Page 16 - BSAM 2018 Q1

During his pruning process
on this black pine, Michael Hagedorn explained his styling process in detail and provided a lot of information on this species and how to work
with it.
conduct demonstrations and workshops. A favorite species for bonsai in Israel are Olive trees, which can be as old as four thousand years. Moshe has hundreds of olive trees in development. He showed photos of some of his prize specimens, very old trees that were rescued from a re.
Michael Hagedorn’s country report focused on mis- information about bonsai practice that persists in the USA. Early bonsai pioneers in the US developed styles and approaches that were very di erent from what was practiced in Japan. Later as Americans who studied bonsai in Japan, disseminated their knowledge in the US, two camps emerged. One holds on to the self- created knowledge in the US, the other takes its lead directly from Japan. Some of this misinformation is technical, some is aesthetic. He explained that misin- formation is tenacious and takes a long time to dispel. His long list of myths includes the erroneous belief that junipers need constant pinching throughout their growing season, a practice that could actually kill them. Another myth that comes from the gardening and forestry world, is that water drops burn leaves in the sun. He reported that a Scandinavian research team recently disproved this belief. Michael’s list of myths was all too familiar to members of the audience from Australia, who admitted that bonsai down under also su ers from some of the same misconceptions. Ditto for bonsai in Canada.
In his country report, Twang-Keng Boh chronicled bonsai history in Singapore and emphasized the importance of bonsai as a spiritual necessity of life, particularly for residents in steel and cement environments.
One of the four invited speeches was delivered by Professor Amy Liang, a key gure in Taiwanese bonsai, who focused of the artistic qualities of bonsai art, drawing comparisons of bonsai creation to a three-dimensional painting and to wordless poetry.
e Symposium presented six oral sessions that were very technical. In the rst one, Min-Hsuan Lo, BCI Director and major contributor to bonsai innovation in Taiwan, reported on the history of Ficus microcarpa bonsai in his country, the general traits that de ne the early stages of creation and development of the present forms. He talked about how the inspiration for the Taiwanese style of cus came from an exceptional tree,
the Banyan at the National Cheng Kung University grounds. He outlined the ve stages of Ficus creation and the techniques required to reproduce this form in bonsai, as well as the role of Chinese patining and calligraphy in his design process.
Outside the lecture hall, fourteen large posters with text, progressive photos, charts and illustrations, could be studied by the participants. ese were presented to the audience at the Poster Presentations on the nal day of the Symposium. Some of the research infor- mation presented for peer-review included Flowering Control Techniques for Bougainvillea; Cultivation Management and Prediction of Flowering in Potted Azaleas; E ect of Pruning Degree on Shoot Growth and Flowering of Guava; and Application of Horticulture and Music erapy for Dementia in Elderly People, to name a few.
The Symposium was well attended, mostly by young people, as were the demonstrations which were concurrent with the speeches and presenta- tions. Demonstrators Lindsay Bebb, Australia, Moshe Emergui, Israel, and Michael Hagedorn, USA, provided insights and expertise as they demonstrated their techniques, knowledge and creativity on some top-quality specimens; a Juniper, a Ficus and a Black pine. The audience ranged from a core group of about 50, who watched from start to nish, to several hundred when the crowd would swell at peak times. It was an intimate atmosphere where the demonstra- tors could easily interact with their audience, which they did. In fact, one participant from Australia, Kim Rochelle-Brown, jumped in to help Moshe Emergui and his assistant. Her task was to help wire a g, grown and trained in the Taiwanese form which needed a lot of detailed work in the short time allowed for the demo.
Lindsay Bebb’s demonstration tree, a Juniperus chinensis with remarkable movement in the trunk, deadwood, jins and copious foliage, needed a lot of re nement. Working with borrowed tools, Lindsay methodically and calmly pruned the tree into a manageable form, while he described the choices he was making, and how they would a ect the nal composition. When it came time to wire the unruly branches, Lindsay was o ered help, which he politely refused, saying he would wait for his wife, Glenis Bebb,
Lindsay Bebb, Australia, Michael Hagedorn, USA and Moshe Emergui, Israel, provided insights as they demonstrated
their techniques, knowledge and creativity on
some top-quality specimens: a Juniper, a Ficus and a Black pine.
14 | BCI | January/February/March 2018