Cedars? Hornbeams? What’s in a Name Anyway?

Great trunk, brilliant fall color, excellent pot and then there’s the apex. This powerful old tree belongs to Wolfgang Putz. The pot is by Ingrid Kralovec. The tree is a Korean hornbeam. The botanical name is Carpinus turczaninowii, though you’ll sometimes see them referred to as Carpinus coreana. Up to my old tricks. The photos shown here originally appeared in March 2013. There’s more history involved, but we’ll leave it at that. The two trees below are Thuja occidentalis, a tree that may have more common names than almost any other species on this planet… Continued below… Our great sale … Continue reading Cedars? Hornbeams? What’s in a Name Anyway?

A Soft Spot for Cedars

When is a Cedar not really a Cedar? Or does it even matter? Either way, this has to be one of the very best Northern white cedars we’ve seen yet. I’ve got a soft spot for Cedars, even when they’re really Arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis – aka Northern white cedar – more below) and the one above is certainly no exception. I know I’ve seen it somewhere, but memory is elusive (74) and I know I’ll be embarrassed when you point it out (just heard from a couple bonsai friends north of the border – the artist is Brian Donnely of … Continue reading A Soft Spot for Cedars

Picasso’s Bonsai Garden

The natural look (or who needs manicured bonsai?). This photo captures two things I love about Eladan Gardens. The first is the rugged uncontrived look that characterizes Dan Robinson’s bonsai, and the second is the perfect setting. The tree is a Sierra juniper (Juniperus occidentalis). Earlier this month I finally visited Dan and Diane Robinson’s magnificent Elandan Gardens. It was a quick visit and all I had to shoot with was my cell. So the photos aren’t nearly as good as most of the borrowed Elandan photos from previous posts. But some shots are unique and hopefully capture something of … Continue reading Picasso’s Bonsai Garden

Three Bonsai (Two Cedars & a Hornbeam)

Great tree, great pot. It belongs to Wolfgang Putz. The pot is by Ingrid Kralovec. The tree is a Korean hornbeam. The botanical name is Carpinus turczaninowii, though you’ll sometimes see them referred to as Carpinus coreana. This post didn’t start out to be mostly about Cedars. The three photos and the text you see here are borrowed from a much longer post we did back in March 2013. After eliminating the out of date content, what’s left are a Hornbeam and two Cedars. Boreal Bonsai. This White cedar (Thuja occidentalis) belongs to Paul Chong of the Toronto Bonsai Society … Continue reading Three Bonsai (Two Cedars & a Hornbeam)

Tough As Nails – Cedar Bonsai #5

Not a great tree, but a good tree (I’d happily add it to my collection) that provides an excellent look at the beauty of Northern white cedar foliage (see below for a close-up). This type cedar often grows at the water’s edge, so you might imagine that this one is leaning out over a pond or river. You might also imagine that years of heavy snow have weighed it down. It’s a member’s tree at The Bonsai Society at Royal Botanical Gardens, in Burlington, Ontario. In keeping with our Cedar theme (true cedars and cedars in name only), here’s a … Continue reading Tough As Nails – Cedar Bonsai #5

Cedar IV – True & Untrue

A later iteration of a Northern white cedar (Thuja Occidentalis) that we featured last year (see below). The tree’s potential has moved closer to realization (even with the photo’s missing top and right side). It belongs to Paul Chong. Both photos are originally from Lakeshore Bonsai, Toronto. Keeping with our Cedar theme, here’s a good one that we’ve featured before (below). The later version (above) shows improvements worthy of bonsai artist with a sharp eye and a sure touch. It falls into the ‘untrue’ cedar category (Cedrus are true cedars and this one is a Thuja or Arborvitae). Just in … Continue reading Cedar IV – True & Untrue

Sticking with Our Cedar Theme

Jim Gremel had a Blue Atlas Cedar (Cedrus atlantica – one of the handful of true Cedars) that looked a lot like this one at the 2012 U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition. Winging to Boston and then driving back to the ice palace today (from sunny SF), so let’s indulge in one more foray into the archives. We’ll stick with out Cedar theme while we’re at it. This one was titled Real Cedar Bonsai & A Good Neighbor (June, 2012). Deer Meadow Bonsai & the 3rd U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition Some of the trees that were offered for sale at the … Continue reading Sticking with Our Cedar Theme

When Is A Cedar?

You like unconventional? Crazy? How about daring and masterful? Notice how the color and design of the pot plays with the wild shari (deadwood) and the small touch of moss on the left mirrors the foliage. Just another bonsai from left field by crafty old Nick Lenz, master left fielder, author, and preeminent master of cedars, larches and other collected North American gems. This photo is from North American Bonsai (American Bonsai Society – compiled and edited by Martin Schmalenberg), now on sale at Stone Lantern (that was then – it’s gone now). I’m not really on vacation all the … Continue reading When Is A Cedar?

More Cedars: From Our Friends Up North

Northern white cedar (Thuja Occidentalis) by Paul Chong of the Toronto Bonsai Society. Friend out west? Two of the three cedars in this post are by Paul Chong. Though there are several other notable cedars on the Toronto Bonsai Society’s website, Paul’s jumped out at me. And, incidentally, Toronto is actually west of Vermont, not north. Another of Paul’s powerful collected cedars. Only Mother Nature (with a little help from a deft hand here and there) could accomplish something this spectacular.

Same Tree, Only Better

This is the same cedar that we featured three days ago, only much improved after being prepared for exhibition at the 2nd U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition. BTW: it won the ABS Award for the finest North American Species Bonsai. It’s no wonder eh? Photo courtesy of Bill Valavanis of International Bonsai. The artist is Marc Arpag of the Bonsai Society of Upstate New York. Our Site-Wide Summer Sale Ends Tomorrow Morning!