No Mean Feat 6/26/13

This remarkable Satsuki azalea with its bright profusion of flowers belongs to Teunis Jan Klein. It’s not very often you see a cascade with such a long reach (both vertically and horizontally). What’s more remarkable is the mass of flowers around the tip, which is almost as strong as the crown. That much strength so far from the base is no mean feat. This photo and the other photos in this post are from Hans Van Meer’s blog. It was taken at the 7th Het Westen Bonsai Show in Delft, Netherlands.

All the photos in this post have been borrowed from Hans Van Meer’s bonsai blog. This is not the first time we’ve visited Hans; we lifted an elephant from him almost a year ago.

 

This sweet little tree belongs to Hans. You don’t see that many Lilac bonsai, or pre-bonsai in this case. Either way, it pretty impressive with its vivid blossoms (you can almost smell them), its distinctive gnarled trunk and its overall healthy vigorous look.

 

Another sweet flowering tree by Hans. This one’s a Hawthorn. A close-up that shows more of the trunk’s character and other details would have been nice, but beggars can’t be choosy.

 

Japanese white pine (Pinus parviflora) by Hotsumi Terakawa. Like the other photos in this post, this one is from Hans Van Meer’s blog and like the Satsuki at the top of the page, it was taken at the 7th Het Westen Bonsai Show in Delft, Netherlands. It’s a great tree, though the photo seems to show some discolored needles. Maybe that’s why it wasn’t entered in the competition. Also, is it just me, or is there an issue with the placement of the tree in the pot? Still, it’s a very sweet and unique tree with so many of the features you look for in a quality bonsai, including strong base, good taper and fluid lines. Then there’s the way long the sweep of the crown is complemented by the long sweep of the first branch.