Sabina Juniper, Another Happy Accident

The original caption from Milan Karpíšek reads “Sabina of my friend ready for a show.” From this we might assume that the tree belongs to a friend and was styled by Milan, but we know about assumptions. The trees shown here are from Milan Karpíšek’s fb photos (Milan is from the Czech Republic). Like many of the bonsai featured here, these were discovered by accident (aka stumbled upon). A happy accident as it turns out After yesterday’s post featuring three Sabina (aka Savin) junipers (Juniperus sabina). I went back to see others we’ve featured over the years and was surprised by just how many there … Continue reading Sabina Juniper, Another Happy Accident

Walter’s Wild Sabina Juniper

A recent photo of Walter Pall’s wild Sabina juniper. There’s a much older photo of this tree below Second leg of our journey to the sun this morning, so once again we’ll take the easy way out and continue with a Walter Pall posts from our archives. This one is from May 2017, with a newly discovered lead photo NEW SITE WIDE SALE 20% OFF EVERYTHING A GOOD TIME TO STOCK UP – This photo of the same tree, guy wires and all, dates back quite a few years. We found it on The Art of Bonsai Project. The pot is by Bryan Albright … Continue reading Walter’s Wild Sabina Juniper

No Matter Where You Go

This tall, wild looking Sabina juniper was styled by Walter Pall. The photo is from The Art of Bonsai Project. The pot is by Bryan Albright. Major computer meltdown here (fortunately not our website, so you can still order and we can still ship), but rather our bookkeeping system where we keep track of inventory, money etc (wish us luck!). So time for another shortcut while sticking with our Sabina juniper theme. This one is from October 2013. No matter where you go, there’s Walter Pall with some more bonsai from his seemingly endless collection and his tireless offering of valuable instruction, especially on … Continue reading No Matter Where You Go

How Much Would You Pay for a Bonsai?

Would you pay 6,000 dollars (5,500 euros) for this bonsai? How does someone who wants to sell a bonsai arrive at a price and how does someone who wants to buy that bonsai decide if that price is fair? There really are no firm guidelines on valuing bonsai, at least that I know of. The best I can say is the value of a bonsai depends on what at least one person is willing to pay. Unless of course, you’re in the business of buying and selling bonsai. Then there are at least two values involved. The three trees shown … Continue reading How Much Would You Pay for a Bonsai?

Best of Show Bonsai – part 2

Noelanders Trophy award; Best of Show. A Juniperus Sabina by Xavier Massanet. I’m sure someone will clue me in, but I’m a little confused about how there can be two Best of Show trees (see yesterday’s post). The first day of a quick two day escape, so we’ll make this short and sweet. Today we have the second Noelanders Trophy Best of Show Bonsai. As mentioned yesterday, thank you to Bonsai Empire for the exceptional photos and thanks also to Mark Noelanders for putting together a world class bonsai extravaganza. Continued below… Here’s the Wire Sale you’ve been waiting for… … Continue reading Best of Show Bonsai – part 2

Francesco Santini, Seven Years Later

I found this gnarly old European yew (Taxus Baccata) on Francesco Santini’s website. We’ve been featuring yews a lot these days. They make excellent bonsai and there are countless old specimens in temperate zone gardens (and in the wild) in Europe, North American and elsewhere (not all are T baccata however, as there are several other species scattered around the world). It’s been a long time. Way back in February of 2010 we featured a couple trees that belong to Francesco Santini. Now, seven years on, he’s still at it and so are we. This time however, we’ll double down … Continue reading Francesco Santini, Seven Years Later

Just Another Great Juniper with Sculpted Deadwood?

This dynamic Sabina juniper was posted by Mauro Stemberger (Italian Bonsai Dream), someone whose trees and photos have long graced this blog. Is the tree featured here just another great Juniper with sculpted deadwood? Well… yes, that’s exactly what it is, another great juniper, sculpted deadwood and all. There was a day not too long ago when trees like this could only be from Japan. But this is the 21st century and the explosion of high quality bonsai worldwide is happening. If I’m not mistaken, this one resides in Italy. Or at least, that’s where Mauro Stemberger resides. For more … Continue reading Just Another Great Juniper with Sculpted Deadwood?

Meandering Lines

This Myrtle (Myrtus communis) belongs to Andrea Albergo. The pot is by Greg Ceramics and the photo is by Harry Harrington. I chose it for the lead tree for several reasons; I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a Myrtle with such a massive trunk, deadwood on most non-conifers isn’t all that common (though becoming more common) and I like the loose abstract meandering lines of the deadwood and living veins. I can’t stop showing you Harry Harrington’s photos from the recent European Bonsai San Show in Saulieu, Burgundy, France. Short of Kokufu (and maybe one or two others) I can’t … Continue reading Meandering Lines

“An Incredibly High Standard” at the Recent European Bonsai San Show

I’m pretty sure this tree is a Persimmon (otherwise, why the persimmons?). The photo was taken by Harry Harrington at the recent European Bonsai San Show in Saulieu (Burgundy), France. The tree belongs to German Gomez Soler. Bonsai artists that happen to be accomplished photographers can provide an illuminating peek into the heart of the art of bonsai. In this case, the artist/photographer is our friend Harry Harrington. Harry is also the author of several bonsai books that are quite popular in Europe (you can expect the U.S. edition of his Foundations of Bonsai soon). Continued below… This rather spectacular … Continue reading “An Incredibly High Standard” at the Recent European Bonsai San Show

Before & After – Yearly Work on any Juniper

Before and after on cleanup day. It’s a Tam juniper (Juniperus sabina ‘Tamariscifolia) that belongs to Michael Hagedorn. Here’s copy about the tree shown above that I lifted from Michael Horndorn’s Crataegus Bonsai: “The day these photos were taken was a basic ‘clean up day’ for the juniper—no wire was applied, removing only old and dangling foliage and shortening shoots that were overlong, and also sanding the bark, cleaning deadwood, and applying lime sulfur. This is yearly work on any juniper.” It’s a little hard to fathom that the tree above is the exact same variety as this low … Continue reading Before & After – Yearly Work on any Juniper