Bonsai at Gardening Scotland Part 1

Scotlands’ premier gardening and horticultural show is running this weekend and and it has a large bonsai content. To many this is the big bonsai event of the year as it attracts large numbers of visitors. Displays are judged under horticultural society rules rather than bonsai show rules so displays may be a little unconventional to some people. There are a lot of aspects to cover in this event and a lot of photographs to edit, so it will be broken down into parts, which I will post in the coming days.

There are 2 distinct competitive bonsai events at this show. The first is for large bonsai displays and it is judged by the Scottish Horticultural Society. The second is an open event, where anyone can enter a tree in numerous classes and have it judged by the Scottish Bonsai Association. This second competition is a very inclusive event, which allows enthusiasts at any level of competence the opportunity to show a tree and have it judged. The set up is on the Wednesday with judging on the Thursday and the event is open to the public on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. This means that your trees are away from home, in the care of others for 5 days. For this reason myself and some others don’t put trees into this event because it is not possible to get there every day to check up on them.

This year, Ayr Bonsai Club won a large gold medal and a significant cash prize for the club for their large display, which premiered last year at The Ayr Flower Show. Their display is in the form of a large square area, split diagonally into four separate triangular compartments each with a separate theme.Well done chaps, a terrific display and a well deserved win.

Here are some general shots of the four compartments.

Tokonama