Don Witton:- About Myself
I am a school teacher by profession. I have been a gardener for over 30 years and an avid 'Hardy Planter' (hardy herbaceous perennials) for 20 years. I am a member of three national garden charities, the Hardy Plant Society (having been chairman of the local South Pennine group), the National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens (being chairman and Collections coordinator of the Notts and Derby group), and the Royal Horticultural Society.
I hold an N.C.C.P.G. National Collection of hardy Euphorbia which has been featured on B.B.C. 2's Gardeners' World and B.B.C. TVs Tatton Park Show programme. It has also appeared in numerous gardening magazines including the R.H.S. journal 'The Garden' (twice), Gardens Illustrated and in a Japanese gardening magazine. It is also listed in the Good Gardens Guide.
I have written a book for the Hardy Plant Society entitled Euphorbias. I run a small nursery specializing in a large range of Euphorbias (including rare and desirable varieties), perennials and seed.
Illustrated garden lectures are given on a variety of subjects to interested groups e.g. specialist societies, garden clubs, W.I.s etc. Having now retired from teaching long distance lectures are possible but overnight accommodation would be appreciated for evening lectures over 120 miles away.
Lecture fees:-
Large groups >50 - £50
Medium groups 30-50 - £40
Small groups < 30 - £30
all + travel @25p/mile
ILLUSTRATED GARDEN TALKS - 2010
1 Euphorbias All you need to know about this very popular genus delivered in a highly amusing and informative way. Great slides show the wonderful variety of plants throughout the year.
2 The National Plant Collections of Great Britain Involves 2 spectacular journeys. A 3 mile vertical journey and a 3000 mile horizontal one visiting around 40 different and diverse National Collections. There is a conservation theme to the talk which concludes with an exhilarating climax.
3 Living with a National Plant Collection Written for the successful HPS Autumn Weekend. Hilarious anecdotes and experiences from owning a very trendy and active National Collection. Oh, and some good slides as well.
4 Perennials Throughout the Year A comprehensive look at herbaceous perennials with slides from January-December and peaking in the months of June and July.
5 Euphorbias and Other Spring Flowering Perennials All the Euphorbia jokes and an excellent selection of other seasonal flowering perennials which pay homage to Euphorbias during the spring!
6 Late Herbaceous Perennials A sumptuous array of Perennials which give of their best from midsummer onwards. Including numerous examples of the more colourful and fashionable genera.
7 Summer Perennial Colour No whites or pastel colours in this talk. Just spectacular rich and vibrant floral colours which are around during the peak summer months
8 Herbaceous Perennials and Borders A short evolution of the English herbaceous border since Victorian times. We visit many of England’s most famous and spectacular herbaceous borders and gardens. The second half of the talk focuses on plants which are grown in these borders.
9 The A-Z of Garden Perennials Do you know any perennials which begin with Q, X or J? Some surprising inclusions, as well as plenty of our favourites. Many of the slides in this talk are in close up detail.
10 AGM - A Glorious Medley of Plants A plethora of highly garden worthy plants that have received the coveted R.H.S. Award of Garden Merit. A little more entertaining and colourful than the other AGM evenings that we attend!!!
11 Ten Top Gardens No historic parks or landscaped gardens in this talk. Just fabulous gardens where herbaceous plants and planting take pride of place. New ideas for garden visiting days out or just reminisce if you have already visited.
12 Hardy Planter's Winter Survival Kit Plants, projects, activities and strategies to help you get through the dark nights and cold days between October and March. An amusing talk with some wonderful slides of winter plants.
13 People, Plants, Pleasure and Passion Written for a HPS 50th birthday lecture day, this talk contains funny people stories and fabulous plant images classified into interesting themes. Pleasure and passion, being abstract nouns cannot be illustrated but permeate the whole talk.
14 Walking With Flowers Combining my two passions of walking and wildflowers, these are holiday snaps with a difference! Whether it’s coastal, countryside or mountain walking we see beautiful pictures of many of our garden plants in stunning scenery, where they choose to grow naturally.
15 Is Big Ever Beautiful? Great things don’t always come in small packages. Whether it’s giant blooms, big plants or large gardens there’s something to be admired and enjoyed about being oversize.
