Ann Arbor Bonsai Society

06/13/2026

06/07/2026

Good morning, from the final day of the American Bonsai Society Learning Seminar and show.

There was a wonderful discussion in this heartland of agrarian-derived arts about honoring the traditions of bonsai but keeping it alive with new growth by embracing new expressions of the art.

According to a “VIP” I spoke to, bonsai clubs are getting more conservative as far as their alignment with the Kokufu model rather than expressing their own “theme” as a bonsai society. He believed this is a mistake. Creativity and adaptation of our community model will be what makes bonsai exciting as we go forward together.

I attended Andrew Robson’s critique that was very much based on the Kokufu model and found it exceptionally interesting. The attention to detail, relationships within a display, and the traditions that inform our modern exhibitions are centuries old— practices that really work as foundations for our bonsai practices now and going forward.

It was really a fantastic dynamic to have Naturalistic presenters working alongside Classically focused professionals. It’s a discussion on the forefront of American bonsai.

That’s what I heard around the rooms. Here are the award winners and the AABS trees. Special congratulations to the Matthaei team players with Carmen Leskoviansky and Michael Bruneau making the calls. The larch forest was awarded the Best Conifer by ABS and the Best Native by NABF. The Satsuki Azalea flowered spot-on time and was awarded Best Broadleaf Evergreen by ABS and was awarded Best Tree and Pot combination by the potters who unofficially present their award to at the national exhibitions.

See you all soon.

06/06/2026

Hello, from Asheville, North Carolina. A few of our society members are enjoying the southern hospitality at the American Bonsai Society Learning Seminar being hosted in conjunction with the Blue Ridge Bonsai Society at the North Carolina Arboretum, which is absolutely breathtaking.

I have a few photos to share of the permanent collection here that is curated by Arthur Joura who is a Naturalistic bonsai style practitioner and started the bonsai collection here at the North Carolina Arboretum in 2005.

We have also listened to critiques and presentations by professionals, all bringing unique skills, broad ranges of experiences, and perspectives to the bonsai community. I am sharing a few photos of two of those presentations. The three panel demo including Andrew Robson working on Beech, Bjorn Bjornholm working on a Hinoki Cypress, and John Geanangel (assisted by Rob Wallace), who brilliantly put together a bald cypress forest. John prepared for this event by coming up with a clever technique that allowed him to successfully plant a forest in June. I gained new wisdom from each professional to carry forward into my own bonsai practice and a heck of a lot of inspiration.

The other photos are of another three-panel demonstration, "a potters' round table." Rob Wallace, Eli Akins, and Preston Tolbert discussed and demonstrated live the steps that go into making a bonsai pot. Large pots are expensive because only 10%-40% get a passing grade for use by the time they cool from firing. Ron Lang was in the audience watching the young creators have their turn on the stage and asking all the best questions. He also expressed a beautiful sentiment about artists collaborating and bringing their strengths together. He truly summed up one of my life lessons-- true greatness is made through connectedness.

All of the artists have bios that can be found on the ABS website: www.americanbonsaisociety.org

There will be more photos upcoming of the show and the awards. We have 5 trees in the show tied to AABS members. I find that delightful. Go us!

05/29/2026

Thank you for all who made our May meeting a success by attending and participating in the local bonsai community. As always, wonderful to see old friends and meet potential new ones, share our enthusiasm for bonsai.

We were delighted to have Jaime Whitton of Open Grove Bonsai and Ranni Bonsai present on spruces and firs, followed by an in-depth demo of the magic transformation that happens when we properly prune these species.

Our beginner’s series was presented by Carmen Leskoviansky who demonstrated painless candle pinching for beginners.

The day after the meeting, some of us attended a spruce/fir workshop with Jaime. I have included a photo of my Douglas fir from the workshop in its new “fir-ever” home in my garden.

The botanical gardens where we meet were absolutely stunning in spring splendor.

Hope to see you at our June event for a presentation with Mark Fields on shohin with a bring your own shohin workshop the following day.

05/13/2026

Reminder! See our "events" for more details about our monthly meetings held at Matthaei Botanical Gardens.

05/03/2026

Recently, Carmen Leskoviansky and Evan Pardue discussed pioneer species in bonsai on episode 134 of their podcast, “Little Things for Bonsai People.”

This coincided with our bonsai society collecting local species with Ryan Huston of In Vivo Bonsai.

One of our members collected a Sassafras tree. Here is a link to the history of this unique and possibly, “pioneer species.” I have yet to see one on display, though more experienced practitioners may have seen one used for bonsai.

I always enjoy finding these on hikes. The leaves smell like Fruit Loops cereal to me when crushed.

From an Indigenous medicine to a European export to a vital ingredient of a popular drink, sassafras has sealed its place in American culture and history.