Frank Leads Cotoneaster Workshop

Frank demos initial pruning (R) and one that has grown a bit (L)

by Michael Rusnak
At the July meeting ACBS members began creating bonsai from sizable cotoneaster nursery stock.  ACBS member Frank Mihalic lead the workshop.
The raw material was nursery stock that had be left to grow wild for the first half of this season.   Most were in 3 or 5 gallon containers and were sprawling with lots of long overgrown branches.

Frank first cut away the top couple of inches of the plastic nursery pot and pulled loose soil away from the trunk in order to expose a little more of the trunk, and at the same time allow for better viewing of the plant itself.  After studying the plant, he explained what he might cut away in order to create a skeleton for the bonsai.   He then pruned away several unnecessary branches and produced what will eventually become the trunk outline with some side branches --the basic structure for the bonsai.

The raw material

Turing the plant so that it could be viewed from multiple angles, he also explained that the next step was to feed the plant and let it recover and grow for the balance of the season.  This should allow the plant to respond with some foliage and begin to fill in the outline.  He also mentioned that it would be best to do any re-potting next spring at the start of the new growing season, after the pant had recovered.

The kids at play

Following his initial demo, Frank then worked individually with members, helping them study their raw material and suggesting what areas might be used to create the trunk-line and skeleton for branches, and what areas might be cut away.

It was great to see that much of the collaborative spirit from the club's benjing project carried over into the cotoneasters.  At one point much of the club was huddled around one of the trees.  A brief VIDEO of Frank working with members can be seen at this link.

Collaboration or How many ACBS members does it take to make a bonsai?

2013 June Exhibit Features Full Penjing Landscape & Fine Bonsai

Eleven section penjng landscape

The June 2013 ACBS showcase exhibit featured the first ever exhibit of our composite penjing landscape, as  well as number of fine member trees, many of which just get better every year.  In addition to photographs, our gallery site also contains a brief video walk-through of the exhibit.

Trident Forest

Outstanding Elm

Visitors to the exhibit were greeted by the wide expanse of the full eleven section penjing landscape that was the club project for this year. It was the last step in a design conceived by ACBS member Carlton Buck who back in September first proposed doing tray plantings that be viewed separately or assembled to form one large landscape.   The ongoing project has been written about here on this blog as it progressed though the winter and spring months.  In addition to photos on our gallery site, the video walk through posted there gives a little bit better indication of just how cool the completed penjing looks.

Two concord grape vines

Large Juniper

The exhibit also contained bonsai from members at all skill levels with nearly twenty participating members.  Among the visitor favorites were the trident maple forest, the large junipers, the miniature mame plantings, tropicals, several
pines and the two grape vines. You can see photos of all trees in the exhibit as well as a short video walk thought on our galley spot at this link. Enjoy.

Material for Bonsai: from Trash to Exhibit

by Michael Rusnak
ACBS Newsletter Editor

Some of the bonsai trees in our club's June exhibit were created out of shrubs, stumps and other material that was destined for a trash heap or the wood chipper. If the discarded shrubbery is “usable” and is successfully transplanted to a pot, it can have a new life as a bonsai.

Such material is like having a blank canvass from which something spectacular can be created over several seasons. 

Akron-Canton Bonsai Society member Dan Tullius collected a massive juniper from a park that was being renovated in 1994. After successfully transplanting it into a training pot, Dan has worked to create some spectacular results. 

The juniper just gets better every year, and like many good trees, it can be viewed from either side.  It has many interesting shapes and movement all around it's sizable trunk.  

What was once thrown-away has found a new life as a bonsai, and in this case Dan has created a real specimen tree.

Piecing Together the Penjing Project

At its May meeting ACBS members began planting some of the dwarf

Dwarf evergreens and other plant material

evergreens into the rock hollows and land features of the pejing.

It was obvious even in just setting down the plants in their nursery containers that their colors would work to add a sense of unity from one section to another.  So a little coordination was necessary. Form a little distance, the colors of the plants stand out quite well against the earthy shades of the rock features and the dark blue of the tray.  In short it worked visually.  In just completing two or three section the foliage color accented and highlighted these features.

Two adjoining sections of the ACBS penjing

Given that many of the ACBS members participating in the project have little or no experience working with tray plantings, one question presented itself:  what kind of soil to use? It seemed that such small plants would have difficulty surviving in typical, fast-draining bonsai soil.  The land features are quite shallow, and the space in the rock hollows is limited. Most choose to use the same heavily organic mix from the nursery containers, and then add some type of top dressing like haydite which has good earthy tones. We'll need to keep and eye on the watering situation,

 So now the only trick will be keeping things alive.

