Bonsai Notebook

Next Meeting:
June 13, 2026
7pm
at the LA Arboretum- Palm Room

Our Guest Demonstrator for June is: Wanda Danesi

Spring Bouquet’s: Wanda will provide instruction on best practices, selection, cultivation and styling of viburnum for bonsai.
This will include an overview of the benefits and characteristics of the species and why it is a viable candidate for future proliferation in the practice of bonsai.
Wanda will focus on how to select and work with viburnum to achieve best results as well as an introduction to other less common deciduous and tropical species for use in bonsai.

Wanda’s Bio:
After years of loving to grow plants, in the late 1990’s a dear friend Joseph Gaytan introduced us to BONSAI and his sensei Harry Hirao.
For years we spent many Saturdays in Harry’s garage learning this wonderful art.
As time went on we were lucky enough to continue our learning through the eyes of Ted Matson, Mel Ikeda, Al Nelson, Manny Martinez, David Nguy and so many other talented artists demonstrating different aspects of bonsai at all of our wonderful clubs.
My interests have gravitated to the rather different or unusual and especially flowering/fruiting species.
Viburnum ‘Spring Bouquet’ is one of those species that have become near and dear to my heart and hopefully, perhaps, to yours as well.

MEETING REFRESHMENTS: Hungry???
Please bring your favorite appetizers and snacks to share
water provided by SABS

RAFFLE TABLE
We’re hoping for a Large Raffle Table- including a special raffle for Wanda’s Tree, Kathy Boehme pots and more…

Bring a bonsai related item to donate
Your donations to the raffle at the meetings are a BIG help to support the club
Please keep them coming

UPCOMING MEETINGS

We are looking forward to an exciting year of programs aimed at helping our members of all experience levels continue to grow and enjoy the bonsai artform.

June 13, 2026
Demo by: Wanda Danesi
Spring Bouquet’s: Introduction to working with decidous, tropicals and other flowering materials.
Discussion and demonstration on Vibernum
LA Arboretum- Palm Room

July 11, 2026
Demo by Peter Macaseib
at Peter’s Shohin Bonsai Court- West Covina, Ca

August 8, 2026
Demo by David & June Nguy
at their Shisei-En Garden- Chino, Ca

SABS meetings are always on the 2nd Saturday monthly January-November

MEMBERSHIP

Our Annual membership drive for 2026 is ongoing
Single memberships continue to be $20 and Family/Couple Memberships are $25
Cash, Check or Zelle payment options are available

May Meeting Highlights
Our May meeting featured Ryan Pitts who demonstrated his bonsai talents on a procumbens juniper.
The material had been grown staked up, so it was more upright than a normal procumbens.
Ryan explained his work as he styled the tree, and Frankie Alvarez backed up Ryan with additional descriptions of the work being done.

Ryan’s finished tree was a beautifully styled bonsai, and the lucky raffle winner of the tree was Rick Naber.

59th Annual SABS Memorial Weekend Show- sneak preview

We finished the month of May with our 59th Annual Memorial Day Weekend Show.
In addition to the beautiful trees our members brought to the show, we added some additional features this year.
Some of our newest members brought trees that they had begun styling to show the early stages of bonsai work.
We have all styled a “first tree”, so we appreciate our members sharing their work at the show.
Many of the Arboretum attendees are overwhelmed by our show trees and don’t see a practical way to begin the art of bonsai.
We hope the younger displays showed them a pathway.

We also featured workshops on both Saturday and Sunday.
Participants paid a very reasonable fee and were supplied with a 26-year-old juniper and instruction on styling the trees.
The workshops proved to be very popular, and all attendees went home with a finished, original new bonsai.

Thanks to all our members who helped make the show a success; from helping with set-up, showing their trees, acting as docents, and helping with take-down. Our members made it happen!

A Special Post with a gallery of all of our show trees coming soon…

Everyone is always welcome at our meetings

For questions: contact us at [email protected]

Enjoy Today- Trim a Tree