## **Board of Trustees report 2022** _Steve Walters –_ Chairman of the Board of Trustees, on behalf of the Board It would be an understatement to report that it has been an interesting year worldwide. There has been political instability, extreme weather events, energy crises and, unbelievably, war in Europe. For many in the UK there was the additional sadness that the longest-serving monarch in British history - a constant in our lives over the past 70 years - died, drawing to a close the country's second Elizabethan era. In such serious and complicated times it would be easy to dismiss a passion for plants as trivial, inconsequential. Our members know differently though. Gardening and an interest in plants is, of course, a source of relaxation, comfort and enjoyment for millions of people, and can be hugely beneficial to mental health. What better way can there be to forget the troubles of the world than spending time admiring and fussing over whichever cyclamen species catches your eye in the garden or greenhouse? I was thinking this while viewing the final few flowers on a _Cyclamen purpurascens_ in my greenhouse one autumn day this year. But then I also remembered that the plant had been in flower since early summer, a time period that spanned, in UK political terms, three prime ministers and four chancellors of the exchequer. Ah well, back to reality… The main change for the Cyclamen Society this year has been that Vic Aspland, after more than 11 years of service, stepped down as President. The Board of Trustees, and more widely the membership, has benefited greatly from Vic’s counsel and contribution to the Society over the years for which we offer our thanks and gratitude. A new President of the Society has therefore been appointed and on behalf of the Board I welcome Melvyn Jope to the role. Melvyn has been a member of and contributor to the Society for many, many years. He has been involved with Society field studies since 1990 and has been a member of the Research Committee for over 40 years. He has served terms as Chairman of the Board on more than one occasion and was coauthor (with the late Peter Moore) of the Society’s _Cyclamen of Greece_ booklet. He is well known to many of the membership not only for his skill in growing cyclamen but also for his passion for snowdrops! Welcome, Melvyn. We look forward to your tenure as President. Thankfully, although Covid is still with us, there are now effective vaccines and countries are learning to live with the virus. This meant that the Society’s core and other activities were less affected this year. The journal, under its dedicated editorship, continues to produce interesting and well-researched articles. Our relatively small Society can be proud of such a professional, high-quality publication. Now that most travel restrictions have been lifted, it has been encouraging to see articles printed once again about cyclamen sites our members are visiting. And if I could make a small plea: the journal editor is always interested in receiving articles to publish in future journals so please do get in touch if you have an idea for an article or if you have photographs and observations to share of cyclamen you have seen on your travels. It’s worth repeating once again that you won’t find a more extensive cyclamen species seed list than the one the Cyclamen Society produces for the annual seed distribution. In fact, the general seed list this year now numbers 140 different varieties, and all donated by our members. The introduction of the Members area of the website this year has been a major development. This allows members to order seed online and also view copies of all but the most recent editions of the Society’s journals. These go back many years so there’s hours of happy browsing for the cyclamen enthusiast. If members have given the Membership Manager a valid email address then they will have been set up to access this new area of the website. However, some members have yet to provide an email address. I would urge you to do so to take advantage of this new facility. Initially there were a few teething issues with logging on which were resolved but do please contact the Society if you do encounter any problems. Obviously, it is still possible to send in seed orders and payment in the more traditional, paper way but online is quicker and also provides email confirmation of the order. Full details were published in the June 2022 journal where it also noted that seed orders would now be sent out at a later time, during December, partly because seeds seem to be ripening later and documentation requirements of overseas countries are becoming more complex and time consuming to satisfy. Australia, for example, now requires each seed order to be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate. Fortunately, a volunteer has agreed to receive a single parcel of seed and distribute it onward to Australian members. This is a similar solution to what we had to put in place to distribute seed to our EU members following the difficulties that Brexit caused plant societies (there’s that British understatement again…). The Board would like to thank the volunteers and donors who