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PSBS had a great June!  There was a fun workshop working on boxwoods from the club’s former Grow Plot.  The one I purchased is looking good after some trimming and wiring, and I am looking forward to repotting it from its nursery pot next spring.  This past weekend we had our annual picnic at Cantigny.  The food was tasty due to the barbecue skills of Chef Nick.  Many people brought trees for display or to work on.  Phil gave a demonstration on a juniper.  We sold raffle tickets at the picnic and will sell more before drawing the winner at our July meeting.  Some people passing by gave us their email addresses and expressed interest in becoming members.  We have already taken steps to reserve a pavilion at Cantigny for our next picnic on June 25, 2023.

 

This is a reminder that the July meeting date has been moved to July 13, 2022, due to many people being on vacation during the week of the 4th of July.  If you attend that meeting, there is an excellent chance you will be going home with a new tree.  There will be three trees in three different raffles during the meeting.  The tree from Phil’s picnic demonstration will be raffled first.  We have a juniper raffled later, which was styled by long-time member Jim Keith before his move to Kentucky.  Pictures of both of these trees can be viewed at https://prairiestatebonsai.com/event/july-general-meeting/ .  Finally, we will raffle off the tree on a rock planting being prepared by Larry Magee at the July meeting.  If you do not win one of those trees, we will have a few American Hornbeams available for sale from the club’s Grow Plot at a very reasonable price of $30.

 

During July, we will also prepare for our biggest event of the year, our August participation in the Destination Asia Festival at Morton Arboretum.  As in pre-pandemic years, we will have our bonsai show in the Sycamore Room.  We want every member to consider showing one, two, or three trees at the show.  They can be trees that are ready for formal display or newly transformed into bonsai and included in the “Trees in Training” category.  Chris Baker, the curator of the Chicago Botanic Garden collection, will be judging the show.  We will also have workshops and demonstrations scheduled.  This event is always a lot of fun to work on.

 

The schedule for the Arboretum show will be as follows:

Thursday, August 4: We will be setting up the display backdrops in the Sycamore Room during the afternoon, 

Friday, August 5: During the afternoon and early evening, members will be delivering trees for display.  Judging will likely be completed that evening.

Saturday, August 6: The show is from 10 AM to 4 PM, Members should plan to volunteer for a three-hour shift some, time between 9 AM and 4 PM on show days.

Sunday, August 7:  Again, we need volunteers from 9 AM to 4 PM and always appreciate help in taking down the displays after 4 PM.  We must pack them to be taken to the club’s storage facility.