Welcome
to the Wellington - Hutt Valley branch of the CSSNZ
The Wellington-Hutt Valley Branch of the Cactus and Succulent Society of New Zealand was formed in 1948, originally as the Wellington Branch, but adopted its present name in 1981 in recognition of the fact that it had absorbed the former Hutt Valley Branch. Currently about 30 of our members attend our friendly and informative meetings, taking part in branch outings like cactus crawls and BBQs.
The Wellington Coastline has a native succulent - Disphyma australe (see below), and many naturalised succulents like Sedum dendroideum, Crassula multiceps, Aeonium arboreum, Aeonium haworthii and Aeonium undulatum (plus the resulting hybrids between the species of Aeonium).
Branch Meetings
Branch meetings are on the first Saturday of each month, except for the January-February period. It has been customary in recent years to have a “crawl” on the last Saturday in January rather than a February meeting, as the February date clashes with several other events. Formal meetings are held:
- April, June, August, October and December at
- St. Michael's Church Hall, Cnr Upland Road and St. Michael's Crescent, Kelburn. View on Google maps.
- March, May, July, September and November at
- St. John's Ambulance Hall, Collingwood Street, Waterloo. View on Google maps.
The meeting consists of
- plant sales
- raffles
- an interest table where members bring along pants of interest, flowering plants, plants requiring identification, or identifying problems
- competitions for both senior and junior members
- a talk or panel on a cactus or succulent related subject
- afternoon tea
2008 Programme
| Month | Talk/Speaker | Competition Plants | Competition Plants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senior | Junior | ||
| February | Cactus Crawl | ||
| March | 60th Anniversary Lunch and Ballot Sale. | ||
| April | White leaved succulents | White leaved succulents | Hairy white cacti |
| May | AGM and Photography | Photographs | |
| June | TBA | TBA | |
| July | Ferocactus | Crassula | Ferocactus |
| August | Propagation | Seedlings under 2 years | |
| September | Copiapoa | Dudleya | Copiapoa |
| October | Melocacti | Echeveria | Melocacti |
| November | Pachypodiums | Pachypodiums | Rebutia |
| December | 60th Anniversary programme | TBA | |
Annual Competitions
- Dame Norma Holyoake Cup for December Cactus
- Alcock Trophy for December Succulent
- Cactus Cup (over 5 year cacti)
- Succulent Cup (over 5 year succulent)
- Collinson Trophy (interest table)
- George Parrant Cup (under 5 succulent)
- Brooker Trophy (under 5 cacti)
Other Events
The Branch participates in shows and displays at various venues throughout the year.
Subscriptions
are due December each year...
| Category | Subscription |
|---|---|
| Full member | $27.00 |
| Associate member | $13.50 |
| Junior member (under 18) | $10.00 |
| Horokaka subscription only (do not live in the Wellington region) | $10.00 |
Includes 11 Horokaka Newsletters and 4 national Journals.
Horokaka
is our branch newsletter
Horokaka is published monthly and posted or e-mailed to members in the week prior to meetings. It has information on the next meeting, as well as results and discussion from the last meeting, plus articles of interest to members and news of upcoming events.
Horokaka, Disphyma australe, is the native maori name for a succulent ice-plant that grows around the shores of the Wellington coastline, and is our branch logo.