Redwood Empire Bonsai Society – 27th Annual Show
Redwood Empire Bonsai Society – 27th Annual Show
The Redwood Empire Bonsai Society held their 27th annual show this past weekend in Santa Rosa, California. As always, the large show drew large crowds. Kathy Shaner’s demonstrations highlighted each day’s events, and the club’s large vendor area kept visitors engaged.
A number of new trees made it into the exhibit this year, and particular attention was paid to the display of accent plants – more on that in an upcoming post.
Here is a sampling of the trees that were on display.
Coast redwood
White pine
Japanese maple
Ginkgo
Shimpaku
Pomegranate
Trident maple
Trident maple
Pyracantha
Cork oak
Hawthorne
Pine
White pine
Sonare
Crape myrtle
Japanese black pine
Trident maple
Crape myrtle
Shimpaku
Japanese maple
Trident maple
Coast redwood
Suiseki on display
Here are some more photographs from the California Suiseki Society’s 15th Annual Show.
Coastal – Italy
Figure stone – Northern California
Mountain – Northern California
Mountain – Northern California
Coastal – Northern California
Doha – Japan
Doha – Japan
Mountain – Northern California
Meditation stone
Meditation stone
Meditation stone
Mountain range – Northern California
Dobutsu-seki – Mendocino, California
Waterfall – Northern California
Kinzan-seki – Northern California
Mountain range – Northern California
Mountain range – Northern California
Distant mountain – Northern California
Mountain – Northern California
Mountain – Northern California
Tropical island – Northern California
Mizukagami – Northern California
Mizukagami – Northern California
Kisogawa – Northern California
Kisogawa detail – Northern California
See more suiseki from this show.
California Suiseki Society 15th Annual Show
California Suiseki Society 15th Annual Show
The California Suiseki Society held its 15th Annual Show at the Lakeside Garden Center in Oakland, California on June 12-13, 2010. Typically members display stones new to their collections – this year President & Founder Felix Rivera encouraged members to display their very best stones. The result was a wonderful collection of close to 100 suiseki.
Most of the stones on display were “mountain stones” from Northern California. I was a bit surprised by this – either most engaging stones in California make good representations of mountains, or the mountain style speaks to members. A core of over a dozen are from the Bay Area – most of the rest are located across the country. Worldwide, the active membership is about 50.
I was also surprised by the diversity of rock geology. Northern California is clearly home to diverse collections of rock making it a great place for collecting.
Here’s a sampling of the suiseki on display. I’ll post more later this week.
Mountain & arch stone – Northern California
Mountain – Northern California
Mountain – Northern California
Near mountain – Northern California
Mountain – Northern California
Waterfall – Northern California
Distant mountain – Northern California
Waterfall – Northern California
Mountain – Northern California
Mountain – Northern California
Lake – Northern California
Mountain range – Northern California
Nearby mountain – Northern California
Island – Northern California
Island detail – Northern California
Mountain – Northern California
Plateau – Northern California
Waterfall – Northern California
Distant mountain – Northern California
Mountain – Northern California
Mountain – Northern California
Mountain – Northern California
Kinzan-seki – Northern California
Mountain – Northern California
Distant mountain with river – Northern California
Mountain – Northern California
Mountain range – Northern California
Satsuki bonsai blooms
The Bay Area Satsuki Aikokai’s 16th annual exhibit included evidence that good satsuki azalea bonsai stock is available if you look in the right place. In this case, the right place is Japan. A number of the club’s members visit Japan regularly to study bonsai with Suisho Nakayama. The trees below were purchased at his nursery and shipped, recently, to California, after completing a 2-year quarantine in Japan.
Satsuki azalea at a fun stage of development
Satsuki azalea – a bit further along
I didn’t remember to write down the varieties of the above trees, but I did get information for the tree below. The display card read: “Eik(w)an [=a garland] (seedling of Asahi Zuru Taisho Era) Rhododendron indicum cv., (L) Sweet, Ericaceae.” In addition to azaleas and rhododendrons, the Ericaceae family includes cranberries, blueberries, huckleberries and heathers, among others.
Satsuki azalea ‘Eikan’ – 40 years old and still in training
It’s hard to convey this tree’s size in photos. Here’s a close-up of the trunk.
Satsuki in training – trunk detail
A combination of shredded Australian sphagnum moss and Mountain moss (Yama goki) cover the kanuma soil to retain moisture. Nakayama recommended planting these trees in very large and surprisingly deep (around 12″) pots to help them recover from the bare-rooting and shipping to California. After a couple of years, the trees will return to bonsai pots.
Of course, the main reason to visit azalea bonsai shows is for the flowers. Here are some favorites from this year’s exhibit along with translations, when provided.
Fukuju (happiness & longevity)
Miyuke (Imperial visit)
Chiyo no Homare (Glory of 1000 years)
Kanuma no Mai (Dance of Kanuma)
Meguriai
Kinpai (Golden cup)
Unknown sp.
Karenko
Sai no Matsugaki
Hikaru Genji (Shining Genji Clan)
Other varieties with great names included Kakuo – feather of a crane, and Hito Mebore – love at first sight.
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