Surely our goal of promoting, sharing and discussing plant related issues and being a convenient channel for plant lovers to interact and exchange creative ideas was cemented by this successful first year bash. Interaction was the name of the game on that evening in Simei.

Attendance was in the excess of thirty and we're sure that most, if not all guests wholly enjoyed themselves. The party was poised to start at seven o' clock in the evening and invited guests steadily streamed into Kevin's (Greenhorn) spacious Simei residence. For those members who weren't familiar with directions, Wilson walked out to the MRT station to personally fetch them.

The sumptuous spread of food brought by members for the potluck dinner was pleasantly unexpected. We saw potato salad, tropical fruits, otak otak, chicken drumlets, mooncakes, almond jelly, agar agar, crispy curry puffs, dry mee siam, fried finger food, snacks and drinks. There was even vegetarian and halal food. Members, when asked, gave their thumbs up for the night's pickings.

Although mooncakes were brought for the event and small lanterns adorned the venue for the Mid Autumn Festival, which incidentally fell on the following day, the atmosphere that night was overwhelmed with a celebratory mood for GCS' anniversary.

Above: Interaction between members...

Despite a slow start, everyone soon broke the ice and readily warmed up to each other. The mix of various interests within Plantae was indeed diverse. We had folks who grew African violets, herbs and vegetables, Plumeria, orchids, waterlillies, lotuses, Tillandsia, Episcia, other exotic plants, and everything in between. Valuable new ideas were definitely shared among the group. There was also an avid discussion on HDB versus outdoor culture of certain plants - a phenomenon endemic to Singapore gardeners. Our guest, Andrew Tay, one of the writers for the first feature article on GCS, came to give support for the event. He brought along some ant plants to go around, which intrigued many members with their fat caudexes.

Left: Andrew's ant plants • Right: Andrew (Left) and Wilson

For those who missed the gathering, the highlight of the evening was the lucky draw. The prizes were contributed by members, which ranged from humble cuttings and divisions obtained from their own garden to much-loved plants, such as ant plants, bromeliads, orchids and airplants from one's collection. There was something for everyone and members found the lucky draw novel and meaningful.

This gathering would not be possible without the support from members. We are touched by the gesture from those members who could not attend, namely, Gloria who contributed curry puffs and plants, Mona who wanted to share some Adenium seeds from Brunei and Islaverde who handed to us some hermatically sealed seeds for the lucky draw. Moreover, Amazon, who happened to be on duty that night, even text messaged Wilson to convey his well-wishes.

Above: Members taking a group photo...

Last but not least, the celebration drew to a close with the blowing out of a single lighted candle and the cutting of a birthday cake from Chee Kiang (Spring65), thus envisioning a better year for GCS.

We would like to send my heartfelt thanks to the following moderators and members who celebrate with us this humble website's 1st birthday:

Bluefly and family
Boonboon
Cellena and family
Clover
Elfstone
Gan55
Grasshopper
Greenhorn
HortVet
Huangec
Islaverde
LobsterX
Luckyboy
Lyndi
Noodle
Orchideenjaeger
Purplefingers and family
Robin
Sher_na
Spring65
xhedrickx

Special thanks go to Kevin who provided us with the venue to host this event.