Meetings: First Wednesday of every month, Mead Hall, Wheathampstead
Open @ 7.00 for 7.30 start
Programme 2025
Theme ‘Groups’ Promoting 'Grow Your Own’
FREE for members, £5 for visitors.
MONDAY 6th January 2025
Talk By Peter Shields
Introduction to ‘Groups’ Theme
Normal tableshow
Wednesday 5th February 2025
Talk & Demonstration By Geoff Conybeare
Techniques for ‘Groups’ Theme
Normal tableshow
Wednesday 5th March 2025
Workshop Night 'Make a Group'
Also Repotting & Pruning.
Bring your own trees, tools, soil etc.
Help Available.
Normal tableshow
Sunday 16th March 2025
All day workshop
repotting, styling & pruning
At Mead Hall, Wheathampstead
09.30 – 17.00 £10 per person
Incl.Tea/Coffee/Biscuits.
Bring your lunch, trees, soil &. tools
Places limited to 16, book early
– help available
Wednesday 2nd April 2025
Talk Corin Tomlinson
Visitors Welcome £5 Per Person
Normal tableshow
Wednesday 7th May 2025
4 Talks by members
on ‘My Groups’
John, Shaun Peter & Linda
Normal tableshow
Wednesday 4th June 2025
The ‘June Prune’
Demo & Workshop
Bring your own trees, tools & wire – help available
Prliminary for ‘Groups’ tableshow
SATURDAY & SUNDAY
14th & 15th June 2025
CLUB SHOW
Kingsbury Barn, St Albans
Set up will be Fri 13th June, Trees 9am on Sat
Collect trees 5pm Sunday, or Monday Volunteers to help set-up and take down please
Wednesday 2nd July 2025
Talk - Techniques & Tips
for ‘Grow your own’
Normal tableshow
Wednesday 6th August 2025
Bring & Buy Sale
Normal tableshow
Weds 3rd September 2025
Talk
TBA
Tableshow - Theme Final for Mame
Wednesday 1st October 2025
Workshop
Styling and Repotting workshop for evergreens
Bring your own trees, tools, soil etc.
help available
Normal tableshow
Sunday 26th October 2025
All day workshop
Repotting & styling evergreens Mead Hall, Wheathampstead
09.30 – 17.00 £10 per person
Incl.Tea/Coffee/Biscuits.
Bring your trees, soil, tools & lunch.
Places limited to 16, book early
- help available
Wednesday 5th November 2025
AGM + Talk
1st tableshow for new season (normal)
Wednesday 3rd December 2025
Christmas Party
Drinks, nibbles, quiz
Competition – Decorated Bonsai trees
Presentation of Competition prizes.
Regular Activities
Meetings
1st Wednesday each Month @ Mead Hall, East La, Wheathampstead, AL4 8BP
Open at 7.00 for 7.30 start. Workshops will be held in months when it is appropriate to work on trees, other meetings will be talks, demonstrations, and other club activities.
See the website for details of the annual programme.
CLUB NEWSLETTER “CLIPPINGS” produced quarterly
The newsletter contains details of the annual programme (also see the website.), seasonal tips on managing your trees, reports on talks and demonstrations, articles, other Bonsai events, outings, shows, competitions and Club news.
Table Show
The competition of trees held most months provides an opportunity for members to both show off their efforts on tree development, and get advice from the judges on the next development steps needed. There are 5 Competition Classes: Mame, Under 5yrs trained, 5-10 yrs trained, over 10 yrs trained, Flowering or Fruiting. Points gained accumulate towards annual prizes. Highest scorer holds the Rose Bowl Trophy for one year. Also a “Best Improver” award is presented for the highest score in Mame and under 5 years trained classes. Points are awarded:
1st 4 points 2nd 3 points 3rd 2 points unplaced trees, 1 point
Members entering more than one tree in any class cannot gain a place with the extra trees, but will be awarded 1 point for entering each extra tree. A member can only win the improvers award once, and cannot win if they won the Rose Bowl first. Committee members can only win the Rose Bowl once, after which they are excluded. Prizes are presented at the Christmas Social.
The winner of the Bonsai Christmas tree competition is awarded a small prize, but no tableshow points.
Theme Competitions
Every year the club selects a Theme for developing a bonsai. It could be a tree species or a style. Each theme runs for 2 years. In the first year there will be a preliminary tableshow to exhibit the ‘start position’ after initial development for each of the members trees. In the second year, the same tree will be presented at the ‘Final’ dedicated tableshow. All Theme tableshows will be judged by the members of the club, using voting chips (1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th place chips) Then points are awarded: - 1st 12 points, 2nd 10 points, 3rd 8 points, 4th 6 points, for entering a tree, 4 points. All points contribute towards the Club trophies, and the Banksian Medal. The Martyn Speirs Trophy will be awarded to the Theme final winner (at the end of the second year). Thus in any one year there will be two theme competitions, the preliminary for the current years theme, and the final for last years. Most talks and demonstrations in any year will be about the Theme chosen for that year.
Banksian Medal an award presented by the Royal Horticultural Society.
All points gained in the normal table show for 1st, 2nd and 3rd places will go forward to the Banksian Medal Competition. To this will be added the points gained in the Theme competition preliminaries and finals. Winners are not eligible to win again for the following 3 years
MONTHLY RAFFLE
Books, pots, tools and good bonsai material (collected trees, tree cuttings and seedlings) are raffled monthly to raise funds, with a Grand Raffle of Seasonal and Bonsai goodies at the Christmas Party. Donations to the raffle are always appreciated.
Annual Show in Kingsbury Barn, St Albans
Held every year usually over the second* weekend in June. All members are encouraged to show at least one tree. The aim is to show the accessibility of the hobby – by presenting trees under development as well as finished trees. Appropriate labels show the tree name and explain its history. Demonstrations are done of various techniques throughout the show.
*Will be moved to another weekend if this clashes with the St Albans Half Marathon
