Pittsburgh Bonsai Society

Pittsburgh Bonsai Society If you are interested in the living art of bonsai, this is the place to be! No prior knowledge or experience is necessary to feel at home at a PBS meeting!

New to Bonsai? Looking for a source of information and inspiration in Pittsburgh? You've found it with the Pittsburgh Bonsai Society (PBS). Newcomers are welcomed to our monthly member meetings where they'll find workshops and demonstrations. Other seasonal events include the annual spring show, tree auction and the summer picnic . Come down and find expert information on all aspects of bonsai, p

lus sources for trees and supplies. We even promise to have member trees at every meeting just appreciate. Bring in your own tree for some care or styling advice.

David Nguyen is renovating his garden to be able to extend his time to style and wi ter protect his collected yamadori. ...
08/17/2026

David Nguyen is renovating his garden to be able to extend his time to style and wi ter protect his collected yamadori. He hopes to have it ready for a garden tour in 2027.

David is standing beside his one seed juniper, "Arroyo Survivor". He is wearing a shirt with a logo designed by Lisa Stern showing David dragging that tree post collection. The logo is a riff based on a Daniel Yobp , Bonsai Forge design.

In the meantime he and Michael Stern are starting to style a " small" seed juniper he collected out west.

PK Nan hosted the Garden Tour today.The garden was wonderful filled with temperate as well as tropical bonsai.The member...
08/15/2026

PK Nan hosted the Garden Tour today.
The garden was wonderful filled with temperate as well as tropical bonsai.The members who attended were also treated to good food, company and weather.

This Chinese Elm, trained by PBS member Terry Monroe, will be on display at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens un...
08/12/2026

This Chinese Elm, trained by PBS member Terry Monroe, will be on display at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens until mid September. This tree was purchased from Meehan's Miniatures about 12 years ago. Visit the conservatory and have a look for yourselves!

It has been said to get a tree to reduce the size of foliage requires placing a tree in a bonsai pot to reduce access to...
08/07/2026

It has been said to get a tree to reduce the size of foliage requires placing a tree in a bonsai pot to reduce access to resources. Additionally, trimming and defoliation or partial defoliations elicits a second flush of foliage that is generally smaller with tighter internodes.

The Freeman maple, an opposing leaf tree had the single stem extentions cut so bifurcation was encouraged thru July. This occurred 3 or 4 times since spring. This tree is growing in garden soil with root pruning each spring.

In the ground sweetgums an alternate leaf pattern tree, was trimmed back to 2 leaves to encourage bifurcation.This occurred a few times until the end of July.

The first photo shows a normal sized maple leaf on top of leaves of the trimmed in ground tree. There is significant reduction with no pot restriction of roots.

The second photo shows a closeup of sweetgum leaves on a tree that has been in a bonsai pot for 3 years. The large leaf is actually size of a sweetgum freely growing in the landscape.The bonsai tree leaves are significantly smaller.

The third and fourth photos are of leaves of 2 sweetgums growing in the garden whose roots are pruned in the ground each spring. The comparison leaf from the big tree reveals foliage that is similar in size to the tree growing in a bonsai pot.

So?

Rather than dig a tree out of the garden when it is ready to be refined and create tertiary branching on deciduous trees, take advantage of the tree's strength to create more flushes and more refinement.

Consider using refinement strategies on a trees growing in the ground more frequently before potting them.

08/04/2026

Announcement: There was an oversight in the July newsletter in which one of the mentions of the picnic was not edited. The picnic is this coming SUNDAY at the Grealish residence. This was changed in April and has been announced as such at each meeting from May forward. However, there are remnants of the original date and place floating around in documents. The July newsletter has the information for the SUNDAY picnic, address, time, etc. There is also a sign up document to bring a dish or help with set up/clean up. We will email that asap.

Citrus Flatid Planthopper are active especially on deciduous trees this summer. They do not cause serious damage. They s...
07/29/2026

Citrus Flatid Planthopper are active especially on deciduous trees this summer. They do not cause serious damage. They suck sap. They leave a fluffy waxy substance to protect their nymphs. Can be sprayed off with water.

This is a 2021 photo of the American Elm Dave Metzgar is currently exhibiting at Phipps. This Elm is in the 4th Pittsbur...
07/28/2026

This is a 2021 photo of the American Elm Dave Metzgar is currently exhibiting at Phipps. This Elm is in the 4th Pittsburgh Bonsai Society members' hands.
Michael Stern grew this from seed setting basic structure, unitil Bob Grealish acquired it and added his touch. Larry Lamonde then assumed guardianship making his adjustments to the Elm.
Trees tell a story of their existence and influences of nature. With bonsai, humans are a substantial force in their evolution about which we are aware and enjoy the story but do not wish to see.

Dave Metzgar will have his 45 year old American Elm exhibited at Phipps Conservatory for the next month.
07/26/2026

Dave Metzgar will have his 45 year old American Elm exhibited at Phipps Conservatory for the next month.

Garden tour with Mark Mohler expanded into a tour of his pottery studio where he offers classes.
07/25/2026

Garden tour with Mark Mohler expanded into a tour of his pottery studio where he offers classes.

07/23/2026

Announcement: Our Member Garden Tour for July will take place at Mark Mohler's home this Saturday, July 25, from 12-5pm. Details will come via email later today with the address. Please, come and see Mark's great bonsai, kusamono, pottery, and more. If you don't get an email with the information sometime today, and are a paid member, reach out to us asap here or by phone/email/text to get the specifics.

Address

5700 Forbes Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA
15217

Telephone

+14128128506

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Pittsburgh Bonsai Society posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organization

Send a message to Pittsburgh Bonsai Society:

Shortcuts

Featured

Share

Category