Off to Rochester & Good News from Stone Lantern

This Nagasaki Crabapple is from the cover of the 1st U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition album (out of print, but we still have 3 & 4). It belongs to Harvey Carapella of Rochester NY. The 5th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition, a colossal event in our world is this weekend. In a few hours I’ll throw my bags in my car and head west to Rochester. I hope to see you there. If you’re the impulsive type (or just a passionate bonsai lover) and you’re within a days drive or so, it’s not too late to come. You don’t need to preregister. … Continue reading Off to Rochester & Good News from Stone Lantern

The Next Best Thing…

This photo from the 3rd U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition Album is a good example of the quality photos you’ll find in all of the U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition Albums. The tree is an old Japanese yew (Taxus cuspidata) from the Pacific Rim Bonsai Collection. It’s one of 248 fine bonsai that are featured in the 3rd U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition Album. The photos that we’ve been featuring from last weekend’s 4th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition are not the final ones. The official high quality professional photos will appear in 4th Exhibition Album and nowhere else (stay posted). Enjoying the photos in … Continue reading The Next Best Thing…

Thinking Ahead to 2012: The Show & the Books

If you only go to one event every two years, this is the one. Don’t miss it. It’s not far fetched… … to think about an event this important seventeen months in advance. If you don’t, time slips by, your calendar fills up, and the next thing you know you’re kicking yourself for missing it. Limited printings After each Exhibition, Bill Valavanis puts out a world-class album. We still have some from 2008 and 2010 came in not long ago (purchase them both and save). However, if you want to have them all for your collection, don’t wait. A limited … Continue reading Thinking Ahead to 2012: The Show & the Books

Some of the Very Best Bonsai in the World

The trees are exquisite and so is the book.192 pages of some of the best bonsai in the world. This book, along with the first one and all the others to come, will surely become collector’s items. We can lay that notion to rest For a long time many of us wondered if North American bonsai was falling behind the rest of the world. Now we can lay that notion to rest. It turns out that what we were lacking was something the Japanese have had for a long time (the Europeans have had theirs for a while too); a … Continue reading Some of the Very Best Bonsai in the World

Coming Soon: North American Bonsai at the International Bonsai Symposium

This splendid Japanese maple by Bill Valavanis is from the cover of International Bonsai’s special Maple Issue. Do you like North American trees? Larch, cedar, bald cypress, buttonwood, Rocky mountain juniper will be all featured September 10-12 in Rochester NY. Meet some excellent bonsai artists and teachers, take a couple workshops and go home happy (visit International Bonsai for details). Speaking of North American Bonsai… …the gallery book North American Bonsai is now double discounted at Stone Lantern. So is The 1st U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition Album.

Waiting for News

While we are waiting for photos from the 2nd U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition, thought you might like to see the National Award Masterpiece from the 1st Exhibition. It’s a Sargent’s juniper by Jim Gremel. You can find it and a host of other world class bonsai in the 2008, 1st National Exhibition’s Album. It is also featured on International Bonsai’s website. Patiently waiting Though we’ve heard some rumors, as of now, we have no official word from the 2010 Exhibition. It will be a while until the album is out, but I expect some news and a few photos to … Continue reading Waiting for News

It’s Not Too Late!

Our very own Kokufu All you last minute procrastinators are in luck. You can still sign up for the 2nd US National Bonsai Exhibition and enjoy the best of the of US bonsai and be part of the early stages of our very own Kokufu. Really, you’ll be thanking me for reminding you for a long time. The 2008 Album is still available. When it’s gone (and you’ve collected the next ten albums) you’ll kick yourself for waiting.

Double Discounts at Stone Lantern

There’s a big Site-Wide Sale going on at Stone Lantern. 10% to 40% off everything. Not bad, but it gets better: Dozens of items are individually discounted. Some steeply. This means very large double discounts on those items. In some cases well over 50% off. This wonderful book features some of the very best bonsai in the U.S. The trees are spectacular and the book itself is a work of art. The regular price is $65.00 The discounted price is $45.00. With our site-wide sale it is from $27.00 to $36.00, depending on the overall size of your order. Numerous … Continue reading Double Discounts at Stone Lantern

1st U.S. National Exhibition Album Has Arrived

Double Discount through Sunday on this remarkable new book Order now and save $26.50. In addition to our pre-order sale for $55.00 (ends midnight Sunday), we are running a 30% discount on books, which puts your price at $38.50 if you order now. For more new bonsai books, keep reading.

Field Growing #7: Clip & Grow Technique

These simple illustrations of the clip and grow technique are from a website called The Bonsai Primer. The left image shows the first cut, the next one shows the second cut, and so forth. If you go to the comments in our previous field growing post, Brian Van Fleet gives an excellent description of exactly what these illustrations are all about. Most large Trident maples (and some other deciduous trees) are started in the field and developed using the clip and grow technique. The result is usually a heavy trunked tree with gentle curves, often in a more or less … Continue reading Field Growing #7: Clip & Grow Technique