The REBS 2026 Bonsai Show

Authored by George Haas

On August 22 and 23, 2026, REBS conducted their annual bonsai show at the Rohnert Park Community Center, Rohnert Park, California.

The planning for the show started by Show Chair Bob Shimon one year ago. The RPCC venue had to be reserved and arrangements made for the headliner Sam Tan.

The annual show takes place regularly on the fourth weekend of August. The set-up was on Friday, August 21, 2026, from 12:00 to 6:00 PM, with REBS member volunteers. A total of 73 bonsai were displayed.

On Saturday, the show was open to the public from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and on Sunday, the hours were from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. The number of guests for the two-day event was over 1,000 bonsai enthusiasts and general public.

A Bring-Your-Own-Bonsai workshop was held Saturday from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM, with Sam Tan.

On Saturday, Sam Tan conducted a demonstration on a field grown juniper from 1:00 to 4:00 PM. Addison Galambos of the East Bay Bonsai Society assisted in the bonsai styling demonstration.

Silent auctions were conducted both days featuring donated articles, bonsai, pots, art objects, and miscellaneous items.

Member sales took place on both days where members consigned or donated bonsai, pots, books, display stands, and related goods.

For a second year, Trees in Training were displayed for education and opportunity for members to exhibit their bonsai in development stages.

Bonsai vendors, totaling 13, were on hand to sell quality bonsai, pots, wooden hand-crafted display stands, accent plants, bonsai tools, and much more.

On Sunday, Sam Tan conducted a second demonstration on a yamadori Mendocino pygmy cypress.

The show closed promptly at 4:00 PM on Sunday. REBS volunteers dismantled the displays and tables and stored everything for next year’s show.

Within days after the show, plans for 2027 were started by Show Chair Bob Shimon. Sam Tan was confirmed as the headliner for 2027.

The annual REBS bonsai show is the primary fundraiser with proceeds going for yearly operational costs and opportunities for the club to have professional bonsai artists conduct demonstrations throughout the year.

The photos depict show activities and displays in random order:

Friday’s set up requiring member volunteers

Developing Ficus Bonsai with Pedro Morales

Authored by George Haas

On August 24, 2026, Pedro Morales joined me at my home for the afternoon to help with development of a large Ficus bonsai.

Pedro is a tropical bonsai expert from Puerto Rico. Pedro is one of the most influential tropical bonsai masters in the world, known especially for his work in Puerto Rico and across Latin America. Born 1961 in Chicago, he is a Puerto Rican bonsai artist, teacher, exhibitor, and founder of Futago Bonsai, one of the most important tropical bonsai schools in Latin America. His work is widely recognized for elevating tropical species to world class bonsai standards.

Ficus (Ficus retusa) is a species of evergreen woody plant in the Fig genus. The tree is native to Borneo, Java, and Peninsular Malaysia.

I acquired the tree in May 2007 from Steve Faulk’s demonstration hosted by the East Bay Bonsai Society. From looking at the base, it appears to have been three rooted specimens that fused together forming the single base. Steve purchased the tree in Miami, Florida. When alive, Steve loved working with tropical bonsai.

The first priority action taken was for Pedro and me to fully defoliate the bonsai tree. This allowed to really see the bonsai structure. He only then began to prune out unwanted branches. Once that was done, Pedro wired the primary, secondary and twig branches.

Pedro had taken photographs of the Ficus bonsai, depicting the front, left side, back, and right side. A day later, he provided edited photographs of the tree. In addition, Pedro Morales provided a future vision image he created using artificial intelligence Chatbot app. The future vision gives information on further development over a period of two years from now.

There are a number of bonsai related artificial intelligence apps under development. None are perfect, but the work continues. Using other AI app can achieve quite different results.

We are incredibly lucky to have many qualified bonsai instructors in the greater San Francisco Bay Area. They provide a variety of services, including development of bonsai and guidance of future growth expectations. However, it can be beneficial to see an image of the tree’s future. AI can allow for conventional styles, pot selection, and more.