It has been a busy few days hence this delayed report on last Saturday’s February workshop here at Willowbog Bonsai.
With eleven participants it was one of the best supported monthly workshops yet staged at the nursery.
It comprised nearly all regulars with one person returning for only their second day here, and two making, not only their first visit to our nursery, but also their first participation in a bonsai workshop of any kind.
This image shows that we had plenty of trees to look over and talk about during the ever present discussion period that we begin each workshop with.
Before we got to talking about individual trees we spent a little time considering the somewhat unusually mild winter so far and the ways that it might impact upon our bonsai.
The wide range of participant’s abilities and experience as well as the widely differing trees, both in terms of size and development, can make these days quite challenging but I feel that on the whole we coped pretty well.
That very diversity can mean that everyone, including myself, gets to know and understand more about tree species that are maybe not present in their collection as well as bonsai that are at very different stages on development, from completely raw material to well refined specimens. In this photo we take a look at Angela’s new acquired Crab apple, a significant and interesting trunk but with a very young and immature, embryonic, branch structure.
Dan’s impressive Field maple trunk but with virtually no bonsai work yet carried out.
The final ” action ” photo is of Tony checking out the pot before transplanting his Cork bark Chinese elm. My thanks to Peter G. for the day’s pictures.
A Willowbog Collection European beech graced the tokonoma display on the day, hard to tell from the photo but the accent plant is a shohin size Ivy bonsai.
This literati style juniper completes our record of this day’s workshop. Lastly my very grateful thanks to both Caz and to Scott who both worked hard all day to ensure that all participants got plenty of time spent with themselves and their trees.
