Sophia Osorio: An Apprenticeship Reflection

Sophia and Museum volunteer LeAnn Duling repotting a buttonwood from Mary Madison

Since the beginning of my First Curator’s Apprenticeship at the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum in the spring of 2020, I’ve had the opportunity to learn the skills and practices needed to maintain such a stately and magnificent collection of bonsai trees. 

While working on the trees, like daily pruning or watering, I have also been tackling an individual project. My focus was to study and select National Arboretum plant introductions, or species that were originally grown elsewhere, and evaluate their potential for widespread use in creating bonsai material. The goal of this project is to one day display these trees as bonsai at the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum in a collection formed entirely from U.S. National Arboretum plant introductions.

The two species that I had initially selected specifically are Prunus campanulata ‘Abigail Adams’ and Lagerstroemia ‘Tonto.’ While working on the trees, my mentors and I discovered that the graft of Prunus campanulata was not actually an Arboretum introduction. But we are in the process of obtaining a new graft of Abigail Adams that can hopefully be a success soon.

On the other hand, Lagerstroemia ‘Tonto’ looks like a promising specimen that will continue to form new roots and successfully live on for Museum staff to prune and wire branches for styling. Both trees provided a beneficial learning experience in handling grafted introduced species and what is necessary for any species to be potential bonsai material. Just as my project shows, plant introduction species can be explored and tested as bonsai material for many years to come.

As an apprentice gifted with the opportunity to learn about the art of bonsai and work alongside such an incredible team, my knowledge of woody and herbaceous plant species has grown tremendously throughout my time here. The Museum, the Arboretum and its plant introduction program have shown me just how much more there is to learn and discover.

Thanks to the Museum, I’ve experienced learning moments unique to this apprenticeship, such as what it means to have an eye for bonsai and penjing needs, how to wire a branch successfully for better structure and aesthetic or how to patiently prune and thin trees, making sure foliage is visually even throughout.

Some of my favorite memories have been with visitors who have seen me water the collections. Each day I received so many questions about the trees. As an apprentice, it was not only rewarding but also some of the best practice of my knowledge thus far. 

It has also been an absolute pleasure meeting and getting to know the volunteers who dedicate their time to the Museum each week, learning how they got started in bonsai and their personal experiences. They have been some of the kindest and most helpful people I have ever spoken to, and it is very comforting to learn from such a large community of people who also love to practice and work on bonsai as well.

I owe many of my thanks to the Museum staff, especially Michael and Andy. They have been some of the most insightful and talented people I’ve ever had the privilege to learn from. Not only are they both extremely knowledgeable in the art of bonsai, but they are both very patient and caring in their field and offer a range of information, practices and teachings for myself and volunteers alike. I intend to hold onto my experiences here and use them to start my own bonsai collection and as references for years to come.

I will be continuing to put my passion for trees to work, but on a much different scale. I have accepted a training arborist position with The Davey Tree Expert Company and hope to get my arborist certification. I am very excited and happy that my work with trees will continue, and I’ll be sure to visit and check on the trees at the museum as often as I can.

If it were not for the opportunity I was granted at the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum and U.S. National Arboretum, I’m not quite sure where I’d be. But I am eternally grateful for all they have given me and will continue to study bonsai.

“Sophia helped to maintain the National collection of bonsai and penjing through the pandemic, dependably carrying on an essential tradition of bonsai training that has allowed our specimens to thrive for centuries.  Sophia received a job at a multinational tree care company. An opportunity that will allow her to apply her bonsai skills to training trees of a much larger scale. That is something we can all benefit from!” — Michael James, Curator.

​​The National Bonsai Foundation established the First Curator’s Apprentice position in 2011 in recognition of the Museum’s first curator, Robert Drechsler (Bonsai Bob),  for his many years of service.  This apprenticeship supports bonsai scholarship and dedication to future generations. This year’s apprenticeship was funded by the National Bonsai Foundation, with the generous support of Mrs. Barbara Hall Marshall and the Joseph & Sophia Abeles Foundation.

After starting in February 2020 (and having some interruption relating to COVID-requirements), Sophia Osorio’s last day as Apprentice was Sept. 11, 2021. Wish her luck in her next endeavors through the comments section below.

Museum Donor and Buttonwood Queen Dies at 91

The National Bonsai Foundation is saddened to hear that bonsai artist Mary Madison, a dear friend to NBF and donor to the U.S. National Arboretum’s collection at the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum, passed away July 28 at 91 years old. 

