Horticultural Therapy Society of NSW

Cultivate NSW

Issue 79 December 2008

Inside this issue: 2008 AGM Presidents Report 2

A new committee . . .
At the 2008 AGM a new committee for the ensuing year was elected. Jill Jeffrey and Anna Satharasinghe retired from the committee and we would like to thank them for their valuable contribution in recent years. We have new committee members which is always exciting and brings new energies and ideas to an organisation such as ours. We welcome Karen Gray and Ling Halbert who attended training in the first semester 2008 and Judith Monaghan who brings much valued secretarial support.. Virginia Field, Ruth McLean and Marie Edwards will continue as president, vice president and treasurer. The committee has met already and 2009 activities have been scheduled. There will be a mix of workshops and site visits continuing our practice from recent years. All are welcome and these events will be advertised closer to their scheduled dates. Already a workshop is planned for Randwick in Seniors Week in March and a second has been requested. It is important that any more expressions of interest are lodged soon. We trust that the website will be more active in 2009. You will be advised when new maintenance arrangements are in place. We are aware of problems in this area and apologies for any inconvenience or delay in communication as a consequence. Be assured that our web-based communications will improve in coming months. Site Visit Hawkesbury Skills Cultivate training days Site visit (continued 2 3

Membership fees

ANHS Workshop

Remembering Esther Deans OBE

On behalf of The Society, the management committee acknowledges the passing of Esther Deans OBE in October this year. Esthers contribution to horticulture in Australia is unprecedented. She has been a faithful member of Cultivate, the Horticultural Therapy Society of NSW since its inception and her support over the years has been gratefully received.

Book now for a workshop in Randwick during Seniors Week March 2009 Enquiries to Frida Kitas 9399 0972 Contact the Telopea Centre for other opportunities

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Cultivate NSW

Presidents Report: October 21st, 2008

Another business year has passed for our Society. Last year we initiated several cosmetic changes with our new logo, stationery and the website. This year we have used these resources to actively promote the Society in various forums and opportunities. The presentation at the Diversional Therapy Conference in Wollongong in October 2007 was the first of several presentations that have been made this year. Subsequently there were presentations at the National Disability Services (NDS) NSW Conference in February 2008, a Falls Prevention Day for North Sydney Area Health Service in June, the Aged Care Carex Expo in August and most recently the National Horticultural Therapy Conference in Melbourne. A poster was developed for the first of these presentations. After some deliberation the Management Committee agreed to print copies and these have been another resource for distribution and promotion, although not the money spinner we had hoped. The posters have been available at the events already mentioned and were also distributed to the service providers attending the Home Modification and Maintenance Services Annual Conference in September. The posters, the tools and of course our fabulous volunteers also had a presence at the Royal Rehabilitation Centre Open Day and at the Gardening Australia Expo. Thanks to all of you who have participated in these activities. This year there has been formal training delivered by Ruth, firstly here at Ryde and now in Wollongong. It is great to have been able to deliver these programs after a few years now of promising. I would like to welcome especially the students from those programs who are here tonight. Another activity this year has been site visits. There have been visits to the Prince of Wales Hospital and to Mt. Penang on the Central Coast and another visit is planned for the Hawkesbury in a couple of weeks time. These visits have provided an excellent opportunity to see horticultural therapy in action in its various iterations, as well as making time to cultivate friendships. Although the Society has been very active, we continue to manage with minimal human resources. As a consequence, we reduced the number of newsletters we produced this year from four to three. The third issue for 2008 will be sent out next month. The newsletter has been well received generally affirming the intention to maintain quality. Again, as a way of managing our resources the newsletter will be emailed rather than posted and when we have the skills, past issues will be uploaded onto the website. My sense is that we have moved, sprouted the seeds sown last year and hopefully with good nurturing there will be growth. My particular thanks go to Marie and Jill who have worked so very hard to keep the Telopea Centre in order, the heart and home of our Society. Thanks also to Ruth for her ever ready moral support and expertise and availability to teach and present. Anna has had the new priority of baby son DArcy, however many thanks for the contributions where possible, especially in showing off the site at POW and also contributing to the Committee when possible. I trust that together we have made a strong foundation for building the life of the Society into the future. Virginia Field, President (2007/08)

Site visit . . . the Secret Garden

The Secret Garden is located on 2 hectares on the University of Western Sydney, Hawkesbury Campus. The Garden is managed by Hawkesbury Skills Incorporated a non-profit community organisation, operating from 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday. Plant sales are every Thursday and every first Saturday of each month. The Hawkesbury Skills Incorporated provides services for unemployed and disadvantaged people with the intention to build their skills and employability into the community. They cater to people with an intellectual disability and mental illness, with a program called food for thought which provides positive activities for people with these disabilities. Access to the garden is not limited to these populations, with students, workers for the dole and volunteers also contributing to the sustainability of this wonderful garden. The garden is self-sustainable with 60-70% of the gardens funding coming from plant sales. Any and all donations (tax deductible) are very welcome also. The garden relies on recycled water to maintain the plants, uses recycled wood to build the structures and have pigs and chooks for compost as well as sheep for land grazing. The garden has a commercial kitchen with sheltered tea room so that participants are able to enjoy social meals from their own produce.

