Ancient Olives Of Agrigento And Other Great Trees
Olives make wonderful bonsai and are easily grown in pots. These ancient olives growing among much older Greek ruins near Agrigento on the island of Sicily are especially evocative of times and ways of life long past. They are good inspirations for our bonsai. I will show slides of these trees and other great trees from around the world. Meet and greet begins at 7 pm, with the meeting beginning at 7:30 pm. See you all there!
President’s Message: It’s Almost Show Time!
I’m looking forward to sharing pictures of some of my favorite real trees with you at this month’s meeting, with maybe just one or two digressions into descriptions of the trip getting to the trees. I hope to see you there and welcome your comments and questions and hope you enjoy it as much as I will. And, don’t forget that show dates, May 18-19, are rapidly approaching! In addition to having lots of trees entered, we need your bonsai-related items for the sale (30% to club as usual) and items for the silent auction. Volunteers are always needed for setup on Friday afternoon before the show and for setup on Saturday and Sunday mornings, and for teardown on Sunday afternoon after the show. It’s always a lot of work but I think our club’s presentation is something we can be proud of and compares very favorably to most of the bigger club’s efforts.
~ Joe
Saturday April 20 Workshop: Mel Ikeda
Mel Ikeda had a schedule conflict last month and couldn’t make it to the workshop. But Kathy Benson swapped her spot and helped us all with our trees. Mel Ikeda will be at the Goleta Valley Community Center this month. Mel conducts demonstrations throughout the United States. He is active in many clubs, serving on their boards as well as that of the Golden State Bonsai Federation, where he performed live demonstrations at the recent 2019 Bonsai-a-Thon. As usual, he donated his results to the Bonsai-a-Thon auction for the benefit of the Golden State Bonsai Federation. There will be two workshops: 9 am to 12 noon and 1 pm to 4 pm. For space availability contact Steve Gibson at sgibson_us@yahoo.com
Upcoming Bonsai Events
April 13-14 2019 Sacramento, California
American Bonsai Association, Sacramento: Annual Spring Show at the Shepard Garden and Arts Center in McKinley Park, 3330 McKinley Blvd. Show hours are 10 AM – 4 PM with a demonstration by Dennis Makishima at 1:30PM both days. Beginner workshop: Sunday morning from 10 AM – Noon. Large member sales and vendor areas, free admission and plenty of parking. Benefit drawings both Saturday and Sunday, will include each day’s demonstration tree and many bonsai and bonsai related items. For additional information visit our website: abasbonsai.org, or contact Renee Seely at (916) 929-2106, email breadcrust@comcast.net.
April 13-14 2019 San Jose, California
San Jose Betsuin Bonsai Club: 48th Annual Spring Exhibit at the San Jose Buddhist Church Betsuin, 640 North Fifth Street. Hours are Noon – 5 PM Saturday and Noon – 4 PM Sunday. Demonstration at 1 PM by Steve Iwaki on Saturday and Mr. Katsumi Kinoshita from Monterey on Sunday. Venders will be American West Trading Company (June and David Nguy) will be there with lots of soil, pots, tools, and more. Also, Bonsai Fusion will be there with small handmade pots and small rose trees and more. Club member sales of plants and containers. For information call Carl Morimoto at (408) 296-7660.
Last Month: Show Presentation Slides
In preparation for our upcoming Annual Show and Sale in May, we looked at show trees from our 2017 and 2018 shows. Longtime Club Member, Leroy Kubel, photographed the 2017 show and I photographed the 2018 show, with help from several members, who didn’t mind being late for dinner. Members commented on their own trees, as to where the tree came from, iterations it had gone through, and any future plans for changes. We also looked at slides I shot during this year’s Silhouettes Show held at the Los Angeles Arboretum. Here are some of the photos from the shows.
Member’s Trees
This foemina juniper trunk was air layered from a tree in my yard. The Kyushu shinpaku foliage was inarched grafted in the back about nine years ago. Wally
I purchased this tree in a gallon container, about pencil size in diameter, from Yamaguchi Nursery in West LA. About 17 years ago. The rough bark that developed early gives it an aged look. Wally