Spring exhibits and ACBS is Named "Artist of the Month"

The ACBS Named was recently named "Artist of the Month" and will be presenting two exhibits in the coming weeks.

The first exhibit will feature about 20-25 trees at the Yoga Place in North Canton, Ohio from Friday, May 31 to Sunday, June 2nd.    In addition to regular classes in yoga, meditation, and fitness, the Yoga Place studio frequently sponsors cultural events.  ACBS was invited to present an exhibit on this special weekend which also features music and a tea ceremony.  In appreciation, the Yoga Place has named the Akron-Canton Bonsai Society its"Artist of the Month." Such recognition is greatly appreciated. You can see the posting on the Yoga Place's website and blog at this link.

ACBS will also present its annual June show at the Cuyahoga Valley Art Center June 7 through June 9.  Hours will run concurrent with the Irish Fest 2131 Front Street, Cuyahoga Falls, OH 44221-3219. 
Photographs from previous exhibits can be seen on our gallery site:
at http://picasaweb.google.com/akroncantonbonsai

             The

Akron–Canton

Bonsai Society 

presents a

Bonsai 
Exhibition

June 7^th,8^th and 9^th

Cuyahoga Valley Art Center

2131 Front Street

 Admission: free

 Hours concurrent with Irish Fest

The exhibition will feature local bonsai artists and contain examples of various bonsai styles and species, including pines, elms, flowering and tropical trees.

Penjing Project: Weekend Garage Work Adds Frames for Land Features

by Michael Rusnak
Over a couple of weekends, a group of ACBS members-  -Gib, Carlton and Dan showed their handyman skills--and used oodles of C-clamps  to meticulously build "frames" that will support land features on each section of the penjing project.  Such frames are necessary to support soil, moss and small plants that may occupy the features.

The frames were cut from   angled rails of aluminum. In order to correctly size all of the the aluminum for individual tray sections, and, at the same time, ensure that each section fit neatly into any other sections, it was necessary to work with the entire composition.  Each length of the aluminum was measured and cut with a miter saw at an appropriate angle.
 The aluminum was then fitted so that it would fit flush along the desired edge. In addition, the tray section was checked against its joining section to test that mitered angles matched, and that the soil section correctly aligned  with that of any neighboring tray.



   Rails were cemented with epoxy resin and clamped into place. No doubt this was a time-consuming task, but it was an important step to completing the project.  Fitting the frames in this way, holds the unity of the composition.
Next,  members may start adding the individual plantings in the rock hollows and fill-in and sculpt soil features.  It was   reassuring to see that with all of the sections pieced together on the level garage floor, they accomplished a neat and consistent fit.  Of course, once soil and moss are in place, those shiny aluminium pieces that support it will be covered not be visible in the final landscape. 

With this task accomplished, it is entirely possible that the tray planting will be at the point where it can be displayed at the ACBS annual June exhibition. 

Much thanks to Gib, Carlton and Dan for offering to build these sections. 

ACBS Penjing Project Moves to Next Phase

At its April meeting ACBS members discussed several different types of plants that might for cascading and upright trees to be planted in the rock cavities. Samples of two varieties of dwarf boxwood, a type of small honeysuckle, juniper and spruce were discussed.   Smaller companion material and types of moss was also
considered to add perspective and differences in height on the composition  be used began working on creating the boundary lines that will help define the land land water features of the tray landscape.

For this feature part of the project, it was important that all members who are developing a section brought their sections so that the feature boundary lines of each section would neatly fold into each of the adjoining sections. This would ensure that the entire composition would flow together when completed.

Working from the master blueprint, guidelines for the
boundaries were drawn freehand on each section. Then a thick bead of construction adhesive was applied over the lines.  Members pressed bits of crushed rock into the adhesive beads to form the shoreline-like ridges.  The crushed rock was chipped off of discarded section  of the same type of tufa-like rock that was used elsewhere on the planting.  In some places this borderline feature already had the appearance of sand as well as a rough textured look. Once the adhesive has dried, the loose pieces and dust will be vacuumed away.  It is important not to rub off the loose material, as it is quite abrasive, and in parts it has scratched the dark blue Corian material that was used to make the trays.

ACBS member Carlton Buck offered to store and begin working making a frame like sections made from aluminium angle edging.  This edging will be attached to some of the sides to hold soil where there are raised land features on the planting.
An architect by profession, it was easy to see where Carlton's professional skills of familiarity with materials, organization, planning and vision have carried over into this composition as a whole.  In other words, it already just looks cool.