It is not in my best interest to purchase a large and expensive piece of material only to bring it home and cut off the upper two thirds. I also do not do layers to gather more trees, it is of no use to me and I also would prefer to have a maple chopless. I do layers to improove the base of trees on occasion and have layerd the top of a tree when all else has failed in the tree, but not on a routine basis.
I absolutely do not think it is because of the Asian influence here. Maybe 50 years ago, but not so much in the last thirty or so. The people growing material in large quantity are not Asian and follow no Asian influences in growing it. What is a big factor is climate. We have a long growing season that does not require winter protection and sun is abundant which is needed when growing material in a short time to market. Nearly all the big box store nursery material is grown in the west and bonsai material is no different.
Exactly, Al. The "Asian influence" created an awareness of bonsai in enough of the general public that there are growers and artists in your area.
True, but there is just as much Asian Influence on the East coast to make growing profitable. The problem is the huge disparity in what things cost. Plant for plant, what costs 50.00 here, brings 300.00 back east. Read Maria's question again. Her question had to do with availability and price. Not why I have lots of material. Also keep in mind that you key in on one state while California is narrow it could easily be 8 or 9 states as the same area is back east, which would dilute the pool. It's all supply and demand. The supply keeps up with the demand as long as the price stays affordable. California would dry up in a year or two if we had to pay what east coast people had to pay. Don't sell the east coast short, other than price, the east coast could easily become a bastion of bonsai if the price was right. I have been a Iishi's place when Brussel Martin came in during a convention and dropped $10,000.00 in one purchase to fill a trailer to take back home. I also heard that same weekend he took back about the same amount from House of Bonsai. Long story short...(I know too late) the west coast is supplieng the east cost too, your just paying the shit for it! You East coasters, stop buying your trees from California so we can go the way of Georgia....
Oregon already has a lot of growers. In fact many of the largest commercial growers in the USA are based in Oregon. Oregon continues to be the fresh cut Xmas tree capital. Pretty much all maples are propagated in Oregon for US consumption. We have Oregon bonsai providing expensive material. Telperion Farms growing stock for bonsai. There is more than enough growing going on there now to supply the meager demands of bonsai as a whole.It's interesting these 'hotspots' - pardon the pun have cropped up in the states based on climate and growing season and I wonder if Oregon is another California in the making? The concentration of activity there is bound to increase practitioners - demand for raw material means growers can make a reasonable living being based there. Has this happened yet do you feel, could happen in the near future or am I just talking rubbish? I'm interested as I plan to own oregon one day lol - lovely place - or maybe just Portland as I don't want to be greedy and I can watch the Trailblazers
I met him (and his wife, I believe) at Kimura in Northridge earlier this year; seemed like a good guy.
People in my neck of the woods are poor enough and inbreed enough that if you can't shoot it or breed with it or get drunk on it they blow it off and go four-wheeling in manure pits or put salt in their softeners or shop for shiny plastics or beat their worthless children--then its of to TV land.
Sounds like paradise.
Its a place to live--and probably die--in the meantime, suffer, and moan.
Sounds a lot like here. But we do have forests to go out into. A place that some members here don't get to experience too often. If ever. The great white north.
Sounds like the Dukes of Hazard.
I remember that!
I only watched the first season, and mostly for the theme song. Waylon Jennings was my hero and he had a house boat on Lake McClure. My parents used to rent a house boat and party with a whole group from Bakersfield. My Dad's best friend was a singer friend of Waylon's. I used to sneak around and gulp the last warm gulps in all the beer cans! I was probably about 14, 15 years old.
