Trip to Vonsgardens

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Vonsgardens is one of two up-and-coming vendors in the Midwest (The other is Sonlight Nursery in Blanchard, OK--Frank Kroeker).

Vonsgardens is located in Prairie Grove, AR, a little west of Ends Of The Earth, but mostly west of Fayetteville, AR. It's a private nursery run by John and Yvonne Kirby, as a secondary career for them. I drove down there Wednesday evening after work and took my big Colorado blue spruce. We worked on repotting that one and a couple of his big ponderosa pines.

John is a great guy and S.O.B. who cares deeply about making trees healthy. He has thousands of trees in the ground, in small pots, in nursery cans, and in grow boxes. We had a good time working on the trees together, and made a pact to get together more often. It's exciting to find a source within just a few hours' drive, especially when one can work on trees with the same philosophy and teacher.

Here's a photo of his seedlings hoop house and a ponderosa we repotted.

I can say that John has excellent material at almost any size and stage of development, and at very reasonable prices. It was a great trip.
 

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bonsai barry

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John Kirby of Vons Gardens (I always thought his last name must be Vons) spends many hours helping people at this site, answering their bonsai questions. I very much appreciate his comments.
 
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BonsaiWes

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Awe, you should have let me know you were coming to town, I would have enjoyed meeting you over an iced coffee or something.
 
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Awe, you should have let me know you were coming to town, I would have enjoyed meeting you over an iced coffee or something.


Sorry, Dude, we planned it at the last minute. Sorry I missed you.

By the way, the "vindictive and petty" have rated this thread quite low. Sad, isn't it?
 

frou frou

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Sorry, Dude, we planned it at the last minute. Sorry I missed you.

By the way, the "vindictive and petty" have rated this thread quite low. Sad, isn't it?

I'm surprised people even bother to rate threads. I would be even more surprised if people bothered to look at ratings before clicking on an interesting thread.

Anyway, looks like the place has potential to be a great vendor in the future.
 

JasonG

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Vonsgardens is one of two up-and-coming vendors in the Midwest (The other is Sonlight Nursery in Blanchard, OK--Frank Kroeker).

Vonsgardens is located in Prairie Grove, AR, a little west of Ends Of The Earth, but mostly west of Fayetteville, AR. It's a private nursery run by John and Yvonne Kirby, as a secondary career for them. I drove down there Wednesday evening after work and took my big Colorado blue spruce. We worked on repotting that one and a couple of his big ponderosa pines.

John is a great guy and S.O.B. who cares deeply about making trees healthy. He has thousands of trees in the ground, in small pots, in nursery cans, and in grow boxes. We had a good time working on the trees together, and made a pact to get together more often. It's exciting to find a source within just a few hours' drive, especially when one can work on trees with the same philosophy and teacher.

Here's a photo of his seedlings hoop house and a ponderosa we repotted.

I can say that John has excellent material at almost any size and stage of development, and at very reasonable prices. It was a great trip.


Hey Chris,

Good post.... John is an awesome guy who I have had the honor to meet a few times. He has found his way to Oregon and stopped in a few times. John is one of the best people I have met in Bonsai and is a big gentle man.
Frank was out here not too long ago with John and Frank too is a helluva guy! He was funny and a joy to be around, and a good trading partner!! He ended up with a PP that I called the Dr. Suess tree and I ended up with the best Bald Cypress I have seen, or I should say the one I like the most!

Those 2 together.... wow, like an old married couple!! hahaha

See Ya, Jason
 
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Hehe, John told me a little about that trip! Let me just say that those of you on the West Coast should thank your lucky stars to have such a wealth of teachers, material, and enthusiasts close at hand. Bonsai friends are precious, and must be kept close.
 
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By the way, the "vindictive and petty" have rated this thread quite low. Sad, isn't it?

Yes, and there are a lot of the "vindictive and petty" around. Bnut seems to think this rating system has some value, I personally think it is worthless, and I treat it as such.





Will
 
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Are you saying you were the "vindictive and petty" in question?
 

wahoo172

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I pay no attention to ratings, I always see the new posts and read the ones that have an interesting title. I am in the newspaper binness after all.
 

BonsaiWes

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Sorry, Dude, we planned it at the last minute. Sorry I missed you.

By the way, the "vindictive and petty" have rated this thread quite low. Sad, isn't it?



Well, did you bring any new trees home?:)
 
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Are you saying you were the "vindictive and petty" in question?
Here we go again, putting words in my mouth, typical. What I said was exactly as follows:

"Yes, and there are a lot of the "vindictive and petty" around. Bnut seems to think this rating system has some value, I personally think it is worthless, and I treat it as such."

Which was in direct response to your words as quoted below.

By the way, the "vindictive and petty" have rated this thread quite low. Sad, isn't it?





Will
 
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Dav4

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By the way, the "vindictive and petty" have rated this thread quite low. Sad, isn't it?



Chris, as soon as you typed these words, I knew where this thread was headed. You've done this thread, which was intended to applaud John and his nursery, a disservice for sure. Sometimes you've got to let it go, but that never seems to happen. Too bad, really...the sentiment behind your original post will be obliterated by the ensuing pissing contest.

Dave
 

Graydon

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Chris - is that John in the photo? Always wanted to put a face by the name. He's great people for sure. We were discussing larch on another site and he PM'd me asking for my address. I came home one day and found a pseudolarix in a box on my front porch. Just as he suspected it is doing fine here.
 
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Chris, as soon as you typed these words, I knew where this thread was headed. You've done this thread, which was intended to applaud John and his nursery, a disservice for sure. Sometimes you've got to let it go, but that never seems to happen. Too bad, really...the sentiment behind your original post will be obliterated by the ensuing pissing contest.

Dave

You're probably right. I'm dropping the issue. Thanks for the wake up call.

Chris
 
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Chris - is that John in the photo? Always wanted to put a face by the name. He's great people for sure. We were discussing larch on another site and he PM'd me asking for my address. I came home one day and found a pseudolarix in a box on my front porch. Just as he suspected it is doing fine here.

Yup,
That's John. The tree is massive, and they have had so much rain down there it was hard to maneuver with stuff that size. That's why my back is only just recovering from the work.
 
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Well, did you bring any new trees home?:)

Wes,
It's a good thing payday had not come when I went down there. As it was, John sent me home with a couple of nice San Jose junipers that'll make great shohin when I style them next spring, a boxwood with a significant trunk, and a couple of small pines. All of them need repotting this spring so styling won't be started till next year.
 

Graydon

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Chris - I noticed this thread was under vendor experiences. Considering John is a vendor how may we get in touch with him? Web site? Email? Phone number? Carrier pigeon route (I know how the mid west can be...)?

Thanks for sharing your experiences and for the photos.
 
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Chris - I noticed this thread was under vendor experiences. Considering John is a vendor how may we get in touch with him? Web site? Email? Phone number? Carrier pigeon route (I know how the mid west can be...)?

Thanks for sharing your experiences and for the photos.

John is reached most easily by PMing him at BonsaiTALK. And Kansas rules NCAA Basketball. Eat it.
 
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