Cleveland Bonsai Club reviews annual show, prepares for next training meeting

The Cleveland Bonsai Club used its June 25 meeting post to do two jobs at once: it wrapped up the annual show and pointed members toward the next round of hands-on training. The club said the meeting would include a recap and review of the show, noted that photos had already been posted on its Facebook page, and thanked Cindy Schwind for helping edit them. Marian also had checks ready for members who sold items on the club table.

That mix of celebration and bookkeeping fits the way the club runs its season. The Cleveland Bonsai Club says it stages as many as two shows a year, with its primary annual show in early June, and those events can include vendors, demonstrations, displays and as many as 75 to 100 bonsai examples. Its 2026 annual spring show took place June 6-7 at Rockefeller Park & Greenhouse, 750 E 88th St. in Cleveland, from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and the club said the event would feature more than 50 trees.

The June 25 meeting also served as a bridge into summer technique work. The club said it would talk about pruning in preparation for a July class on wiring, turning the post-show meeting into a practical prep session rather than a simple recap. For newer members, that sequence matters: pruning clears away clutter and sets structure before wire goes on, making styling decisions easier and safer when branches are positioned later.

That approach lines up with standard bonsai instruction. Bonsai Empire describes pruning as a core styling method and separates it into maintenance pruning and structural pruning. It also says wiring is used to bend and reposition branches, with most species able to be wired at any time of year. The American Bonsai Society likewise places pruning, wiring and de-wiring among the seasonal tasks that shape regular bonsai care.

The club’s meeting calendar keeps that learning accessible. Cleveland Bonsai Club meetings are held on the 4th Saturday of the month from 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Rockefeller Park & Greenhouse, off the Martin Luther King Drive exit from I-90 on E. 88th Street, and the club says nonmembers are welcome to attend. That makes the June 25 post less like an internal memo than a roadmap: finish the show, settle the sales, study the photos, then move straight into pruning before the July wiring class.