make the seed distribution such a success. If the journal and seed distribution are two notable benefits of membership, the third is our annual programme of four plant shows - a real shop window for the Society. This year all our shows were back to normal after the enforced absence due to the pandemic. As if making up for lost time, the range and quality of the plants exhibited across the four shows was exceptional. The plant sales benches were a similarly impressive and extremely popular feature. Attendance was also very good this year and, for those members in the UK who haven’t visited a show, it is an excellent day out and highly recommended. The Board is mindful that not everyone lives within travelling distance of all the show locations so we do try to ensure there is a reasonable geographic spread over the year. Possible alternative show locations for the future is also an active topic of discussion at Board meetings. Of course, the show reports and photographs of exhibits are published in the journal which at least gives members who cannot attend a window into the day’s events. Society-supported research at the University of Reading steadily continues although there is little new to report this year. There were no field studies in 2022. It became increasingly apparent that the lead-in time prior to undertaking field studies needed to be extended before applying for CITES permits. Mainly because there are now increasing regulations in many EU countries in order to obtain research and collection permissions before the CITES process can begin. The research committee is now planning for two field studies in 2023: one in spring to study _Cyclamen repandum_ on the Italian island of Sicily, and one in autumn to study _Cyclamen cyprium_ in the south of Cyprus. Society membership is slowly increasing and the Cyclamen Society’s Facebook Group continues to raise our profile internationally, there are now around 3,500 members sharing and commenting on photographs of cyclamen. It is becoming an increasingly important resource for the cyclamen enthusiast. And as we move ever more into a world online, the Board and the Society’s various committees will continue to hold most meetings through Zoom. It is convenient and an efficient use of our time. As this brief summary of the year shows, for a relatively small plant society I think we serve the membership well - and I haven’t even mentioned the impressive range of books and postcards that the Society has for sale! (Full details in the publications manager’s article, p. 6, in the June 2022 journal). Of course, this takes much effort and commitment by members behind the scenes. We should also remember that everyone involved in the Society is a volunteer. The Board of Trustees is rightly proud of the sterling work they do and gives thanks for the time they spend supporting the society. The Cyclamen Soclety STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL AcfiviTIES YEAR ENDING 30TH JUNE 2022 2022 2021 RECEIPTS fron7 Donations 5.358.73 65 Subscriptions Joumal 17.162.51 12.177 20.IXI 160 Publications 5,652.87 907 Seeds 2.480.44 3.267 Shows. Meetings and Events Total 5.343.99 36,018.54 16,576 PAYMENTS for Administration 3,948.92 2, 761 Joumal 14.676.05 15,290 Publicity Publications 2.353 10.299.87 1.095 Research 8,155.86 72 Seeds 614.65 1,033 Shows. Meetings and Events Storage 7.684.79 1.460.C(I Total 46,840.14 22,604 INVESTMENTS Capital gain5/losses Excess income/expenditure BALANCE SHEET YEAR ENDING 30TH JUNE 2022 3.974.01 3,974.01 -6,847.59 43,051 43,051 37,023 ASSETS Current account 11.033.16 1,855 Investments 193.288.18 209,314 Total 204,321.34 211,169 REPRESENTED BY Brought forward Surplu51ldeficitl Carried forward 211,168.93 174,146 -6.847.59 37,023 204,321.34 211.169 Indèpèndent ExamineV¥ Report to tho TnMtè•s of Tho Cyclamen Soclgty, Roglstsred Charlty No. 1172732 On accounts for the year ondod 30th June 2021 Set out on tho attached pago8 I roFQrt to the trustees on my examination of Ihe account8 ofthe above dwrty1lh& TN5fi fc*the year ended 30th June 2021. Raspective re•pon•iblliti08 and ba818 of roport A8 tl* charity trust8e5 of tho Trust, you are respo￿lbIe for the p￿ParatIOn of the accounts in accordanc* wfth thè requirements of the Charitse8 Act 2011 Acri. I report in respect of my examination of the Trust's account8 carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Ad and in ¢arrying out my examination, I have followed the applI￿￿e Dire¢lions gwgn by the Chanty Ci>mmission under 8edion 14515}Ibl olthe Act. Independont ExamlnoVs 8tat•mont I have ￿Mpletsd my examination. I confiThn that Tra material matters have come lo my attention in connection with the eXamIna￿On whith gi￿9 me cause lo believe that in, any material resFect'. accounting record8 were not kept in accordanGe IMth section 130 of th8 Act LY the accounts do not a¢¢ord with thg accounting records I have conc8m8 and have CA)me across no other matters in connection wlth the examination lo which attention should be dfawn in order to enabk a proFer understanding ofthe accounts to be reathgd. P. C. Hill Chartered Corttfiod A¢countant S Newsham Road, Gold8WOrth Park, Woktng, Surroy GU213LA 28th Jtsly 2021