Cork bark Chinese elm in full fall brilliance at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. You don't see that many good Chinese elm bonsai. I like this one a lot; its color, the heavy trunk with its corky bark, the handsome Tokoname pot. This photo and the others in this post are from the bonsai collection on the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens website.
With the exception of the Trident maple root-over-rock just below, and some re-writing to bring things up to date, the rest of this post appeared back in December 2013.
Though I haven’t been there for a long time, I think the quality of the Brooklyn Botanic bonsai collection has been improving for a while now. Based on their website and what I saw for myself, it’s not a world class collection, but a notable U.S. collection.
I bring this up because their website says “Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s extensive bonsai collection is one of the finest in the world.” No matter, it’s still a great place, both the gardens and the bonsai collection. A trip worth making.
This large root-over-rock bonsai is a Trident maple; the most popular non-tropical variety for root-over-rock bonsai.
Nice Crabapple. I particularly like the tree's movement and the bark. And of course the beautiful flower buds. Maybe the apex could use a little work, but still, a sweet bonsai.
Wisteria bonsai are about the flowers and this one is no exception. Great old gnarly trunk too.
Nice old Shimpaku. The crown seems a bit heavy for the trunk and could be reduced a bit, but still, who wouldn't want a tree like this in their collection?
Here's the tree at the top, sans leaves. Not only does this photo allow you to see the fine ramification, but the gnarled old bark stands out more without the large canopy of bright leaves.
This Prunus mume variety is aptly name 'Bonita.' I took the liberty to do some radical cropping. Here's the original.
All the photos in this post are from the Brooklyn Botanic Garden bonsai collection. Here’s their website and here they are on facebook.
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Obviously, for a collection that large, they only put out a fraction of the trees for display at any given time.
Unfortuantely, it is impossible to find out when they change the display. It is not posted online anywhere, and even members are not kept informed. I have spent weeks trying to find out when the summer focus (e.g.., lots of ficus) will shift to a deciduous (e.g., maple) selection.
After many calls and followups, I am told that the summer collection will not be changed until early November.
Is this true? I cannot tell without the long drive to check, myself. But I would caution your readers that fall foliage may be yet be on display among the bonsai at the Brooklyn Botanical Garden.