EUPHORBIA STUDY DAYS - Learn all you need to know about this wonderfully diverse and popular genus by booking a half day STUDY DAY. The programme includes 2 x 1 hour sessions tailored to your groups' needs.
Session 1 - Practical:
i) the unique floral structure
ii) seed production and collection
iii) propagation
Session 2 - Slide presentation:
i) variety of life
ii) cultivation
iii) euphorbias throughout the year
iv) using euphorbias in the garden
Maximum group size 24. Cost £80 +travel @25p/mile
Review ...... by Kathy Gray. Norfolk NCCPG
Thank you for your excellent presentation yesterday, You certainly achieved your objective for people to learn, but still enjoy themselves and the day really was a resounding success. I hope you soon put workshops on your website as Groups would really enjoy the event I am sure.
CONTACT: DON WITTON – 01909 771366
TALK REVIEWS
'Euphorbias ' ...... by Jean Harris, Notts and Derby N.C.C.P.G.
On 8th January we had another fun meeting! Now you might not think that the Collection Holders' Meeting would be described as fun - but those of us who were there enjoyed a wonderful talk by Don Witton about his collection of Euphorbias and he certainly had us rolling in the aisles at times! Don is full of infectious enthusiasm and his talk was based on his wide knowledge of the subject and hands-on experience in growing Euphorbias. If Don makes his lessons at school half as enjoyable as his talk, he must surely be the most popular teacher in school!
'Euphorbias and Other Spring Flowering Perennials' ...... by Ruth Wood, Sheriff Hutton Gardening Club N Yorks
Thank you so much for coming 'up north' on Wednesday to speak to our gardening club. It was an excellent presentation and enjoyed by everyone I spoke to afterwards, both expert gardeners and evening entertainment members.
'National Collections of Great Britain' ...... by Sonia Saint, South Pennine H.P.S.
Don Witton started his talk by playing some music "Wonderful Land" by Mike Oldfield and took us on a whistle stop vertical journey from the highest mountains down to sea level in a matter of a few minutes. That's a first - we have not had music before, have we? Don then filled the rest of the evening with a 3000 mile trip around Britain in his usual humorous manner. Good slides, informative and entertaining, what more could we ask of a speaker?
'Living with a National Collection'......National H.P.S. Autumn Weekend
Don Witton gave an excellent after dinner speech on becoming a National Collection Holder......Don's talk was very entertaining, even Peter enjoyed it......I think I would like my grandchildren to be in Don's class, they would have fun.
'A Hardy Planter's Winter Survival Kit' ...... by Veronica Gillett, Kingstone Gardening Club Staffordshire.
Thank you for a most enjoyable talk. It was an unusual approach, both entertaining and encouraging......your slides of Autumn colour were quite breathtaking. Your energy and enthusiasm greatly impressed our members. Two comments - "I could have listened to him all evening" and "I was inspired" - sum up very neatly the reaction to your talk.
'Perennials Throughout the Year' ...... by Vicky Stewart, Rotherham Chantry Ladies Group
That was a very entertaining talk......you have such enthusiasm. Every slide looked like a Christmas card. Even the non gardeners in the group enjoyed it.
'An A-Z of Garden Perennials' ...... by Ruth Taylor, Tickhill Horticultural Society Doncaster
Thank you very much for coming to Tickhill and giving a wonderful talk to our society. Your talk was very lively and interesting, prompting several comments on "could you come again sometime." I'll be contacting you for a return visit at some future date.
'Walking with Flowers' ...... by Betty Gallimore, Newton Solney Village Hall Horticultural Section Staffordshire
Just writing to offer our sincere thanks to you for visiting us last Tuesday evening and for a very entertaining evening. Many of our members have made a point of telling me how much they enjoyed the lecture and slide show - especially as it combined the two subjects of wild flowers and walking. We only do one lecture a year, but I am sure we will be getting in touch with you again to see if you are able to come and talk to us on one of your other subjects. Happy travelling and good walking!
'Summer Perennial Colour' ...... by Caroline Turner, Paxton Horticultural Society Leeds
Thank you for coming to visit us last week. We all enjoyed your presentation enormously. Not only was it informative and thought provoking, but amusing and entertaining too. At our committee meeting after your visit we decided we would like you to visit us again.
If you would like to find out more or book a talk, please feel free to contact me. Information on forthcoming talks can also be found on this site.