A HUNDRED years of the WI was celebrated by the North Curry branch last week with the planting of a tree.

The group chose to mark the anniversary with two of their oldest members, Ethel Rowe and Joyce Stagg, planting a tree in the grounds of North Curry Parish Church.

Kate Roberts, the joint WI president, said: "It was a very good day. The weather held out for us, and it was by a church so we think it was divine intervention.

"We those them (Ethel and Joyce) to plant the tree because they remember their mothers going off to their first WI meeting 85 years ago.

We also had a gala dinner on the night of September 16, 100 years to the day that Women's Institute started. This was for the whole county, so there was 180 to 190 ladies."

The WI has continued to grow over the years, with their now being 212,500 members across 6,600 branches in the UK.

Mrs Roberts also explained how the WI got the nickname 'jam'.

"During the first world war the ministry of food gave sugar to the women of the WI and said 'can you make jam'," she added.

"And they made 12 million pounds of jam."

The North Curry WI meets on the first Wednesday of every month in the Village Hall from 2.00pm to 4.30pm.

For more information on the WI, visit www.thewi.org.uk.