Our speaker for the evening of February 21st will be Richie Steffin, who spoke to us a few years ago as nursery manager of the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden. Richie has recently left the RSBG, however, for the position of Coordinator of Horticulture at the Elizabeth C. Miller Botanical Garden in Seattle. He will give a short presentation on the Miller Garden and its exiting new plant programs, a subject that should certainly be of interest in that it involves a close destination for our members during a visit to Seattle. The main focus of his talk, however, will be on a place not quite so convenient for Vancouver gardeners, his recent plant expedition to Turkey. ‘

Turkey is one of the most botanically diverse countries in the world.’ Richie will show slides of his ‘adventures from exotic and bustling Istanbul to the wild and remote Black Sea region. He will discuss the rhododendrons that were found in this beautiful land, as well as other interesting plants’ discovered during his travels. Richie Steffin’s previous lecture to the VRS was received very enthusiastically by our members. Be sure to hear what he has to say on what is certainly an unusual subject for the VRS, ‘Plant Exploring in Turkey’.

Richie Steffin