Setup on Friday allowed us a new layout as the Torii gate is undergoing a refresh in readiness for the convention next year. New backing boards and supports also allowed more flexibility as we now have backing boards for Shohin displays.

Between us we managed to put 160 trees of all sizes on display in readiness for judging. Saturday morning saw us open at 9.00 and we had a very busy day with a constant stream of visitors. Some of the increase may have been due to our magnificent new banner which we used for the first time.

Our judge this year was Dawid de Villiers and he did a very thorough job taking over two hours to look at the trees and come to a decision. In the afternoon Dawid gave a comprehensive critique which members listening in said was the best they had heard. Dawid’s general comment was that the show was getting better every year and the quality of the trees was also improving every year.

The demonstrations by Peter S and Melody were very well attended. The sales table was very busy and three quarters of our stock went on Saturday, and virtually everything had gone by closing time on Sunday evening.

This year we also had a new trophy. The Quintal Trophy is awarded to a display of two or more small trees. This goes along with the Jeff Richards Trophy awarded to the best NZ Native and the Lane award voted by the public. Congratulations to all the award winners.

A big thank you to all those who brought in trees or helped with the setup, manning and dismantling one of our best shows ever!

First Place
Japanese Maple

Second Place
Japanese Larch Group

Third Place
Black Pine

Merit Award
Pine

Merit Award
Himalayan Cedar

Merit Award
Pyracantha

Merit Award
Blue Cedar

Merit Award
Plum

Merit Award
Chinese Elm

Beginners Award
Juniper Procumbens Nana

Best Native
Corokia

Best Small Bonsai Set
Pyracantha, Juniper, Maple, Caitlin Elm

Critique led by Dawid de Villiers

Critique led by Dawid de Villiers