A Bonsai Side Quest

21. The Value in Attending Events and of Vintage Fired Dirt

A Bonsai Side Quest

Show Notes

After a long hiatus of what was supposed to be a weekly podcast… Hugh and Jarryd return! Appreciating a rainy spring and entering the growth season, they cover garden updates. Hugh recaps the Canberra Club show and good timed catching up with Grant Bowie and Sam Thompson. The guys share nostalgia for the late AusBonsai market and share news and excitement for both the upcoming 2025 AABC Convention in Canberra and the 2025 Bonsai Open. They reflect on how bonsai shows, much like trees, take time to develop and mature, and how the maturation process improves any subject - tree or bonsai show alike. Support Australian Bonsai events with us! Link to register to the AABC National Bonsai Convention - Canberra 2025 (early bird rego ends 31/10/24) https://www.canberrabonsai.club/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=139:2025-aabc-bonsai-convention-3&catid=87&Itemid=2374

More from A Bonsai Side Quest

Mar 9, 2026

After another long gap between episodes, Hugh and Jarryd sit down for a much-needed catch-up. They talk about Jarryd’s studio build-out, Hugh’s ongoing garden excavation, recent gallery events and collaborations, and what’s been happening in their bonsai gardens. The conversation wanders through good rocks and stone stacking, DIY projects, fertilising routines, and the parallels between building garden infrastructure and building bonsai. Along the way they share a few garden mistakes, compare notes on pacing and routine, and reflect on the ongoing experience of committing to bonsai.Hugh's Dr Green Thumb - https://treemakers.com.au/store-all/p/greenspace-liquid-fertiliser Love the podcast? You can support us here and 'buy us a coffee' https://buymeacoffee.com/bonsaisidequest Hugh Grant - Tree Makers https://treemakers.com.au/ Jarryd Bailey - Montane Bonsai https://www.montanebonsai.com/ Eve Sczechowski - Yves Media https://www.yvesfilm.com/

Dec 29, 2025

In this outdoor, in-the-wild recording of A Bonsai Side Quest, Hugh and Jarryd come to you perched from a sandstone outcrop in the Blue Mountains, with beer cans in hand. They discuss the views and the species you can't see (become a Bonsai Side-Quester to view: https://buymeacoffee.com/bonsaisidequest), being in the wild to seek bonsai inspiration, and embracing one's micro environment locality in their practice. Love the podcast? You can support us here and 'buy us a coffee' https://buymeacoffee.com/bonsaisidequest Hugh Grant - Tree Makers https://treemakers.com.au/ Jarryd Bailey - Montane Bonsai https://www.montanebonsai.com/ Eve Sczechowski - Yves Media https://www.yvesfilm.com/

Nov 13, 2025

For this episode, Jarryd visits Hugh at Tree Makers Bonsai Studio in the Blue Mountains after completing some BSA events in Sydney. They catch up on their activities of the past month and discuss Jarryd's demo Nothofagus styling (with some bloodshed), collecting trips, the opening of the Tondoon Botanic Gardens Bonsai collection, weather updates, the seasonal challenges, hardscaping maintenance, and wire materials. Love the podcast? You can support us here and 'buy us a coffee' https://buymeacoffee.com/bonsaisidequest Hugh Grant - Tree Makers https://treemakers.com.au/ Jarryd Bailey - Montane Bonsai https://www.montanebonsai.com/ Eve Sczechowski - Yves Media https://www.yvesfilm.com/

Oct 10, 2025

After a long hiatus, we return and apologise for our absence! Winter has kept Hugh and Jarryd busy behind the scenes: learning, refining, and evolving as their practices and businesses grow. Jarryd’s been deep in the work, tending the Niwaki pines at MONA, surviving spider attacks, pencil pine forest cleanups, and travelling for the GAB event in Western Australia. Hugh’s been also immersed in Niwaki pruning, teaching an intensive rock planting course, creating with students, including a long anticipated forest planting, and making a trip to the U.S., including a visit to Mirai and the Oregon Coast.

Jul 16, 2025

In this episode, Hugh and Jarryd share their upcoming repotting season anticipation, preparation work, and woes from mistakes past. They dig into the nitty-gritty of soil substrates, chopsticks, moss, and much more.

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