'Tis the season, so this month's quiz has a holiday spin. Every year we decorate our tree in the lobby with natural decorations that our staff have gathered. A big thank you to two of our auxiliary members; Marg and Monica for doing such a great job decorating our tree. Here is a sample of nine of the natural ornaments that have appeared on our tree. How many can you recognize? Happy Holidays everyone! The answers are at the bottom of the newsletter.  A printable version of the quiz is available here: http://www.uoguelph.ca/arboretum/Listservnewsletter/December_2018/printable_quiz_xmas_ornaments_2011_2018.pdf

Check out some of our recent posts below from our social media accounts. If you are interested in seeing more of what is happening and being seen at The Arboretum then please consider liking or following us on one or more of our social media accounts. We are on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Flickr. Search for us at uogarboretum. If you click on the posts below it will take you to the actual post so you can read the text.

We have lots of awesome ideas for gift giving.... our 2019 desktop calendar full of amazing photos ($12), Arboretum t-shirt ($35), hat ($28), buttons ($1), window decal ($3) and don't forget our 22 biodiversity sheets ($5 each) and 5 booklets ($8 each). You can stop by the Arboretum Centre during business hours or make your purchase on-line at: https://secure.e-registernow.com/cgi-bin/mkpayment.cgi?state=3307

The Arboretum is part of the University of Guelph so The Arboretum Centre therefore is closed when the University is closed. The offices will be closed from Friday, December 21, 2018 and re-open on Wednesday, January 2, 2019. The grounds remain open for you to enjoy from dawn to dusk daily during this time. It is best to make any purchases by December 20.

This coming Wednesday (December 19) will be Rachel's last Wednesday Walk with us. We wish her all the best as her internship comes to a close. Sally will be taking over the walks beginning on January 9, 2019. Join her as she explores winter on The Arboretum grounds. The walk is free and you should meet at the kiosk at the end of the promenade closest to campus if you are interested in participating.

The Owl, Animal Tracking, Winter Tree Identification, Pruning, Reptile and Winter Invertebrate workshops are approaching. The dates and registration deadlines can be found in our Coming Events listing in the column on the left side of this newsletter. A detailed description of each course is available on our website. Help us promote our programs… please forward this e-mail on to your friends and colleagues who may be interested. The more participants we have, the more programs we can offer.

Registering early is important for us because we need lead time to decide if there are enough people registered to run the workshop or not. To encourage registering before the deadline, we have an Early Bird Fee. You can still register after the deadline, but it will cost an extra $10, so why not register early?

Registration is available on-line, which allows you to register for our programs at anytime, not just during our regular business hours. A secure link is provided on our website for this easy registration process.

If you do not have internet access, registration can still be made by phone or in person at 519-824-4120 ext. 52358 as in the past. Please remember that a decision is made on the registration deadline as to whether the workshop will run or not, based on the minimum number of required registrants. You may still register after the deadline as long as the workshop is running and there is space.

Your donation can be directed to The Arboretum online through the secure University of Guelph donation page: http://uofg.convio.net/arboretum

If you prefer not to make an online donation, there are several other ways to provide your financial support. You can choose to donate by telephone, mail, fax, or in person:

UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH Attention Alumni Affairs 50 Stone Road East Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1G 2W1 Tel: 1-888-266-3108 ext. 56934 Tel: 519-824-4120 ext. 56934 Fax: 519-822-2670 Email: [log in to unmask]

If you would like information on bequests and planned giving to The Arboretum please contact:

Amy Atkinson
Senior Development Manager, Ontario Agricultural College
at (519) 824-4120 ext. 58652 or by e-mail at [log in to unmask]