This is part of our continuing coverage of the Farwest Show. Keep checking back for updates. This post concerns Day One of the Farwest Show Tours, specifically, Tour 1, the Gen(i)us Acer tour on Tuesday, August 21, 2012.

Our third stop was JLPN Inc. in Salem, Ore. The initials stand for Jonathan Lewis Propagation Nursery, owned by John and Crystal Lewis. The nursery specializes in propagating tree seedlings from rooted cuttings — no grafting is performed at the nursery. The nursery prefers to use Anderson band pots and has a strong affinity for propagating its material not in a soil blend, but in pumice, which is obtained from Tumalo, Ore., about two hours to the east of Salem. “Not everyone who grows plants has volcanic activity nearby,” as John Lewis told tour participants. Lewis is a third-generation grower, taking over a business run by his father and grandfather before him. His father, Bill, is still involved in the business and watched proudly as his son conducted the tour.

We have to run, as the next stop on our tour awaits, but we will have pictures tonight and reports from two more nurseries — Arrowhead Ornamentals, and Brentanto’s Tree Farm LLC.