An interview with Bonsai Artist Cheryl Manning

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Welcome to the bonsai garden podcast where the object is not to make the tree look like a bonsai but to make the bonsai look like a tree.

BGP: My interview today is with Cheryl Manning a bonsai expert for over 30 years. Her website, Better Bonsai dot com, says that she’s been an artist since childhood and an avid gardener since her teens. Cheryl discovered Murata Bonsai Nursery in 1981 and it was love at first sight. Art and gardening wrapped into one small package. She later became a student and close friend of John Naka the father of American Bonsai. Cheryl has conducted bonsai demonstrations, workshops and slide presentations in the United States, Canada and Australia. She has written more than 40 articles for many bonsai publications and currently pens a column, Trash to Treasure, for the Journal of the American Bonsai Society. Cheryl has also edited John Naka’s sketch book, a compilation of John’s bonsai sketches from around the world. So I’m really excited to have Cheryl Manning on today’s episode.
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Welcome to the bonsai garden podcast, where the object is not to make the tree look like a bonsai, but to make the bonsai look like a tree.

Michael Hylton is the vice president of the East Bay Society, which was originally founded in 1961. It has become one of the most enduring bonsai organizations in the United States. They host many events including workshops, auctions and a very large annual bonsai show. Their club meetings dive into the definitive care and creation of award winning bonsai with topics such as watering, fertilizing, re-potting, styling, grafting and more. It was my pleasure to interview Michael Hylton on The Bonsai Garden Podcast.
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Welcome to The Bonsai Garden Podcast where the object is not to make the tree look like a bonsai but to make the bonsai look like a tree.

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John Callaway is a past president of the Greater Louisville Bonsai Society and a current member of the Bonsai Society of Greater Cincinnati. He’s been practicing bonsai since 2002, and studied with Boon Manakitivipart and joined the Cincinnati Advanced Study Group mentored by Ted Matson.

Here is my phone call with John Callaway:
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An interview with Jack Douthitt

Welcome to the bonsai garden podcast where the object is not to make the tree look like a bonsai, but to make the bonsai look like a tree.

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*Jack Douthitt has been a bonsai enthusiast for over forty years. The former president of Bonsai Clubs International, he has served as a judge at bonsai exhibits and exhibited his own award winning bonsai at various shows. Jack’s bonsai appear in both the National Arboretum Collection of American Bonsai in Washington D.C. and the Weyerhaeuser Pacific Rim Bonsai Collection in Tacoma, Washington. In 1987, he was named “One of America’s Outstanding Bonsai Artists” by the National Bonsai Foundation. His book, Bonsai: The Art of Living Sculpture approaches bonsai as art, exploring how the traditional fine arts apply to bonsai. He focuses on the specific design elements of the bonsai – the roots, trunk, branches, foliage, and container – and discusses how bonsai artists can manipulate these elements for a specific effect.
*http://www.milwaukeebonsai.org/bonsai_workshops.htm

BGP: So welcome Jack Douthitt to the Bonsai Garden Podcast.

Thank you

BGP: So, I understand that The Milwaukee bonsai society has plans for a Public Bonsai Collection to be displayed at the Lynden Sculpture garden. Can you tell us about that?
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BGP: Welcome to The Bonsai Garden Podcast, where the object is not to make the tree look like a bonsai, but to make the bonsai look like a tree.

BPG: Owen Reich has a bachelor’s degree in Ornamental Horticulture from the University of Georgia. He recently spent two years in Japan studying bonsai as an apprentice under Keiichi Fujikawa. Today he teaches numerous bonsai workshops and gives bonsai demonstrations. So, Owen, welcome to The Bonsai Garden Podcast.

Thanks for having me.

BGP: Tell us about your bonsai apprenticeship in Japan. How were you able to make this connection with this bonsai master in Japan?
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An interview with Adam Lavigne

BGP: Welcome to The Bonsai Garden Podcast, where the object is not to make the tree look like a bonsai, but to make the bonsai look like a tree.

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Hi I’m Gary Howell and this is episode number one of the bonsai garden podcast. Today I’m really excited to have Adam Lavigne as my guest. He’s a very talented bonsai artist from Orlando Florida, who has taught numerous bonsai demonstrations. So, Adam welcome to The Bonsai Garden Podcast.
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