- March 30 Fothergilla gardenii Multiple Trunk Style
Bonsai with five or more trunks arising from the same roots are called Kabudachi bonsai. The individual trunks are each slightly different thickness which gives the effect of a small forest or clump of trees. Fothergilla is not commonly used in bonsai, although a very nice one can be seen at www.knowledgeofbonsai.org as part of the Chicago Botanic Garden bonsai collection donated by the world renowned Mr Susumu Nakamura.
Bring chopsticks and bonsai tools if you have them. All supplies, #3 tree, ceramic dish, soils, etc, are included in the $60 price.
- April 6 Deciduous Maintenance Grooming Your Bonsai
Your bonsai tree cannot stay in the same pot forever! This is a good time to give it some loving care. Bring your tree and work with James Scott on pruning, shaping, root pruning, wiring and re-potting. We supply wire and soils. Class is suitable for beginner to experienced students. Bring chopsticks and bonsai tools if you have them. All supplies and instruction are included in the $20 price.
- April 13 Juniperus Shimpaku
Shimpaku junipers are prized for Bonsai culture because of their fine textured foliage and patterned, swirling trunk and branches. Rarely found in the wild, they are nearly extinct due to over harvesting for the Bonsai market. These trees have been grown vegetatively in a nursery and have never known a wild day in their lives.
Bring chopsticks and bonsai tools if you have them. All supplies, #3 tree, ceramic dish, soils, etc, are included in the $60 price.
- May 4 Conifer Maintenance Grooming Your Bonsai
The classic conifer Bonsai is characterized by dense compact foliage. This is achieved by careful trimming during certain periods of growth. In spring the new shoots will sprout in ‘bundles. ’ The shoot of the bundle is called a ‘ candle. ’ These should be cut off at the base in spring. Proper trimming of the ‘ candle ’ in spring will produce new desired growth later in the season. The long sprouts thrown out by young deciduous trees should be nipped back from time to time this month, leaving two or three buds. Transplanting can also take place this time of year.
Bring chopsticks and bonsai tools if you have them. All supplies and instruction are included in the $20 price.
- June 8 Pinus pumila ‘ Blue Dwarf ’ Siberian Pine
This tree displays bright red cones that contrast with the superior blue needle color in a dwarf Siberian Pine. These trees are densely covered with twisted needles and have a natural slant or horizontal growth habit. This pine is native to very cold, high elevation regions of north-east Asia.
Students will learn how to take advantage of the natural beauty of the tree to form Slant Style or Shakan style Bonsai.
Bring chopsticks and bonsai tools if you have them. All supplies, #3 tree, ceramic dish, soils, etc, are included in the $90 price.
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- June 29 Picea glauca 'Echiniformis' Semi-Cascade or Hankengaistyle
This miniature Alberta Spruce type has fine blue green needles and tiny branches with a low mounding growth habit suitable for Semi-Cascade or Hankengai style.
Bring chopsticks and bonsai tools if you have them. All supplies, #3 tree, ceramic dish, soils, etc, are included in the $55 price.
- July 13 Perennials in Containers
Learn how to put together striking container gardens. « Art and gardening compliment each other. I find that gardening can be as expressive for me as painting a picture, » says Cheryl Petty. Each participant will get to pick out an assortment of perennials from the nursery and learn how to combine plants with interesting foliage, flowers and complimentary colors. Included also is a 14-inch pot that will weather the seasons with your creation. Bring gloves. Everything else will be supplied. Sign up early, limited space available $45 price.
- August 3 Sedum Wreath
Learn about hardy succulents and how to use them to make a wreath for all seasons. Cheryl Petty will provide expert advice on combining plants to creatively exploit variations in foliage color and texture. Due to our cold winters, the wreaths go into a dormant state for many months, and this keeps them from filling in as fast as we’d like. From one succulent plant, many little cuttings can be made. The more the cuttings the faster they will fill in. There are strategies on protecting them over the winter that Petty will share with the class.
Class size is limited, recommended to bring gloves. Moss and 17-inch wire frame, succulent plants, pins, wire and instruction are included in $60 price.
- September 21 Tsuga canadensis 'Cole's Prostrate Cascade or Weeping style
Small foliage and elegant branching makes Hemlock an ideal subject for Bonsai.
This variety ‘ Cole’s Prostrate ’ develops gnarly interior branches that knuckle under and bend downwards, displaying silver bark and making it very suitable for Cascade or Kengai style or Weeping or Shidare style.
Bring chopsticks and bonsai tools if you have them. All supplies, #3 tree, ceramic dish, soils, etc, are included in the $70 price.
- September 28 Conifer Maintenance Grooming Your Bonsai
By now the new bundle of candles on pines will have sufficiently matured for another trimming to increase compactness. From these autumn cuts new bundles will sprout the following spring and the process continues until the bonsai has reached the desired form. All trees can be transplanted and cleaned up of dead needles.
Bring chopsticks and bonsai tools if you have them. All supplies and instruction are included in the $20 price.
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