The American Bonsai Society and the Bonsai Society of Greater St. Louis hosted Gateway to Bonsai this past weekend in Collinsville, Illinois. The event drew visitors from all over the country – and a few from outside the U.S. – who enjoyed a good selection of workshops, seminars, and demonstrations.

In between the scheduled events, attendees had ample time to enjoy the convention’s exhibit. As the trees came from different latitudes, some were in full leaf and growing vigorously while others were still dormant.

Here are some of the highlights. I noted some of the award winners but missed others – feel free to indicate other winning entries in the comments below and I’ll update the captions.

Trident maple

Colorado Blue Spruce by Todd Schlafer – John Naka Award, Professional

Willow leaf ficus

Juniper

Shohin display

Black pine

Eastern white cedar by John Wall – John Naka Award, Hobbyist

Japanese white pine and trident maple by Barbara Bogan – Best Shohin Display

Japanese white pine ‘kokonoe’ by Mark Fields – Best in Show

Shishigashira maple

Hornbeam

Japanese white pine ‘miyajima’

Ponderosa pine

Scots pine

Korean hornbeam

Itoigawa juniper by Jesse Gilbertson – Best Conifer

Colorado spruce by Andy Smith – Best Native Bonsai

Japanese white pine

Arakawa Japanese maple

Accent plant

Crabapple

I’d like to thank the ABS Board Members and volunteers from the Bonsai Society of Greater St. Louis whose coordination made the convention a success. Special thanks to Cheryl Sykora and Barbara Bogan for organizing the event and to everyone who stopped by and said hello – it was great to meet you!

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