Page 47 - Tạp chí bonsai cây cảnh BCI 2016Q1

embers of the Bonsai Study Group of of information on branch development and ramifica- Top; A flowering Pyracantha sp
the Indo-Japanese Association Mumbai, tion of deciduous trees. by Freddie Bisschoff
India attended the 4th African Bonsai Ryan Neil impressed us all with his thorough hor- Middle; ‘Friendship Forest of the
convention aptly called ‘Under African ticultural knowledge of trees especially pines and ju- World’ of Buddleja saligna trees
MSkies’ at Stellenbosch, in the Western niper. It was amazing to see the instant connection created by WBFF representatives
and headliners.
Cape province, between 22nd to 25th October 2015. he developed with the tree he was working on, while Bottom; The Indian delegation
Stellenbosch is a picturesque town about 50 kilome- simultaneously communicating freely and eloquent- promoted the BCI and WBFF
ters away from Cape Town and is one of the most ly with the audience. His expertise and immense supported convention in Mysore
scenic and historically preserved towns of South Af- in December 2016 with a video.
rica. Stellenbosch is a part of the Cape Winelands,
famous for its viticulture and viticulture research.
The architecture of the buildings, a combination of
neo-Dutch, Georgian and modern-Victorian, bears
witness to a proud and dignified heritage. The con-
vention was held in the beautiful Stellenbosch Town
Hall designed in the neo-Cape Dutch style. We had
the pleasure of meeting Alderman Conrad Sidego, the
executive Mayor of Stellenbosch who also inaugurat-
ed the event. The four-day event was one of the most
well-planned conventions we had ever witnessed,
with very good and informative demonstrations and
interactive discussions with headliners.
During the convention we stayed at The Stellen-
bosch Hotel, a classic and historic small boutique ho-
tel very close to the Town Hall. The nearby area was
lined with bistros, coffee shops, wine bars and art and
sculpture galleries displaying works by internation-
ally renowned artists.
The convention, for the very first time in the con-
tinent of Africa, was supported by the World Bonsai
Friendship Federation (WBFF) and most of its direc-
tors and consultants attended the convention. During
one of the evenings, the WBFF Directors were invited
for sit-down dinner with the Sports & Culture Minis-
ter at the Lanzaerac Wine Estate that was established
over 300 years ago. In serene surroundings with hills,
pines, oak trees and vines, the guests were regaled
with spectacular gourmet cuisine accompanied by
their world famous wines.

The Demonstrations
The international headliners at the convention
were Tony Tickle of the United Kingdom, Ryan Neil
of the United States of America and Mr. François
Jeker of France, all of whom are greatly talented and
highly professional bonsai artists.
Tony Tickle kick started the event with a demon-
stration on an old and mature Pyracantha angustifo-
lia shaping it into a unique design flowing effortless
from the first lower branch to the apex. He next
worked on a mature Olea europaea ‘africana,’ giv-
ing it a basic structure for future development. He
also gave presentations on Crataegus monogyna
(Hawthorne), explaining the design progression of
three of his Hawthorne trees, and later gave another
presentation on the European approach to growing
wild olives. He explained about the black plastic bag
technique of collecting and storing olive yamadori
so that they sprout just a few weeks after collection.
Being an expert on deciduous trees, he provided a lot

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