‘My dear Mum was called Primrose and she kept cacti at her home in Torquay. I used to look after them for her. We both loved them! I used to give them a water when they needed it (which was not very often.) They did get dusty though, so we used to put them outside in the summer for some rain to make them clean again… they are far too prickly to hoover.
‘Mum said that sometimes if you are very patient and put them in on a sunny windowsill they might flower for you. Well, hers did. They were pink and red and we loved them all. When she was young my Mum used to work as a model in Liverpool for Littlewoods Pools.
‘Now that I’ve lost my dear Mum cactus and their flowers remind me of her. That’s why I like working with plants and even drawing them too. Every cactus is different when you look close up. Some are hard to draw, others are easy. They look good even when there are no flowers on them. When you look at them up close their prickles and shapes make swirly patterns and look a bit like starfish and sea urchins too.
‘I think that I’ll always like cactus. They are my favourites!’
The day’s adventure begins for Jeanette as she arrives early one Thursday morning at Torre Abbey Mansion, ready to help volunteer in the Botanical Garden…
In the Cactus House…so much choice.
This is one of my favourites. It’s a succulent. It comes from Africa and has horns like a cow.
This one is too good to miss. There are lots of them in one big pot.
Cactus this way!
This one is spotty. I would like a T-shirt like this.
This one is like a purple flower and has no prickles at all.
And this one is really cute. I love the colours.
This one is just green with no prickles at all.
Some can live outside as well… but it’s warmer inside the Cactus House.
I want to draw some so that I can take pictures of them home. I love drawing plants.
“The end picture was all green. No flowers yet but lots of shapes and prickles. My Mum would have loved these. I’ll have to come back and draw some more when they are in flower. A really happy day.
One of my favourite ones. There are lots all squeezed together living close like babbles on a beach.
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