markyscott
Imperial Masterpiece
Wow... it’s been 4 1/2 years since I last posted to this thread! Really? Time flies...
Since my last post, I graduated from the Intensive program, but I continue to return to Boon’s 3 or 4 times a year for “independent study”. I have my own bench of trees there, and I sit back in the corner while Boon teaches the class. If he has a new handout or something, I’ll join in the class.
And when it comes to major projects, the hands-on stuff becomes a group effort. My trident, screwed to a board, was the subject of one of our projects last time. Everyone wanted to see how the roots faired on the board.
@markyscott brought his big JBP from Houston packed in a dishwasher box, and padded with rolls of paper towels! Boon is good for paper towels for a year!
I’m trying to remember what all went on... we grafted, wired, unwired, repotted, sharpened tools, drank a few beers, and swapped “big fish” stories!
Daisaku Nomoto was there, and he wired this JBP:
View attachment 228295
He also brought back Roy Minerai’s award pots from Japan. And we got to hear exactly what the judges liked, and disliked, about them.
Stuff like that happens at Boon’s. One time when I was there, there were 5 guys who had apprenticed in Japan, two of which had won Kokofu, two other guys who later went on to apprentice in Japan.
The environment there makes you feel you’re at the center of the bonsai universe (or at least one of major junctions!)
Never mind you’re surrounded by 2000 amazing trees!
I believe that there is no better way to learn bonsai (without committing 5 years to an apprenticeship in Japan).
We chugged beer while unwiring my western juniper. I styled an Ashe juniper. We pulled a lot of wire off your pine. We made fun of Morton. We did a bunch of grafting - more grafts on the Sierra juniper and the black pine. Can’t wait to go back!
S