A new bonsai club has been established in the West Coast. The West Coast Bonsai Kai serves the area from Yzerfontein in the south to Dwarskersbos in the north, and in the east its area is bordered by Hopefield and Darling.
Notwithstanding these boundaries, anyone, including visitors, are welcome to attend meetings. The aim of the club is to expand the keeping of these miniature trees and to create a friendly, collaborative atmosphere where information and knowledge are freely shared. With this in mind, the club welcomes members and visitors who are interested in starting the hobby as well as established bonsai hobbyists.
To empower the members with more knowledge the club recently held an excursion to the West Coast Bonsai Nursery. Dawn Collier, well known Cape bonsai artist and proprietor, hosted the club. Collier spoke about the species of trees that are suitable for the region, the care of these trees in the local climate and basic growing techniques. Members brought trees, such as Japanese black Pine, Juniper, Olive and Wild Olive trees that were discussed and professional advice was given on the future development and training of the various trees. She also showed how to prune a tree, to apply wire to shape the form of the tree and discussed the various growing techniques to speed up the development of nursery stock into bonsai.
Niekie van der Merwe, chairperson, stated it is valuable for members to observe and be able to ask questions of an experienced artist. “Being able to understand why specific techniques are being used assists one to make decisions when working on your own trees.” Asked why people should join a club, van der Merwe stated the advice and encouragement given in a club are extremely valuable to new and established hobbyists. He went on to explain that trained trees can be very costly, but in the club environment members are shown how to achieve these results in an affordable manner and in many cases while using household items. Members also regularly swop plant material as well as tools and equipment.
The next outing planned by members, is a visit to the Bonsai Festival being hosted by the City of Cape Town in the Company Gardens towards the end of October. The club meets on the second Saturday of each month in Langebaan. The next meeting will be on Saturday 11 November. Should you wish to join send an email to Van der Merwe on niekievdmerwe1@gmail.com.