Known as the Buttonwood Queen for her revered work on buttonwoods, a species native to the United States, Mary was an icon in the bonsai world. She grew up in Florida, often traveling to the natural beauty displayed in the Florida Keys, which sparked her passion for horticulture. Her first taste of bonsai came in the form of photos from a former boyfriend who served in Japan after World War II who sent her pictures of bonsai, which spurred her to try tree training herself. Mary ended up studying under two world-renowned bonsai masters, John Naka and Ben Oki, until their deaths. 

Throughout her more than 60 years in bonsai, Mary served as a mentor to many rising and established bonsai artists, including Ryan Neil. In a moving tribute to Mary, Bonsai Mirai student and deadwood artist David Cutchin wrote, “Mary exemplified what it is to be a good person. She treated everyone with kindness and humility, her resolve was to do what’s right and forgive regardless of the situation… Quitting wasn’t a part of her vocabulary. She was a catalyst of human decency, hard work, and love to anyone she befriended.”

Bonsai Societies of Florida recently named their annual native species award the “Mary Madison Award” to pay homage to her immense contributions to the art of bonsai. 

Museum Volunteer LeeAnn Duling and First Curator’s Apprentice Sophia Osorio repotting one of Mary’s buttonwoods.

Two of Mary’s trees reside at the Museum, one being a buttonwood she donated in 1990. She was also the original collector of a buttonwood that ended up in the office of the Central Intelligence Agency before they gifted the tree to the national collection in 2019. 

NBF is grateful to have often crossed paths with Mary, as well as for her leadership as one of the first women in bonsai. 

“Mary embodied the spirit and authenticity of the Everglades and, with her warm and engaging personality, she opened our eyes to the beauty of tropical bonsai,” NBF Chair Emeritus Felix Laughlin said. “Like her good friend John Naka, she will always be remembered and celebrated as an iconic and beloved teacher who inspired the world of bonsai.”

NBF Chair Emeritus Jack Sustic said Mary’s kindness and eagerness to share her bonsai knowledge and passion inspired everyone she met.

“It was such an honor for me to care for Mary’s buttonwood while serving as curator,” Sustic said. “Mary's buttonwood in the North American Collection is a quiet testament to her love and passion for bonsai and will serve as a living legacy to a life dedicated to this wonderful art."

Future of Bonsai: Jennifer Price

Bonsai and penjing masters like Saburo Kato and John Naka are recognized as icons who really advanced and expanded the ancient art of bonsai. Now, the next generation of artists is building on those legacies, putting down roots for many more decades of bonsai artistry.

In The Future of Bonsai blog series, the National Bonsai Foundation is highlighting up-and-coming bonsai and penjing pioneers who are next in line to spread the spirit of bonsai. Chicago native and bonsai professional Jennifer Price is one such artist. Get to know her through this recent interview with Sophia Osorio, the First Curator’s Apprentice at the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum.

Sophia Osorio: Can you give us a brief introduction of yourself and your relation to bonsai?

Jennifer Price: Well, I was really good at growing plants. A local nursery had some bonsai and I went over there. I learned that there was a club for this and that the meeting was that night and they needed a special events coordinator. So I became that. The following week, I found myself at Brussel's Bonsai Rendezvous, which is one of the biggest bonsai events of the year in the country. I was really thrown into it. I was very intimidated actually, trying to take all of these workshops. I couldn’t tell the front of the tree from the back of the tree, didn’t know how to wire or do anything. I was completely lost. I ended up teaching there in 2019, and I'm still involved in the local club quite a bit. I have a lot of friends there, and I try to give back some of the knowledge that I learned throughout my journey. It's been fun.

SO: When did you first become interested in bonsai?

JP: I was actually a professional ballet dancer, and as a ballerina I had always looked at movement. So the line of the trees fascinated me right from the get go. For example, when you see a Literati tree, it looks very tall and sinuous. I think I was attracted to that – I saw the movement within the trees, within the trunk line, and kind of just took it from there.  As silly as that sounds, I think all trees kind of dance.

SO: What encouraged you to pursue bonsai as a profession rather than a hobby?