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Horticultural Therapy Society of NSW

Review: A Cultivate Training Day

The following review, along with the piece about the Secret Garden, was written by a group of Occupational Therapy students from the University of Sydney, who spent some at the Telopea Centre and with Cultivate members to learn about horticultural therapy. The review is part of their reporting to their course supervisor. Cultivate training days are aimed at equipping health professionals with the knowledge and skills to run Horticulture Therapy (HT) programs within their specific settings. On 3rd November, 2008, the third session of a Cultivate Training series was held at the Telopea Centre in Ryde. The topic of this session was Growing Plants by Division. Ten health professionals from two separate settings, residential care and a dementia specific day care centre, attended the training day. The training day opened with revision and discussion regarding outcomes and progress from previous sessions. Ruth McLean, the training day facilitator, then led a discussion about valuable resources for setting up a garden, activity suggestions and principles of HT. The facilitator then provided a comprehensive list of available resources, including associations, books, the internet and media. It was acknowledged that these sessions were not in-depth enough for session participants to gain a full and detailed understanding of all aspects of horticulture. By providing a list of resources and discussing what these could offer to the attending health professionals, they were empowered for future endeavours. The training day incorporated both theoretical and practical components. For example, the session participants were introduced to equipment options through an information booklet which was discussed and expanded upon. Following this, the participants had the opportunity to explore and handle equipment that was used within the Telopea Centre. The training day also involved group exercises in which professionals divided into groups and planned four Horticulture Therapy sessions for their client groups. This required them to draw on knowledge from Cultivate sessions, use problem solving skills and think out the goals and objectives of the program. This was a very beneficial task as it provoked thought and encouraged application of newly acquired knowledge. For the duration of the training day, participants were actively engaged. The facilitator maintained interest through the use of relevant and meaningful examples. This created a fun and productive learning environment. The session was led in a relaxed atmosphere that was informative yet not overwhelming participants with excessive detail. The facilitator catered the session to the needs of the participants and demonstrated effective communication skills. Overall, the training day was a useful and effective learning tool for health professionals interested in establishing horticulture therapy programs within their specific setting.

Thanks to the OT students for your contribution!

Secret Garden (continued)

Wheel chair accessible routes circle the gardens with raised garden beds making it accessible for people with mobility difficulties. A sheltered nursery and green room allow for gardening to continue regardless of the weather. If you are interested in any of the services the Hawkesbury Skills Incorporated offer or are willing to offer any community support or donations please contact:: Hugh McKinnon Helen Phillips Phone: Nursery and Garden: Email: Centre Manager Admin. Officer (02) 4578 44 59 0414 784 460 hsi@hawkesburyskills.org.au

Information and photographs supplied by Sydney Uni OT students. Thankyou!

Garden location: College Drive, University of Western Sydney, Hawkesbury Richmond, N.S.W

Issue 79
Horticultural Therapy Society of NSW Telopea Centre 250 Blaxland Road Ryde, NSW 2112

Page 4

Merry Christmas
Phone: (02) 9448.6392 e-mail: info@cultivatensw.com.au

To all & may the New Year Blossom and Flourish!

Cultivate NSW
Connecting people and plants

www.cultivatensw.org.au

Membership fees: At the last regular Committee meeting a fee increase for membership was recommended to be implemented. The new fee structure will take effect with the next cycle of annual membership which is due in March 2009. The new membership fees will be as follows: Individual member: Pensioner / student member: $25.00 pa $10.00 (Inc. of $5.00) (No Change)

Organisation/Corporate Member: $50.00 (Inc. $15.00) The Committee is hopeful that this new structure is not prohibitive and that the income will assist the Society. NB: Any new memberships accepted prior to March 2009 will be valid until March 2010.

Wisdom is oftentimes nearer when we stoop than when we soar.

William Wordsworth, 1798

This group is from the Australian Nursing Home Foundation (ANHF) with teacher, Ruth McLean at the Telopea Centre following their workshop in November 2008. Like ANHF you can contact the Telopea Centre to arrange for a custom-designed workshop to suit your organisation!