Our February 3rd Zoom meeting, with a Power Point presentation on the Andrade trunk bending method, can be viewed on our YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/zIDQWw_Cdcw
Thanks to Jim Keith for introducing us to this extreme technique. Be warned, though: chainsaws are involved!
Our next Zoom meeting will be on Monday, March 8. Note that this is delayed from our usual 1st Wednesday of the month. We are doing a joint meeting with Midwest Bonsai. I’m sure you have all received the email invitation, as well as a text message, about our special guest presenter, Bjorn Bjorholm. If you haven’t seen the email invitation, here’s the link to sign up for the meeting: Register Now.
Zoom allows for a total of 100 attendees, 50 for us, 50 for Midwest. Our allotment is already over half gone, so get busy!
Thanks to Jim Keith, Vice-President in charge of Programs, for setting up this venture!
However, due to the nature of that meeting, there will be no club business conducted, i.e., our semiannual board election. We will notify you later on how the election will be handled. We have yet to figure out how to hold the election. Zoom may be to unwieldy.
We’ll probably do it by email.
Most of our current board have agreed to stay on for another term. By our club by-laws, I am not allowed to succeed myself. Someone needs to step up for that. Also, there is room for one or two members at large. No election involved. No assigned job. Unless you volunteer to help with one of the other positions.
Along those lines, I cannot thank Rick Manning enough for the help has has given us in redesigning our website. He is a Member at Large. You can view the changes at Prairiestatebonsai.com.
And, thanks to Jim Beck for our new article this month. It is on thread grafting.
Note: We were just notified of the passing of Ivan Watters. Ivan was a major figure in the American bonsai world for decades. He was one of the founders of our club. He was the curator of the bonsai collection of the Chicago Botanic Garden from 2007-2015. He owned Yasukunai Bonsai Garden, in Morton Grove, from 1996-2005. Yasukunai was the major bonsai supply store in the Chicago area for much of its lifespan. Ivan was essential to the development of the bonsai art in the Midwest. He will be missed.
—Dean Cooper
President
Prairie State Bonsai Society
