The Waimea Bonyu Kai Bonsai Club will hold its annual bonsai show for the community this weekend after a three-year hiatus amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
The free event is open to those who wish to enjoy and learn more about wonderful plants. It will take place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. today and Sunday at the Waimea Community Center, adjacent to Waimea Park.
During the two-day show, members of the 66-year-old club will display their bonsai, talk about history with attendees and share refreshments, according to organizers. In addition, the club does short bonsai demonstrations.
“Once a year the bonsai trees demand display and enjoy the attention,” organizers said.
Bonsai is an artistic example of a natural tree in miniature form.
“It lives outdoors in small containers, nurtured by both Mother Nature and its caretaker. It is essentially a work of art and is produced through expert care and manipulation of plant material natural,” according to the club.
The club expects to feature a large number of unique plants, including those formed from juniper, ohia, bougainvillea, Surinam cherry, jaboticaba, banyan and more. Everyone will be spaced apart as a precaution as the COVID-19 pandemic continues.
However, the bonsai will not be for sale.
“Sorry, these are our babies,” organizers said.
The Waimea Bonyu Kai Bonsai Club was organized in 1956 by Manzo Mitsunami and Herbert Ishizu and encouraged by Yutaka Kimura and Isami Ishihara.
Decades later, the club is run by dedicated members.
The club meets every fourth Sunday and the focus of the meetings is to help group members work on and improve their personal bonsai collections.
It continues a tradition that began with Japanese immigrants and contract workers who arrived in Hawaii in the mid-1800s, growing dwarf trees and plants in pots using materials found in Hawaii and Japanese black pine.
Comments are closed.