Before & After Scots Pine – The trunk provided a good start, but the rest sorely needed Harry’s help

Before and after of a Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) by Harry Harrington. The trunk provided a good start, but the rest sorely needed Harry’s help Harry Harrington has long been one of our main sources for good bonsai material (for good bonsai books too). Though there is room for a number of approaches to styling and refining bonsai, I like the rugged natural style expressed in this little Scots pine. It’s a hallmark of many of Harry’s trees, though he sometimes drifts into a more highly stylized, but equally impressive look. Especially with some of his carving (take a look at the English … Continue reading Before & After Scots Pine – The trunk provided a good start, but the rest sorely needed Harry’s help

Bonsai, Before & After – Evolution & Elevation of a Native Scots Pine

Jan Culek’s caption for this yamadori pine reads… “Evolution of native Czech Sylvestris pine between the years 2013-2017.” In English Pinus sylvertris is commonly called Scots pine. Jan makes no mention of the slab pot or the deadwood stand that supports it Here’s one more post featuring the bonsai of Jan Culek. It’s an unusual before and after of a yamadori Scots pine. The tree itself is distinctive enough and shows off Jan’s skills, but I think it’s the deadwood underneath the tree that that elevates the bonsai and causes the whole presentation to stand out (if you suffer from fear of puns, please accept … Continue reading Bonsai, Before & After – Evolution & Elevation of a Native Scots Pine

Beautiful Bonsai – Before & After Scots Pine

It takes a lot of experience and strong sense of design to effect a transformation as good as this one. The tree is a Scot’s pine (Pinus sylvestris) and the artist is Martin Bonsai Kolacia. I don’t read a word of Czech, so aside from figuring out that Martin Bonsai Kolacia lives in The Czech Republic (it’s the cz at the end of his url that gave him away) and that he has inserted Bonsai into the middle of his name, there’s not too much more I can say about him. If you’d like do your own research here’s your link to his fb page and here’s … Continue reading Beautiful Bonsai – Before & After Scots Pine

One Scots Pine, Four Bonsai Pots

One Scots pine, four pots. Do you have a favorite? We found these images on the National Bonsai Foundations facebook feed. They originated with Boon Manakitivipart (Bonsai Boon). Over the years Boon has put up several ‘which pot do you prefer’ posts, some of which have appeared here on Bark along with numerous other posts featuring Boon’s Bonsai. So, without further ado, which pot do you prefer? If you’re ambitious you might tell us why. Pot number 1 Pot number 2 Pot number 3 Pot number 4

Scots Pine: One Artist, Four Trees

The Dancer by Mauro Stemberger. Mauro’s facebook caption reads: Never give up !!!! Swedish scots pine “The Dancer.” You can see that Mauro is planning a new planting angle and most likely a new pot. You might imagine a bunjin type pot (shallow, round, maybe a little rough…). Good Scots pine bonsai (Pinus sylvestris) are easier to find than good Austrian black pine (Pinus nigra) bonsai. For example, a quick search turned up all four Scots pines shown here in just one person’s collection; the omnipresent Mauro Stemberger. We could easily do the same with Walter Pall and perhaps some … Continue reading Scots Pine: One Artist, Four Trees

Ferociously Contorted Scot’s Pine

Gabriel Romero Aguade says of this magnificent, ferociously contorted, Scot’s pine, “Maintenance work and small improvements in a pinus sylvestris from a client. Reposition the angle of planted, settlement of the low branch, cleaning of leaves and selection of outbreaks.” I’ve been seeing a lot of Gabriel Romero Aguade’s bonsai these days and every time I do, I think I should post some. Now, finally, the moment has arrived. Continued below… Fertilizer Sale Ends Tonight 25% off all Green Dream Organic Slow Release Pellets Sale ends tonight (Thursday) at 11:59pm EST Close up The artist with the tree. Though … Continue reading Ferociously Contorted Scot’s Pine

A Prize Winning Classically Styled Japanese Red Pine

This slanting Japanese Red Pine (Pinus densiflora) won the Finest classical Bonsai award at the 5th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition. It belongs to Gary Gunrow. Oscar Jonker’s original photo of the whole display is below. Slanting bonsai aren’t all that common. Especially ones like this Japanese red pine, where the entire crown is so far from being centered over the pot. What often amazes me about this style, is how the good ones (like this one) maintain the feeling of balance. In this case, I think it’s the trunk’s heavy base and nebari that provide a sense of stability. The … Continue reading A Prize Winning Classically Styled Japanese Red Pine

Resetting the Spring & Other Wonderful Things You Can (& Can’t) Do with Pines

Japanese white pine from Michael Hagedorn’s Crataegus Bonsai portfolio. Here’s Michael’s caption: “A Japanese White pine that was entered into the Taikan-ten. This was when I was a second-year apprentice.” Every time I visit Michael Hagedorn’s Crataegus Bonsai, I learn something new. If you want to enrich your understanding of bonsai, you could do a lot worse than reading and digesting everything Michael writes. His deep knowledge of bonsai combined with an unusual gift for our American English language will help guide you to the bonsai promised land. This time it’s Michael’s post from yesterday: Big Difference Between ‘Decandling’ … Continue reading Resetting the Spring & Other Wonderful Things You Can (& Can’t) Do with Pines

Laid-Back Scot’s Pine

This comfortably laid back bonsai is a Scot’s pine. Its feeling of relaxed informality is accentuated by the somewhat shaggy foliage and overall barely-touched-by-human-hands look. We always have an eye out for trees that are both compelling and unusual and I think this one fits the bill. It belongs to Pierre Robbach (Tenkei Bonsai Club, Mulhouse, France). I found the photo on Jean-Paul Polmans’ facebook feed. Jean-Paul is also associated with Tenkei. This is what sprung to mind when I saw the tree at the top of the post. It’s Nick Lenz’ famous Penelope. The tree is an American … Continue reading Laid-Back Scot’s Pine

Scots & Scotch

Great tree, great pot. This powerful old Scot’s pine by Enrico Savini was an overall winner in a contest that was held at the Art of Bonsai Project way back in 2005. The pot is by Isabelia. Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) is another in our bonsai species series. I used to think they were Scotch pine (some people say Scotch pine is incorrect and others say it’s an acceptable variation) and had the notion that you could enjoy a sip of Scotch while working on you Scotch pine (oh well…). No matter what you call them, Scots pine make excellent … Continue reading Scots & Scotch