JP: I never thought I would do bonsai as a profession. There are so few women in this art and I sort of just stumbled into bonsai, taking every workshop that one could get. I got very lucky in that first meeting when I went down to Brussel's Rendezvous because I met Jim Doyle who has a long-established bonsai nursery in Pennsylvania. I ended up taking his class, and we really hit it off. Jim was a professional tap dancer when he was young, so we had that dance connection, and he was very patient as a teacher. Plus, he was only a couple of hours away. Through Jim, I met Walter Paul who became a huge teacher and mentor to me in my life, and then I started going to Europe to teach more. Really, Jim gets all the credit. Bonsai wasn't anything that I started out thinking, "Wow, I really want to turn this into a career." It just slowly evolved that way. 

I'm still Walter's apprentice to this day. As long as Walter will have me, I will continue working with him. I’ve now made the decision to study with Ryan Neil of Bonsai Mirai, which was a big decision for me because Walter was much more naturalistic in his styling. I wanted to get a little bit more formal training, technical training, and of course Ryan's artistry is beautiful. Unfortunately, with COVID-19, I wasn't able to do much. But with bonsai, you always consider yourself a student. There's so much to learn. I don't think you can ever stop. For myself, I want to keep working with Jim, Walter, add that technical aspect with Ryan and keep going.

SO: What are your future plans with bonsai?

JP: I'd like to continue to travel quite a bit, I enjoy that. I really enjoyed my time in Europe. This year, I'm supposed to go back to Germany and Sweden for a bonsai retreat. I enjoy traveling, teaching workshops and meeting new people. It's really interesting to see how different countries approach bonsai and styling. And for my own self, I want that new component of studying with Ryan and kind of learning his techniques and his methods. It's a strange position to be in because there are not many women in bonsai, so it's almost like a niche thing. In some ways, I don't want to be the "token woman" in bonsai, so I feel like everything is wide open for the taking if that makes sense. 

SO: Absolutely. That being said, why should someone get into bonsai, either as a hobby or a profession?

JP: For most people, it's a wonderful stress reliever and a connection with nature, which all of us need in our stressful lives. As far as anyone becoming a professional, that is a difficult road. I've spent a lot of time talking to friends of mine who are professionals, and traveling does get really tiring. Flying across the country to teach workshops, to give demos, I don't think that's very easy. I'm very lucky in the fact that I am married. I have a husband here who has a good job and what not, so I don't have that pressure to make ends meet. I think Ryan Neil and Bjorn Bjorholm of Eisei-En are exceptions. At a very young age, they had the ability to go and study in Japan and take that knowledge and come back and, frankly, are able to monetize it. 

SO: I can definitely see that. What advice would you give to someone who wanted to take up bonsai as a hobby or a profession?

JP: If you’re pursuing bonsai as a hobby, you need to take as many workshops as you can. Join a local club. That has helped me tremendously over the years. I first started out just to have more people to ask about overwintering, care and get some help in different seasons of bonsai. In terms of becoming a professional, I think you need to seriously study with one person. Let's say you were going to study with Bjorn – you'd have to really dedicate yourself to three to five years of serious study, then go out and say, "Okay, I'm now going to pursue this on my own." 

While she is not on social media, keep an eye out for Jennifer Price’s bonsai blog, coming soon!
The National Bonsai Foundation funds and curates several programs to educate and train the next generation of bonsai, like the First Curator’s Apprentice position. To support our work, consider gifting today.

The Future of Bonsai: Todd Schlafer

Bonsai and penjing masters like Saburo Kato and John Naka are recognized as icons who really advanced and expanded the ancient art of bonsai. Now, the next generation of artists are building on those legacies, putting down roots for many more decades of bonsai artistry.

In our new series The Future of Bonsai, the National Bonsai Foundation is highlighting up-and-coming bonsai and penjing pioneers who are next in line to spread the spirit of bonsai. Colorado native Todd Schlafer, who runs the school “First Branch Bonsai,” is one such artist. Get to know him through this recent interview with Sophia Osorio, the First Curator’s Apprentice at the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum. 

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Sophia Osorio: How were you first introduced to bonsai? 

Todd Schlafer: I was at a market in Spain that had a "grow a bonsai from seeds” kit. I brought it home and tried to grow the bonsai, and it sprouted but died. Then I just started looking for bonsai – I Googled “Colorado bonsai.” I was working as an art director for a pet toy company called Kong, and there was a wholesale nursery called "Colorado Bonsai" near where I worked. I started volunteering on Saturdays, Sundays and after work, and the owner Harold Sasaki introduced me to a man named Jerry Morris, who took me to Utah for the first time to collect trees.

