Brilliant Beech Bonsai & Tiny Companion

Contrast! This shot has to go in our Bonsai Bark hall of fame photos (if we had such a thing). The big one is a Japanese beech (Fagus crenata) and the small one is unidentified, though it looks a lot like a Shimpaku juniper. Both belong to Mariusz Folda Suddenly we’re inundated with fall color bonsai photos. Our colors in northern Vermont peaked three weeks ago and now the rest of the world is catching up. Mariusz Folda, a long time favorite here on Bark is from Bielsko-Biala in southern Poland Two New 30% off Tool Specials Okatsune Bonsai & Garden Tools Koyo … Continue reading Brilliant Beech Bonsai & Tiny Companion

A Dangerously Beautiful Tree that Grows Against all the Rules of Bonsai

I borrowed this luminous Amur maple (Acer ginalla) from Mariusz Folda’s Ibuki Studio Bonsai & Ceramics. Here’s Mariusz’ caption… “Everybody who knows the growth characteristics of the variety knows how ginalla is unique with their branch structure. It happens that It just grows against all ‘the rules of bonsai’ ?  Still I wanted to show the true nature of the tree. It was developed from a yamadori. It was a perfect stamp (does he mean ‘stump’?) and the rest is a result of many years of our cooperation (?). 75 cm high. Pot and table by Ibuki.” We found all three images shown … Continue reading A Dangerously Beautiful Tree that Grows Against all the Rules of Bonsai

Two Exceptional Bonsai, Quick and Easy

The pot is cut off, but this lush Shimpaku juniper with its strong shari and those expressive little jin, is okay without it… for the moment at least. This tree and the other shown here belong to Mariusz Folda. Mariusz’ bonsai are becoming regulars on Bonsai Bark I’m getting ready for a two week vacation today (I’ll still post when I get a chance), so we’ll revisit a good one that we posted May of last year. Just two trees with a close up of each. Both full sized photos are from Mariusz Folda’s facebook timeline. The cropping for the closeups was done by … Continue reading Two Exceptional Bonsai, Quick and Easy

A Rugged Old Mugo Pine and a Lovely Japanese Garden

Close up of an old yamadori Mugo pine’s trunk. It belongs to Mariusz Folda. Here’s his caption… “Pinus mugo in training at IBUKI for 16 years.” IBUKI is Mariusz’s Bonsai and Ceramics studio in Bielsko-Biala, Poland There’s a lot to like about this old Mugo pine. Aged bark is always a plus as is deeply fissured, naturally colored deadwood. Perhaps most striking is the way the foliage clings to the trunk and primary branches, creating a low dense canopy that enhances the story of a rugged life at the tree line in a high mountain range (three in a row… don’t tell my high school English teacher).  Maybe somewhere in the Alps in this case, … Continue reading A Rugged Old Mugo Pine and a Lovely Japanese Garden

Two Trees, Quick & Easy

The pot is cut off, but this lush Shimpaku with its strong shari and those expressive little jin, is okay without it… for the moment at least. This tree and the other shown here belong to Mariusz Folda. Mariusz’ bonsai are becoming regulars on Bonsai Bark I’m flying out West today, so we’ll make this one quick and easy. Just two trees with a close up of each. Both full sized photos are from Mariusz Folda’s facebook timeline. The cropping for the closeups was done by our crack Bonsai Bark staff (that’s me) Continued below… NEW LOWER PRICES ON BONSAI … Continue reading Two Trees, Quick & Easy

Bonsai, It’s About the Soil – An Informed Approach

This Japanese maple belongs to Mariusz Folda. I don’t know if Mariusz also made the pot, but based on what I’ve seen of his ceramics, I wouldn’t be surprised. Yesterday’s post on Mariusz Folda’s Shimpaku serves as lead in for today’s comments by Mariusz on his soil mix, and more specifically on the uses and limitations of Akadama, the most famous and widely used imported Japanese soil. Here’s Mariusz’s quote on Akadama in its entirety… “I look after some bonsai that are very old, like a very old Fagus crenata (Japanese beech) or an old Carpinus koreana (Korean hornbeam). I … Continue reading Bonsai, It’s About the Soil – An Informed Approach

A Great Bonsai Honor & Okatsune’s 500,000 Cuts

Mariusz Folda’s Shimpaku juniper that exhibited at this year’s Kokufu Exhibition and was featured in the Japanese bonsai magazine Bonsai Sekai. Here’s Mariusz’s caption: “I am very happy that the Japanese bonsai magazine BONSAI SEKAI featured the tree that I exhibited this year at Kokufu ten. It is an honour. Thank you one more time to master Masahiko Kimura for all the help and effort in preparing the tree for the exhibition that took one year in the master garden. The tree is now in Poland at IBUKI” (Mariusz’s studio). I’d like to use this post to introduce you to … Continue reading A Great Bonsai Honor & Okatsune’s 500,000 Cuts

Year End Loose Ends & Shameless Promotion

Just couldn’t resist posting yet another yew (there have been several lately). But, as you can see, it’s not just any yew. I found it here with this caption. Taxus Baccata (English yew) by Stefano Frisoni from Italy. Newsflash!  I’ve been having a strange feeling that I’ve seen this tree somewhere before. Turns out it was right here on Bark 17 months ago. Oh well, this photo is much better. Shameless promotion There are three reasons why I spend so much time on Bonsai Bark. To spare you the boredom, I’ll skip the first two… the third is to promote … Continue reading Year End Loose Ends & Shameless Promotion