I thought I'd again mention some of the resources available on the internet for those members that have access. If you haven't found it yet, there is lots of helpful information out there, much of it provided by professionals in the art of bonsai.

One of my favorite sites right now is the GardenWeb Bonsai Forum. Every aspect of bonsai is discussed there and input is provided from everyone from beginners to well known professionals. There is also a section where anyone can post images of their trees for viewing. This is a good way to get styling ideas as participants will usually comment on the trees displayed there. The URL is: www.gardenweb.com/forums/bonsai

There is a site in the UK that is geared toward those new to bonsai that has much helpful information. It's "The Bonsai Primer", by Allen Roffey, located at: www.wmin.ac.uk/~allen

Another discussion site is the Internet Bonsai Club (IBC) at: http://home.ease.Lsoft.com/archives/bonsai.html You'll find information there about joining the mailing list and searching the archives. The archives are very handy if you want to find lots of information on a particular subject.

Of course, one of the favorite sites of many is from Evergreen Gardenworks. The owner of the nursery, Brent Walston, has provided a lot of very good information he has gained over the years. Articles cover everything from propagation to refinement. You can even order from his extensive inventory of plants right from the site. Visit Brent's site at: www.evergreengardenworks.com

Many more links to interesting sites can be found on our own web page at www.angelfire.com/ca2/diablobonsai . Happy Surfing!

Don't forget that we will be changing our meeting dates this month. Heather Farms has notified us that the facility is not available on the first Monday, July 5th, so we'll shift each of our meetings back one week.

Beginner - July 12th, Combined - July 19th, Advanced - July 26th

We apologize for any inconvenience.

Since rain ruined our visit to Sumigawa Nursery in Cotati for the second straight year, we'll be going back there on July 17th. Come up with us and add some nice material to your collection, or just take a nice drive to Sonoma County and see some great bonsai and nursery stock. We will again be visiting the nursery's growing grounds and will have an opportunity to choose from a very large selection of plants.

We'll be meeting in front of CompUSA in the Willows Shopping Center in Concord at 9:00 on Saturday, July 17th. That will give us plenty of time for the drive, arriving at the nursery for our 10:30 appointment. Of course, we'll be very close to Lone Pine Nursery so a side trip to shopthere can easily be arranged.

For those that would like to drive direct, the nursery is on Hwy 116 WEST from Hwy 101 in Cotati, about 3/4 of a mile west of 101. The address is 8049 Gravenstein Highway, and the phone is (707) 795-5467. Thanks to Tom Fong for arranging this trip.

Due to some planned travel and an already very busy schedule in mid/late July, I will not be able to produce a newsletter for the month of August. I've included the August meeting dates in this issue.

Show chairman Barney Montoya submitted the following list of committee chairs. Please contact the appropriate person to sign up for your preferred duty(s) at this year's show.

Show Chair, Barney Montoya 443-8554
Co-Chair, Tom Fong 825-9737
Construction, Bob Eden 687-7187
Plant Sale & Raffle, Bill Magee 689-4377
Hospitality, Don Meeker 933-4472
Publicity, Norm Wanek 837-7528
Greeting, Rebecca Harris 906-0777
Education, Nancy Norris 253-1854

Barney Montoya will be demonstrating how you can make a bonsai stand from sawn burl. Information on where you can obtain the wood will be available too. Get yourself to Tassajara Nursery at 9:30am on July 24th if you'd like to learn this handy technique.