Then I met Ryan Neil while he was traveling around, and he invited me to go out to Oregon and stay there with him. In my head, to get to where I wanted to be, I probably needed to do this full time. And at the time, I was getting up at like six in the morning, working on trees until I had to go into work, and then I would come home and work on trees until I had to go to bed. On the weekends, I would go to the mountains and all of that, so I was already pretty involved.

But I wasn't happy with my job at the store. I had been there for a long time and one day, I was saying to my dad, "something needs to change.” Because at work, I wasn't very patient, and I'm a very patient person. He asked, "If money wasn't an issue, and you could do anything you wanted, what would you do?" I said, "I would do bonsai and collect trees," and he said, "Then that's what you should do.” He said that to me twice, and after the second time, I decided to pursue bonsai as a career. 

Left: one of Schlafer’s ponderosa pines Right: one of Schlafer’s Colorado blue spruces

SO: Where or how did you study bonsai techniques and aesthetics?

TS: I read books. But when I went to Oregon and started studying with Ryan Neil, everything changed. I started realizing what the potential was for our native species. He had trees the size I had never seen in person and the amount of refinement on Rocky Mountain junipers and spruces and our native species, sierras, that I had never seen before. I saw the potential that our species here have. I always tell people that studying with Ryan really changed everything.

SO: What are your future plans with bonsai? 

TS: I just started teaching. I quit my job in 2017 and started traveling doing bonsai that year. When Ryan came back, he traveled, and when Peter Warren finished his apprenticeship, he started traveling, so I was like, "Well, I guess that's what I do!" From 2017 through the beginning of 2020, I traveled between 250 and 280 days a year. I was just trying to see repetition with trees and just get my hands on a lot of trees. You kind of have to prove yourself, I guess.

Last year, I had some classes scheduled but they were canceled because of COVID-19. This year I’m holding classes and still traveling, but not quite as much. I have about 12 different three-day intensive courses at my place in Denver. I just gutted and finished my workshop, and I think eventually I'll need more land. That's something I need to look at – I want more land, I want a bigger greenhouse, a bigger workshop. But it'll come with time. First things first. 

SO: Who would you say has influenced your work in the bonsai community?

TS: Probably the most is Ryan Neil. I still continue my education with him. But now, for about the last year, I’ve started to find my own voice or my own style and approach - trying to figure out who I am and what my stance is going to be, how I’m going to present things and how I explore different forms. But studying with Ryan, and how particular he is, his technique is just so good. It's helped me out a lot and has given me the ability to explore what my vision is, what my thoughts are and having the techniques to be able to pull off whatever that looks like."

SO: Why should someone pursue bonsai? 

TS: All the care and maintenance of this living piece of sculpture can be very therapeutic. There are times where I've struggled with anxiety or depression, so I'll just go and I'll take a toothbrush and clean deadwood on a juniper because there's something therapeutic about it. As an art form, if you're creative, bonsai is a good way of getting some of that creativity out. I love my job and I wouldn't want to change it. But it's also not always as glamorous as everyone thinks. For four years, I was never home. It can be a grind, but it's what I felt like I needed to do at the time.

Also, working on collected trees, whether it's the initial structure or the repotting, is very rewarding once it's finished, but while you're doing it, it's very stressful. Everyone thinks, "Oh you're just going to trim your bonsai and have a glass of wine,” but that's not really it at all. If you kill a tree, then it hurts a little. But there are all sorts of things that come out of it that are very rewarding.

Schlafer working on a pine

SO: What advice would you give to someone who is interested in pursuing bonsai either as a hobby or a profession?

TS: Even when I was still pursuing bonsai as just a hobby, I found someone that I kind of tuned into, like how they design trees or what their approach was, and I stuck with that one person. There are some schools of thoughts that encourage taking your bonsai to as many people as you can. I think that's fine, but also everyone is going to see things differently. Your tree is just going to get beat up basically because everyone is going to have a different view on it. 

Be careful because it's a slippery slope: you get one tree, then you get two trees, and then it turns into five trees and 10 trees. Then you buy a house and you need sunlight for your trees and then you quit your job to do it for a living. That was my thing. If it's just going to be a hobby, then keep a certain number of trees just for your collection that you can maintain because they are a lot more work in the different seasons than a lot of us have time for.

Schlafer can be found online at firstbranchbonsai.com, on Instagram as @todd_schlafer_bonsai and on Facebook as @ToddSchlafer and @FirstBranchBonsai. 

The National Bonsai Foundation funds and curates several programs to educate and train the next generation of bonsai, like the First Curator’s Apprentice position. To support our work, consider gifting today.

