Nipping & Snapping at Noelanders – Part 2

This one has that wild, almost untouched look, that takes you straight to a rocky ledge off in the mountains somewhere. I don’t know what it is but I like it and its pot. This photo and the others shown here (and in yesterday’s post) were taken by Graham Potter at last weekend’s Noelanders Trophy. Yesterday I wrote “There’s a long discussion on facebook about Noelanders Trophy and some ‘haters’ (an overused word that some people use just because someone else expresses a dislike or a contrary opinion), but I’ve decided that this is a part one post, so we’ll … Continue reading Nipping & Snapping at Noelanders – Part 2

Nipping Around & Snapping at Noelanders Trophy

Though every one of Graham Potter’s snaps of trees he liked, also struck my fancy, this one really got me. The gnarly ancient looking little tree with its smattering of red flowers and buds (I’ll take it to be a quince), all the action on the surface of the soil which reinforces the feeling of age (and naturalness) and of course, the pot (all those words and it’s not even a proper sentence). Here’s part of what Graham Potter of Kaizen Bonsai had to say about last weekends Noelanders Trophy: “We were so busy over the weekend I barely got … Continue reading Nipping Around & Snapping at Noelanders Trophy

Redwood Bonsai & a Sense of Mystery

This ancient looking tree is a Coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens). It was displayed at the Redwood Empire Bonsai Society’s 27th annual show (2010). This, and all but the last photo in this post, were originally borrowed from Bonsai Tonight. Superior bonsai photography. My hat is off to Jonas Dupuich and his consistently superior photographs (you can view them all at Bonsai Tonight). If you can’t see a top quality bonsai in person, the next best thing is a top quality photo. There’s nothing quite like a hollow trunk to add a feeling of age, depth and character to a tree. … Continue reading Redwood Bonsai & a Sense of Mystery

Weeping Bonsai & Wire Sale Ends Tonight

A little pressed for time today, so we’ll just show you this remarkable tree that we found here (plus remind you that our wire sale ends tonight). The tree is a Abeliophllum Distichum (White Forsythia or Korean Abelia). 25% off Kilo Wire Sale ends tonight at 11:59pm EST 25% off plus FREE Shipping (U.S. orders 49.00 or more) is a very good deal

Tropical Bonsai Monster & the Crespi Bonsai Museum

Tropical monster. From the Crespi Museum of Bonsai in Parabiago, Milan. The photo is from World Bonsai Friendship Federation delegation’s visit to Europe in April 2010. Before you ask if we’ve dug out yet, we haven’t. There’s not one flake to dig out from. The entire storm was way south of us. If anything, we’d like to see a little more snow. For me, it’s about a deep warm blanket for landscape plant protection. For our friends who make their living off winter sports, it’s about paying the bills. The more or less random selection of photos you see here … Continue reading Tropical Bonsai Monster & the Crespi Bonsai Museum

Old Bonsai Tell Stories

I like this little tree. It tells a story – any tree that grow to over 250 feet (see below) in optimal conditions and yet looks like this, has a story. It’s a Poderosa pine. I don’t know who collected it, but it belongs to Colin Lewis (unless he sold it). Yesterday was Ponderosa pines, so we’ll continue on that track today. BTW: I didn’t set out to make this post about rare cork bark Ponderosa, but it has headed in that direction, at least in part. This is because some of the photos and text here are from a … Continue reading Old Bonsai Tell Stories

Bonsai & Magnificently Beautiful Towering Trees

Walter Pall and Mother Nature conspired and came up with something really good. It’s a Ponderosa pine that was originally collected in the Rockies. Got a couple Ponderosa pine Yamadori today (Yamadori is the Japanese word for bonsai that were collected from the wild). Just in case you never been to the mountains of the western U.S., Ponderosa pine are magnificently beautiful towering trees (obviously they don’t all tower, but in optimal conditions that’s what they do) with distinctive reddish bark. Unfortunately millions of acres of Poderosa have been wiped out by an ongoing Mountain pine beetle infestation. Previously these … Continue reading Bonsai & Magnificently Beautiful Towering Trees

Bonsai Zen – Circles & Curves

Zen pine. In some types of art (calligraphy comes to mind) shapes are often suggested rather than completed. The mind of the viewer does the rest. In the case of this pine, it’s a circle (the way the raw power of the deadwood demands your attention cinches it). The tree and the photo belong to Mauro Stemberger. You can see more of Mauro’s bonsai here, here and here. Circles, semi circles and curves are today’s theme. Bonsai with long slow curves like this one tend to be out of favor, at least with some people, who might refer to this … Continue reading Bonsai Zen – Circles & Curves

Bonsai Shohin Passion

Shohin Japanese maple in early spring. Among other things that make this an outstanding bonsai is the way the shallow pot accentuates the trunk’s impressive girth. The photo is from Roland Schatzer’s new book, Bonsai Shohin Passion, as are all the photos in this post. A while back we got an email from Bill Valavanis recommending we take a look at Roland Schatzer’s new book, Bonsai Shohin Passion. Soon after that Bill sent an introductory email to Roland and to us. The rest, as they say, is history. Just in case you are new to bonsai, Shohin is ‘small thing’ … Continue reading Bonsai Shohin Passion

We’ve Got a Bonsai Detective Winner and…

This image from our 2016 Bonsai Calendar has nothing to do with our Bonsai Detective Contest. Though you might note that our Contest is now officially over and that this beautiful calendar is now half price (as is our Japanese Garden Calendar). We have a Bonsai Detective Contest winner. His name is Dane Smith. He submitted his correct answers (see below) in considerably less than an hour from the time the post went up (Stephen Moore submitted his correct answers only moments later). Now the ten thousand of you who are emailing your answers can go back to your whatever … Continue reading We’ve Got a Bonsai Detective Winner and…