Bonsai will be the topic of the April 25 “Mondays in the Gardens” series at the Pensacola State College Milton campus, 5988 Highway 90 in Milton. Pierre Kaufke will lead the one hour presentation beginning at 10 a.m. in room 4902 in the 4900 building at the back or north end of the campus. This educational session will include information on creating bonsai along with how to care for them. Mondays in the Gardens is a free gardening program being offered at the UF Milton Gardens under the direction of UF/IFAS Extension Santa Rosa County Master Gardeners. No pre-registration is required.

Dr. Kaufke’s interests in bonsai go back to 1975 while he was on a retreat to the Trappist Monastery in Conyers, GA. He built up a bonsai collection of over 150 trees, which he sold in 2012 except for 12. These have now grown again to over three dozen “research projects.” Pierre Kaufke regularly lectures on and gives live demonstrations about bonsai; he has shared his experiences with the subject in numerous articles.

The UF Milton Gardens are located on the Pensacola State College Milton campus. Follow the signs on campus to find the gardens. The gardens are free and open to the public from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. every day the campus is open. Both self-guided and guided tours are available. Changing seasonal gardens feature a multitude of horticultural displays including shade, formal, children’s and water gardens, bulbs, roses, shrubs, trees and perennials.

For more information, please contact Mary Derrick at (850) 623-3868 between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. weekdays or by email at maryd@santarosa.fl.gov. Hearing impaired individuals may call Santa Rosa County Emergency Management Service at (850) 983-5373 (TDD).

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