The National Bonsai Foundation funds and curates several programs to educate and train the next generation of bonsai, like the First Curator’s Apprentice position. To support our work, consider gifting today.

Historical Tree Spotlight: Quince forest planting

The quince forest planting, photo by Stephen Voss 2021

One alluring aspect of bonsai is the ability to recreate an entire forest from a far away place all in a single pot. In this month’s Historical Tree Spotlight, we draw attention to a planting of Chinese quinces (Pseudocydonia sinensis) at the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum that does just that. 

Former curator Warren Hill began this arrangement in 1975, growing the centermost and now-largest tree from nursery stock to produce quinces – a yellow, apple- or pear-like fruit (pronounced “kwins”) that is usually not eaten raw but is used in desserts or teas. He then collected seeds from the fruit of that parent tree to grow the surrounding trees.  

Hill combined the parent and offspring trees to create the planting in 2002 and donated the arrangement to the Museum in July 2013. 

Museum Curator Michael James said the trees are relatively similar in age, but Hill grew them to different sizes and shapes by paying special attention to his thickening technique.

“It’s really about how much foliage each tree is allowed to have,” James said. “Allowing a tree’s branches to really extend before cutting them off allows the trees to thicken faster, but trimming branches fairly often keeps a tree smaller. 

Now that the forest planting is fairly developed, Museum staff keeps the foliage throughout the forest planting at a similar vigor to balance the leaf size with the trunk sizes and ensure the trees are proportional to each other. 

“Maintaining this difference in height and thickness really drives home the true representation of how trees look in a natural forest environment,” James said. 

He said the deciduous planting requires a lot of sun and a fair amount of water compared to other trees in the collection. The trees in Hill’s planting are some of the first to flower in the spring, and the quinces’ bark changes colors and textures throughout the year. But James said the planting peaks in the summer, when the bark exfoliates.

Warren Hill and the Chinese quince forest planting, photo credit to Walter Pall

“The smooth bark in the winter and early spring is a mixture of grays and tans and different browns, even greens,” he said. “But when that exfoliates and those colors flake off, it gives way to rosy oranges and pinks that look as if someone lit a match inside the heart wood.”

In the fall, if the flowers are pollinated, the trees grow their quinces, which are so large compared to their branches that Museum staff rarely leave more than one fruit on the composition each year. 

First Curator’s Apprentice Sophia Osorio said the planting is protected in the greenhouse during the colder months, so the quinces don’t always have access to pollinators. Museum staff have to manually pollinate trees, taking a soft, bristled brush from flower to flower to transfer the pollen. Osorio said they will pick a few flowers to enlarge throughout the year and eventually grow fruit, but that takes some extra planning. 

“We have to be careful that the branch we allow to flower is in the right place in the composition and will be able to support that fruit, yet not swell too much from developing,” she said.

Osorio added that the branch often has to be supported with wire because a fruit could easily snap a bonsai branch off by the time it matures in fall.

“The fruit draws tons of nutrients up from the roots, through the trunk, through the branch and to itself,” she said. “Due to that immense transfer of water and energy, the branch with the fruit is going to thicken a lot more than the others.”

Photo by Stephen Voss, 2021

First Curator’s Apprentice Blog – Scratching the Surface of Bonsai

Sophia Osorio cleaning leaves on a Chinese Elm Forest

“O solitary pine, how many generations of man have you known? Is it because of your great age that the passing winds sing in so clear a tone?”  – Prince Ichichara, “Man’yōshū”

If you had asked me six months ago what career path I would want to pursue in the world of horticulture/arboriculture, bonsai would not have come to mind. But after spending enough pleasant time interning at the most renowned bonsai and penjing museum in the country, bonsai is now the only thing that comes to mind.

I first stumbled across the opportunity to work at the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum on a job posting wall at the New York Botanical Garden, where I was attending classes to obtain an arboriculture certificate from their School of Horticulture and Landscape Design. I was doing all the career research I could for a person like myself, with a distinct passion for arboriculture and tree care. I decided to take a chance and apply for the First Curator’s Apprenticeship, which would eventually spark my appreciation for the world of bonsai. 

Like most people, I had a general familiarity with bonsai. But growing up in the hustle and bustle of New York City, I had realized that urban areas lack access to more natural landscapes. Of course, one can admire the Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s C.V. Starr Bonsai Museum or perhaps stroll through Central Park. But otherwise it can be difficult to unplug from the fast-paced, famous city that never sleeps to enjoy more reserved and peaceful environments. This is where my recognition and adoration for the Museum comes in. 

