Mohawk Hudson Bonsai Society
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Forest Workshops this weekend
Create a forest this weekend at PFM Bonsai. Saturday and Sunday workshops with Pauline offer great material including amur maples, junipers, Chinese elm, quince and larch. After the lesson, choose a slab or container (or bring your own) and start creating. The class is $40 plus cost of materials. No class charge for members of the Intermediate Class. Trees ranges from $15 each.
PREREGISTRATION REQUIRED PLEASE. Email Pauline@pfmbonsai.com or call 518-882-1039 (you may leave a message if there is no answer). Space is limited so your registration is a commitment. BRING TOOLS, WIRE AND LUNCH.
More May events to save time for:
• May 3 and 4 workshops on amur maples and others
• May 10-11 advanced study group with Ted Matson (filled)
• May 17 open workshop
• May 18 MHBS workshop and demo with Tropical Bonsai Queen Mary Madison
• May 24-25 Wild Bonsai Weekend with eastern white cedar collected trees, workshops with Mark Arpeg
• May 31-June 1 Frank Mihalic design workshop with your trees
January TWIG
In a world where success is measured in decades, another fleeting year is behind us. Our trees are in deep freeze (hopefully not tropicals) but spring is just weeks away. Attached is the first edition of the TWIG NEWSLETTER for 2014. In it are upcoming events for 2014, the Chinese Year of the Horse (beginning January 31), a year for making efforts to improve. Also included are some Bonsai New Year Resolutions you may wish to pledge. Happy New Year!
Snappy comeback
The next time someone refers to your bonsai as a hobby, you might share that while it takes seven years to become a practicing attorney and eight to become a doctor, most bonsai competitions consider someone with less than ten years experience a “beginner.”
June TWIG and upcoming events
Many club members are looking forward to the upcoming Montreal Trip to David Easterbrook’s & Montreal Gardens. Others are anticipating Frank Mihalic Workshops at PFM Bonsai, July 14-15, and a July 29 field trip to NE Bonsai and Royal Gardens.
Jake DeSilva’s ongoing $10 Monday night workshops at PFM Bonsai offer an incredibly affordable opportunity to work one-on-one with Jake in small sessions. Jake apprenticed in Japan and China for many years learning techniques that produced some of the best shohin from Mr. Masumi and Mr. Urushibata, directors of the Japan National Small Bonsai Guild of Nurserymen. Though shohin is his specialty, his knowledge can be applied to all sizes of bonsai. Contact Pauline to sign up.
Not done yet. The Club’s August 26 Annual Picnic and open workshop will welcome David Easterbrook and he will bring trees. Sept 29-30, David Knittle will host a double event at PFM Bonsai: Build a Tokonoma / Sharpening Bonsai Tools—a double-exciting opportunity to score twice. And there’s more to come through fall with field trips, shohin and mame workshops. Download the June TWIG here.
In Life as in Bonsai?
“Seek to understand the root. It is futile to argue as to which single leaf, which design of branch, or which attractive flower you like; when you understand the root, you understand all its blossoming.” – Bruce Lee
iPhone for Bonsai
With a quarter-million apps for iPhone, it occurred to me there might be some useful bonsai apps in there. A quick search revealed several dozen but many are for things like creating your own virtual pet bonsai, which I’m sure I could kill as efficiently as I do my real ones. 
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