Wednesday, December 25, 2013

Mid-Winter Bonsai Workshop


Seventh Annual Mid-Winter Bonsai Workshop, Baton Rouge Garden Center, 7950 Independence Blvd.,

Jan. 11, 8:00 - 5:00

It will be a full day of learning more about bonsai and will also include raffles, door prizes, food, and more. The cost is $10 registration which covers the cost of lunch and the workshop cost is $25.

      • Bonsai show, raffle, and workshop.
      • Bonsai Vendors and consultants
      • Food, fellowship, and fun
      • Come early, stay late.

We are working to make the Seventh Louisiana Bonsai Society (LBS) Annual Mid-winter Bonsai Workshop the best ever. This will be made possible with help of our club members, other bonsai clubs, bonsai vendors, and Brussel Martin, Brussel’s Bonsai founder, who will conduct a bring your own tree bonsai workshop. This is an advanced bonsai workshop and Brussel will discuss various varieties of trees and/or bonsai in various stages of development. This is a workshop designed help both observers and participants in improving their bonsai collection. Each participant is encouraged to bring a bonsai from their collection that has been worked on before, but needs special assistance to move it from a good bonsai to a spectacular bonsai. I am sure all of you have bonsai you like, have worked on for years, but know it can be better. This is your opportunity to get the assistance to carry it to the next stage by being a participant or getting ideas by observing other bonsai. Observing will be like seeing 10 or more lecture/demos.

In addition to the workshop, the LBS members will have bonsai on display and will be glad to talk about their development. To expand the fun and keep the costs low, we are asking anyone that has anything, pre-bonsai plants or bonsai material, to donate for the raffle. Thanks to other bonsai clubs and LBS club members, we usually have some interesting material in the raffle.

Brussel Martin founded Brussel’s Bonsai when he was just a kid and has developed it into the largest bonsai nursery in the US. I have attended most of Brussel’s Bonsai Rendezvous held each Memorial Day weekend for the past 20 years, and I can tell you first hand that it would be hard to find anyone that knows any more or can teach bonsai techniques better than Brussel. For more information, checkout their website,

http://www.brusselsbonsai.com/ .

We will have great vendors. The vendors we have are all bonsai experts that can advise you on what you need to reach your bonsai goals. Gregg LeBlanc, owner of Black Bayou Bonsai, is a member Lake Charles Bonsai Society and has been doing bonsai for many years. See, http://www.blackbayoubonsai.com/ , for more information. Bill Butler, owner of Bill’s Bayou - Bonsai, is a past president of the Greater New Orleans Bonsai Society. See, http://www.billsbayou.com/ for more information. Dana Quattlebaum, Little River Bonsai owner, has been doing and teaching bonsai for many years. Dana has conducted many bonsai workshops, bonsai lecture/demos, and been a bonsai consultant assisting people with their bonsai collections for years. You can find him on Facebook. Byron Myrick, Myrick Bonsai Pottery owner, is a member of Mississippi Gulf Coast Bonsai Society and has been doing pottery for many years and bonsai for more than 10 years. See http://bmyrick.com/Pottery/Welcome.html .

The workshop is limited so contact me soon to reserve your space. Please let me so we will have enough food.

If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact Lowell Tilley, at 225 / 241-2396. Make checks payable to LBS and send them to 520 Laurie Lynn Dr., Baton Rouge, LA 70819.

There are many things to do and see in the Baton Rouge area, and many motels along I-10 and I-12 convenient to the Baton Rouge Garden Center. Come early and stay late. Please let me know if you would like for me to help plan your trips. See the attachment for a map to the Baton Rouge Garden Center.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR