LAST MONTH'S MEETING: Guy Guidry from New Orleans did a great demo using a boulevard cypress. His workshop with Morris Miniature Boxwoods produced some lovely trees that will be wonderful additions to the lucky members who took advantage of his workshop. We will be raffling off the cypress at our Holiday Party in December.
THIS MONTH'S MEETING: October's meeting is scheduled to be held on Wednesday, October 15 at 7:00 at the Pittsburgh Civic Garden Center. Keith Scott will be doing a critique of member trees. This means that we need trees, especially yours, so that Keith will have some material to work with. Keith wants trees that you've worked on and feel pretty good about. He will be offering some styling tips that may take your tree from good to great. Plan to come and spend an evening learning what can be done to enhance an already good bonsai.
NEXT MONTH'S MEETING: The November meeting will again be a Friday meeting with a Saturday workshop, held Nov 14 and 15. Shane Carey from Brussels Bonsai will join us. Plan now to attend and don't miss out on an other opportunity to add some first class material to your collection! Watch the next newsletter for more info on the material and price of the workshop.
CALL FOR NOMINATIONS: The Board members and committee chair- persons will meet on Monday, Oct 13 at 7:30 at the Grealish home. We will be preparing the slate of nominations for next years officers. If you are interested in serving as an officer, please let your intentions be known by calling Bob or Rose Grealish before Monday evening.
OCTOBER BONSAI CHORES: It's time to start thinking about winter. How are you going to store your trees? Hardy trees need a period of dormancy, at least 6 weeks of below 40 degree weather, so you can't bring the trees into the house. The purpose of winter storage is to protect the trees from wind and sun during dormancy, and especially in the early spring when they start budding. You must prevent the early spring leaves from losing water through transpiration when the pots are still frozen and the tree can't get water from the roots. One method is to plant the bonsai, pot and all, in the ground next to your house where they are protected by bushes. Watch out for critter damage. Another is to put them in an unheated garage, but be careful not to let them dry out. The preferred method is with a poly house or cold frame. You can get galvanized electrical conduit (pipe' and a pipe bender relatively cheaply. Bend the pipes into U-shaped bows. These can be whatever size you want, from 2 feet to 7 feet high. Stand them up 2-3 feet apart, and attach them at the base to a frame made out of 2X6" lumber (like a sandbox without a bottom.) Put a straight pipe across the top of the bows, and secure it with U-bolts or by drilling through them and bolting. Cover any sharp edges with foam rubber and duct tape. You can make ends for your poly house out of plywood, and cut a door into one end for access. Cover the whole thing with white plastic and staple it to the wood. Put the trees in, making sure they have enough space for some air movement. Don't seal it too tight or you might get mold, particularly when it starts warming up. If you have never seen a poly house, ask around at the meeting and find someone who can show you one. Late fall is a good time to wire, but don't work on frozen trees. February is a good time to do heavy pruning also, but don't wait until the tree starts budding because it will need all of its stored energy for spring growth. If that happens, wait until the new leaves have matured before pruning heavily. Otherwise, just sit back and pray for Spring.
PROJECTED MEETING SCHEDULE 1997
MANY THANKS to Barbara Nagy for kindly volunteering to coordinate the Holiday Party this year. Barbara will be needing some help, so feel free to volunteer your services to her. Watch for more information in the next newsletter.