Three years in a row now, Washington City Paper’s Best of D.C. poll has designated the Museum as the “Best Place to Take an Out-of-Towner,” and for good reason. Nestled in the energetic and largely concrete city of Washington, D.C., the Museum seems to slow time. Within its pavilions and tree collections, the beauty of nature is captured, condensed, perfected and displayed within the result of a centuries-old artistic tradition. 

Sophia, left, and her fellow Central Park Conservancy interns gardening at Marine Park in Brooklyn, New York

Bonsai can be horticulturally defined as a tree or group of trees pruned and trained to live in a container, often for hundreds of years. The literal translation is “tray planting” or “planted in a container.” I’ve come to learn that it is truly a living art form and a small representation of the larger natural world. This realization puts into perspective the amount of hard work and effort that goes into keeping a tree just as strong and vibrant in a container as it would have been cared for in the landscape by nature. 

My admiration and eagerness to learn more about bonsai has only augmented since my apprenticeship began. In trying to put the feeling of looking at a bonsai into words, I would say it is close to what one might experience if watching a renaissance painting come to life: standing in the presence and witnessing the sights of something that has been around for hundreds of years – growing, changing and living right before your eyes.

In my short tenure so far, I’ve had the privilege of working on trees donated by prominent figures in bonsai history, like the Japanese white pine that survived the bombing of Hiroshima, donated by bonsai master Masaru Yamaki. The notion that a tree that has experienced so much history can still be alive and flourish with the help of many passionate staff members here at the Museum has made the art of bonsai one of the most inspiring practices I’ve ever been part of.

From daily tasks, like watering every tree in the collections to the technique of selecting and pruning of branches to reshape a tree’s structure or entirely repotting a tree, I feel as though I have merely scratched the surface of the hard work and dedication needed to keep a bonsai thriving. This is truly an experience I want to share, expand on and practice more of for many years to come. 

With enthusiasm, 

Sophia Osorio

First Curator’s Apprentice

National Bonsai & Penjing Museum

U.S. National Arboretum

NBF Taps Sophia Osorio for 2020 First Curator’s Apprentice

We are pleased to announce the hiring of the NBF 2020 First Curator’s Apprentice, Sophia Osorio. 

Robert Drechsler served as the first curator for the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum from 1976 to 1998. During the celebration of the 35th anniversary of the Museum in 2011, NBF established an internship – called the First Curator’s Apprenticeship – to honor Robert’s many years of service. The apprenticeship aims to train the next generation of American bonsai artists.

Sophia, who started on March 10, said a previous internship at the Central Park Conservancy in New York City first piqued her interest in wanting to work outside.

“I’ve known since graduating college that I never wanted an office job,” she said. “I wanted to be outdoors doing hands-on work.”

Sophia, 23, said her passion for trees first came to light during an environmental ethics course she took during her undergraduate education at Binghamton University in New York. She learned about the philosophical side of the environment, like how society’s carbon footprint affects Earth. 

“It sort of inspired me to want to make a difference in my own small way,” Sophia said.

She said she first became interested in bonsai during an arbor culture certificate program she took part in at the New York Botanic Garden in the Bronx. Sophia said she saw the posting for the apprenticeship at the garden and decided to apply. 

“I’m still trying to find a specific career path, like what I would like to do specifically with trees, because I feel like the options can be endless,” she said. “Bonsai have a visual aesthetic to them. I thought that was super interesting to learn more about, like pruning and care and things like that.”

Sophia said she has spent her first week working closely with Museum Curator Michael James, jotting down notes and tips about the trees she will be working with for the next year. 

“There’s so much care and many different tactics that go into keeping trees alive for so long, like the Yamaki Pine,” she said. “Some people can’t even keep houseplants alive, so I think that’s amazing and it’s definitely a skill I would like to pick up on.”

When she isn’t learning about the Museum’s collections, Sophia keeps active with trips to the gym, hikes and long walks. She recently visited the Redwood Forest in California. 

“You can leave me in a national park for hours and I'd be fine,” Sophia said. “I'm down for anything outdoors.”

We look forward to all Sophia will contribute to the Museum in her capacity as First Curator’s Apprentice. A special thanks to our 2019 apprentice Andy Bello, whom the U.S. National Arboretum has hired as a temporary agricultural research science technician.

The National Bonsai Foundation is looking for a new funding source for this program. Please contact us if you are interested.