Boon was an afterthought.  I already did not like this club for my reasons plus Boon was not the only one. I am not saying your experience will be thesame as mine. I was unhappy there and left I did not like the way I was treated, talked to the ppresident of the club to let him know why im leaving. I was very disappointed at the excuse I was given for the members behavior and left. Never looked back. Im not following Boon like a mindles drone its just what he said was true in my experience.

Mike,
I doubt Boon knows anything about the club being written about here. I have heard him discuss the issues associated with clubs and the frequent lack of knowledge about fundamental needs of bonsai trees, fundamental techniques and in tree design. If you can't learn to wire at your club and you can't learn fundamental techniques, what is the point? A good time, great, but if you want to learn how to make bonsai, then not so fine. As somone who is involved with two clubs, it is interesting to see the differences in commitment and activities and the profound differences in outcomes.

So, a number of us here have studied, and some continue to study, with Boon. Me, 9+ years. Don't insult someone you don't even know, he doesn't deserve it. You certainly don't have the bonsai chops to do it.

Want to improve your bonsai, pick a teacher and stick with them. In your area Vance Wood has a long and distinguished record of making very nice trees. He can teach you a lot. Listening to the internet noise about how to do bonsai will not result in improved trees. Want to see how fast a good teacher can help you make good trees? Look at Judy, Adair, Jrob, October, chrisi, etc., etc., etc. only one of them has worked extensively with Boon. Pick a teacher and learn. Please don't ask Boon to help you.

Mike,
I doubt Boon knows anything about the club being written about here. I have heard him discuss the issues associated with clubs and the frequent lack of knowledge about fundamental needs of bonsai trees, fundamental techniques and in tree design. If you can't learn to wire at your club and you can't learn fundamental techniques, what is the point? A good time, great, but if you want to learn how to make bonsai, then not so fine. As somone who is involved with two clubs, it is interesting to see the differences in commitment and activities and the profound differences in outcomes.

So, a number of us here have studied, and some continue to study, with Boon. Me, 9+ years. Don't insult someone you don't even know, he doesn't deserve it. You certainly don't have the bonsai chops to do it.

Want to improve your bonsai, pick a teacher and stick with them. In your area Vance Wood has a long and distinguished record of making very nice trees. He can teach you a lot. Listening to the internet noise about how to do bonsai will not result in improved trees. Want to see how fast a good teacher can help you make good trees? Look at Judy, Adair, Jrob, October, chrisi, etc., etc., etc. only one of them has worked extensively with Boon. Pick a teacher and learn. Please don't ask Boon to help you.

 The original poster posted boon and others told him not to join that club. I've visited that club. It's the one closest to me at 180 miles away. I've met Vance and all of it's members and seen their trees. I'm actually Vances friend.
  It's insulting to that club and it's members to have someone say that their club is no good. Boon or not.
 "Bonsai chops" don't have anything to do with whether I'm qualified to post my opinion on this subject at all do they? We are talking about insulting a group of people not a tree. So thank you for the insult back. By the way. When were you looking in my back yard?
  I would never think of asking Boon to be my teacher. I don't have a Japanese black pine. And I imagine the air is too rarified up in boons cloud for my liking.
 

I don't know that it has already been stated, but I have found that I get good backbudding on my mugos when I put them in the ground for a couple years and fertilize regularly. If you want something that looks good now you can always put some curve in the branches and just have the appearance of compact growth. hope this helps. 

Quote from: John Kirby on August 23, 2014, 10:47 AM

Mike,
I doubt Boon knows anything about the club being written about here. I have heard him discuss the issues associated with clubs and the frequent lack of knowledge about fundamental needs of bonsai trees, fundamental techniques and in tree design. If you can't learn to wire at your club and you can't learn fundamental techniques, what is the point? A good time, great, but if you want to learn how to make bonsai, then not so fine. As somone who is involved with two clubs, it is interesting to see the differences in commitment and activities and the profound differences in outcomes.

So, a number of us here have studied, and some continue to study, with Boon. Me, 9+ years. Don't insult someone you don't even know, he doesn't deserve it. You certainly don't have the bonsai chops to do it.

Want to improve your bonsai, pick a teacher and stick with them. In your area Vance Wood has a long and distinguished record of making very nice trees. He can teach you a lot. Listening to the internet noise about how to do bonsai will not result in improved trees. Want to see how fast a good teacher can help you make good trees? Look at Judy, Adair, Jrob, October, chrisi, etc., etc., etc. only one of them has worked extensively with Boon. Pick a teacher and learn. Please don't ask Boon to help you.

 The original poster posted boon and others told him not to join that club. I've visited that club. It's the one closest to me at 180 miles away. I've met Vance and all of it's members and seen their trees. I'm actually Vances friend.
  It's insulting to that club and it's members to have someone say that their club is no good. Boon or not.
 "Bonsai chops" don't have anything to do with whether I'm qualified to post my opinion on this subject at all do they? We are talking about insulting a group of people not a tree. So thank you for the insult back. By the way. When were you looking in my back yard?
  I would never think of asking Boon to be my teacher. I don't have a Japanese black pine. And I imagine the air is too rarified up in boons cloud for my liking.
 D

I left the club because I did not care for the way I was being treated! Not because anyone told me not to join. AFTER that incident Boon and others stated they knew the club and have students in Michigan that leveled the same complaints I did. So YES these people where there and yes they did not like it and yes former members have stated the same objections to the club that I did. Mine were a bit more personal but similar. Please do not put type in my message where there was none. It was a person that was a member of said club that went to train with other masters and they could not believe how badly he was trained. These people have also gone to the Bonsai show and one of these people said "if thats the kind of plants you want to make then this is the club for you! But if you are looking for real bonsai then check this club out(they would give me a card). I dont care if you have a good experience,  I know that I was not welcome there!

M. Frary,


I have no idea of the quality of the trees that were displayed at the show you attended.  Does the club photograph the show and post them on their website? 

Lets close this, beginning to sound like other sites.

Let's try to get things back on track and onto the subject of mugo, shall we?