The February meeting of the Bonsai Society of Upstate New York, based in Rochester, had an interesting and full meeting last evening. About 35-40 members from Rochester, Buffalo, Syracuse, Ithaca, as well as a couple of new visitors gathered to learn all about cascade style bonsai.

President Mark Arpag was joined by past presidents Harvey Carapella and Bill Valavanis who presented an unusual program drawing from their 150 combined years of bonsai study. We had three formal displays, one by each artist representing a different form of cascade style, and all different species. For this special display the society rented three sections of pipe and drape background. Looking at the demonstration photos one can see empty cups. Those are “tip jars,” not a contest between the three seasoned artists who work well together, help each other and have mutual respect for each other’s artistry. It was just for fun, members deposited folding money in the three tip jars. Those tip jars paid for the rental cost of the background.

Each artist was allocated a six-foot wide display area and presented a cascade bonsai from their personal collections. Mark Arpag displayed his award winning Dwarf Japanese garden juniper trained in the two-line cascade style where the lower trunk was longer. It was displayed with a suiseki and scroll suggesting a winter snowy landscape scene.

Next Harvey Carapella showed his pink Japanese flowering crabapple bonsai trained in the two-line cascade style where the upper trunk was longer than the cascading trunk. This bonsai has brilliant pink flowers in spring. Since it is winter (although the high record-breaking temperature reached 73 degrees for the day) the bonsai had no blossoms. However, a photo of the tree in full flower was placed in front of the bonsai. Since the bonsai was not blooming Harvey displayed a scroll featuring spring flowers. To complete the atmosphere he used an antique figurine of an old man enjoying the beauty of the display.

Bill Valavanis displayed a unique one-line cascade style Blue Rug juniper with deadwood highlights. This tree has been container trained for more than 50 years and originally was in a private bonsai collection in Pennsylvania. The artist had his bonsai collection near a river. When the river overflew and flooded the bonsai area, he found this tree in good health down river. It was displayed on a very tall cascade table to emphasize the beauty of the weeping branches. The accessory used was an antique incense burner, complete with aromatic smoke gently rising from the chimney. A member later came up to Bill to tell him “his house is burning!” Not quite what he wanted to hear… again for the third time. An antique scroll was used to provide the seasonality of this display, a full moon with white snowflakes falling. When used again in a couple of months later they would suggest cherry blossoms falling.

By the way, this entire display was not quickly thrown together. It took considerable effort and time to feature three different species, (two evergreen and one deciduous tree), all in different forms of cascade styles. Finally, the eye movement of the entire display was focused on leading they eye towards the enter deciduous tree, of course all the bonsai were of different sizes and heights as well and all the display tables and accessories were not duplicated.

Two other tables featured an educational exhibit featuring different styles of cascade style bonsai and how they are classified. Finally, Bill Valavanis had two issues of International BONSAI magazines on cascade bonsai which were given away free. One issue featured Yuji Yoshimura’s comprehensive article on his style of cascades complete with his original drawings. The other issue featured an educational illustrated article on cascade bonsai by Bill Valavanis.

Harvey Carapella

Then each artist as provided with an identical dwarf Japanese flowering quince, Chojubai for the demonstrations. Each were formed in different cascade styles. A larger developed white Chojubai dwarf flowering quince was displayed, in the cascade style of course, on the educational table. Finally each artist brought a cascade bonsai from their private collections to work on. Harvey brought a large collected (Eastern white cedar, also called Arborvitae) tree which needed thinning out.

Mark Arpag

Mark brought a small collected Eastern white cedar which he began carving the dead wood and finally potted it into a tiny container. Bill talked about an old Winter hazel bonsai which had died over 20 years ago and was rebuilt from live adventitious shoots. Then he wired a straight trunk young Japanese larch in a one-line cascade style, maybe. It also presented a unique appearance as an upright tree, but the final determination depends on the container and how it will be potted.

Bill Valavanis

All our members and guests seemed to enjoy and learn from this educational program which was quite detailed but not evident to the average bonsai member.