had a Mediterranean theme. Also in 2007 the AGM in Athens was organised as a Symposium with workshops, panel discussions and evening lectures, the latter being open to the public and very well attended. Branches continue to organise stalls at local plant fairs and lectures which are open to the public and funds from the central MGS account are available to support such promotional events. In addition during the presidency of Caroline Harbouri a series of informative leaflets on various practical aspects of Mediterranean gardening was initiated. Each one is translated into the other Mediterranean languages and offered freely at public events.
In 2005 it was suggested by the South Australia Branch that the MGS should make a token donations to the Adelaide Botanic Garden as a sign of support for the work being undertaken. Subsequently the idea of an annual donation was adopted and it has been awarded to the Herbarium of the University of Montpellier's Institute of Botany (2006), the garden of the Mastaba Mosque in Rethymno, Greece (2007), the mediterranean garden being created at Lakeside Park, Oakland, Northern California (2008), the garden of the Aghioi Anargyroi Primary School in Larnaca, Cyprus (2009), and the Park for the Preservation of Flora and Fauna, a part of the Technical University of Crete in Hania (2010).
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