Newsletter May 2022

Bonsai Notebook

Meeting Time And Place: May 14, 2022 at 7pm
LAC Arboretum, Palm Room

The May 14 meeting will be at the Arboretum at 7:00pm. Jack Reynolds will be our guest and will do a presentation on ficus bunjin. Jack is a retired biology professor who taught at Moorpark College. He started in bonsai in 1986, learning on his own.

Jack joined the Sansui Kai Bonsai Club in 1987 and is a past president of the club. He studied with Ted Matson for 25 years and was one of Ted’s first students in 1988. He retired in 2003 and moved to Lake Isabella in 2005. Jack prefers to work with broadleaf evergreens and deciduous trees.

President’s Corner

May is our show month. As I said last month, we have waited two years to return to normalcy, so I look forward to following Baikoen, California Bonsai Society, and the Bonsai-A-Thon to keep up the tradition of bonsai shows.

A show entry form is included with the mailed newsletter and also available to the email recipients. There will also be extra forms available at the May meeting. The form includes sign-up times for being a docent throughout the weekend.
Monitoring the trees as a docent provides a great chance to witness the public interest in the show and answer questions about bonsai from people who are curious about the art form.

We will talk about the sale table at the meeting and cover the use of the sales slips and sale list used by our members. We have a simple process that is easy to follow.

Please plan to help with show set-up on Friday, May 27, at 12:00 noon. The more help we have, the quicker we get it done. Thanks in advance.

I hope all our members will consider entering a tree and come to the show to enjoy the long tradition we have with the Arboretum during the Memorial Day Weekend.

For those members entering trees, planning to sell at the sales table and/or willing to volunteer for set up, takedown and being a docent the form is included with this newsletter. Please complete and return this form on or before May 20th.

Call me if you have any questions.

~Dave

Members Corner

How to use the SABS Complimentary Badge for our 56th Annual Memorial Day Weekend Show :
There will be an Arboretum employee stationed at the Ayres Hall gate to check for SABS club identification for free entry to the show.

A blank identification badge is printed in this newsletter for you to cut out and use. We will have clear plastic badge holders at the show for use with the paper ID badges. We will also have the paper ID badges and holders available at the May meeting and at the show set up day on Fri. May 27.

For those of you curious about eliminating scale on foliage– Ted Matson recommends Ultra Pure Oil. Another helpful “Ted hint” for greening your trees to be show ready is to apply Humic Acid to the soil/ roots. Both of these products can be easily found online.

If you were fortunate to attend our Jan mtg- the Azalea Workshop with Lou Camarota, and take home an azalea or two… now is the time to be tagging the solid color flowering branches to be ready for Lou’s part 2 demo in Jan 2023. Mine is blooming and I am excited. All of that “plucking” seems to be popping this spring…. LM

Our raffle table has been fabulous– thanks to all of the members who have generously donated to the table. Please help keep up our club tradition and bring an item to support SABS. Everyone enjoys going home with trees, plants, pots, tools, supplies, books and even an occasional bag of “bonsai dirt”. Please bring items to share.

For those of you still receiving the US mail version of this newsletter, better quality photos, club updates and resources are always available on our website. Check us out at www.sabonsai.org

Anytime you have any questions please contact Dave & Lorraine at [email protected]

Thank You To our April Raffle Table Donors

Bob Alderette, Jim & Helen Barrett, Sue Cook, YS Farn, Mike Kelly, Dave & Lorraine Miles, Marren Padrones, Wendy Tsai

And to all who so generously purchase tickets

Welcome New Members

Steve Riley
Rick Naber
Barbara Wright

April 2022 Meeting Highlights

The April meeting was a great learning experience for everyone in attendance. Our guest, Ted Matson, did a wonderful job with his tree critiques, and he also provided advice on the future development of the trees. Members were able to stay in their seats as Ted moved around the room carrying each tree to show up close what he was talking about. His process was very helpful.

Ted’s years of study and time spent curating the GSBF collection at the Huntington was on display all evening. He had such an amazing understanding of the growth habits and care needed for each tree. He moved effortlessly from tree to tree explain the unique details of each. Ted held everyone’s attention and answered questions continuously.
Whether you brought a tree or not, the information shared by Ted was very worthwhile. We went home with thoughts about improving our own trees. We are all learning as we go with the bonsai art form, and Ted helped clear up some of the mysteries.

Upcoming Events

May 28,29,30 Santa Anita Bonsai Society 56th Annual Bonsai Show, Memorial Day Weekend
LAC Arboretum 9a-4:30p daily, exhibit, sales table, demonstrations

Come Join Us

Next Meeting:
Date: May 14, 2022
Time: 7 pm

Location:
LAC Arboretum, Palm Room
301 N. Baldwin Ave
Arcadia, CA 91007

2022 Monthly Meeting Dates
May 14 — Jack Reynolds LAC Arboretum
June 11 — Jason Saito LAC Arboretum
July 9 — Peter Macasieb at his home in West Covina

Refreshment Schedule
May 14 — Hubert Llanes, Matt Mahaffey, Steve Riley
June 11— Peter Macasieb, Jackie Zinder
July 9 — Dessert Potluck at Macasieb’s

2022 Refreshment Sign Ups will be available at the May meeting