Bonsai on a Half Shell

This Tsukomo cypress-on-a-half-shell* is being offered for sale by Suthin Sukosolvisit. Before I read the variety I thought for sure it was a Hinoki cypress (same genus, Chamaecyparis, but different species), but I’ll defer to Suthin’s keen eye. Our old friend Suthin (Suthin Bonsai Studio) has been putting up new trees for sale on a regular basis for the last few months. These aren’t just bonsai from your everyday bonsai company either. Each one is from Suthin’s personal collection, and when an artist offers something from their personal collection, it’s usually among their very best. Speaking of his best, Suthin’s … Continue reading Bonsai on a Half Shell

It Takes a Bonsai Village

Not in its pot yet and not a perfect photo, but still…! It’s a Rocky Mountain juniper from Michael Hagedorn’s Crataegus Bonsai portfolio. While we’re in Portland (see yesterday’s post) we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention the Portland Bonsai Village. In fact, it would almost criminal and an insult to our friend Michael Hagedorn if we didn’t clue you in. So, click this link and consider yourself clued… and while you’re in Portland at the Cup, hop on board (bus below). Skip this paragraph unless you’re a fan of self flagellation. Sometimes I amaze myself at just how dense … Continue reading It Takes a Bonsai Village

Artisans Cup – an Inspirational Bonsai Event that You Will Remember for the Rest of Your Life

Announcing the exhibitors. From the Artisans Cup blog. Stick: Awhile ago we posted “What if you woke up on September 25th and realized that you’re not at the Artisans Cup?” An unabashed scare tactic. Problem is, some of you don’t scare all that easily, so we’ll switch from stick to carrot. Carrot: If this post convinces you to go, you will be eternally grateful. Even if you’ve already made up your mind (or better yet, already registered) you will be delighted you decided to go to the Artisans Cup. It’s the first of its kind and promises to be an … Continue reading Artisans Cup – an Inspirational Bonsai Event that You Will Remember for the Rest of Your Life

Back Budding – Feed Your Bonsai!

This shohin Carpinus coreana (Korean hornbeam) by Mario Komsta has appeared here on Bark before. As a companion plant no less (see below). No problem though. Any tree this good deserves to be shown more than once. As a companion or by itself. You might wonder why we’re headlining a dormant tree in mid-summer. Well, it’s a great tree and it goes with this post which has appeared twice already here on Bark (with some value added each time). I have been trying to get a few of my trees to back bud lately. So far to no avail. But … Continue reading Back Budding – Feed Your Bonsai!

Bonsai Flower Dreams

If you can get past the flowers, you might pull your eyes down to the trunk. While you’re down there, you might also notice the pot. The photo is from an exhibit called “Japanese Flower Dreams – 1st Azalea Festival” in Schwetzingen, Germany. I found the photo on bonsaipots.net. The caption reads: “A lovely example by Udo Fischer Bonsai Design.” Lots of azaleas lately. Response is good and who’s to argue with all the brilliant colors? You can see the photos shown here and others on bonsaipots.net. It’s not always about the flowers. Some azaleas are powerful enough to hold … Continue reading Bonsai Flower Dreams

Three Ring Bonsai Circus

Luminous Bougainvillea. Yesterday we featured a Buttonwood by Paul Pikel. Today we’ll stay with Paul (while inviting some other Florida artists) and we’ll start with this Bougainvillea at the Epcot (2009). You can read about it and more at Orlando Bonsai. Yesterday and today could be called Paul Pikel day here at Bark. Yesterday we headlined a famous Buttonwood of Paul’s (a better photo is below) and today I borrowed the Three Ring Bonsai Circus title (above) from an article by Paul at Orlando Bonsai. In the course of exploring Paul’s bonsai and his writing, it was a very short … Continue reading Three Ring Bonsai Circus

Bonsai Banter, Buttonwoods & Summer Dormancy

This dynamic Buttonwood (Conocarpus erectus) is one of four trees from Florida that were selected for the upcoming Artisan’s Cup in Portland, Oregon (go! it’s going to be great). It belongs to Paul Pikel. Image courtesy of Mary Miller (Bonsai Mary of Bonsai Banter). Florida is more than a refuge for snowbirds and hormone bedeviled college kids; it’s also home to most of the best tropical and semi-tropical bonsai in North America, and of all the great bonsai varieties you’ll find in Florida, Buttonwood is king. Something else you’ll find in Florida (and some other north American hot spots) are … Continue reading Bonsai Banter, Buttonwoods & Summer Dormancy

An Impressive Collection of Delicious Little Trees

These delicious little trees (shohin bonsai) are all from Cliff Chong’s bonsai gallery. I don’t know if all the trees are his, but his or otherwise, it’s a very impressive collection of photographs. Cliff lives and practices the art of bonsai in Malaysia. Here’s another impressive Shohin Bonsai it’s Morten Albek’s classic and it’s full of a wider range of how-to & other information on small bonsai than most of us ever knew existed And the price is right

Pointing the Way

Three years ago when we originally showed this tree we didn’t have any idea who the artist was. We were none the wiser until someone offered this in the comments (from the second posting last year ): “The first sabina juniper you mention is from Patrick Cremers..” Once we had a name it was easy to find this newer and better photo (the original is below). This post is worth a third time. It’s rich in bonsai beauty and information. First time was titled The Trend Only Gets More Outrageous (be sure to read the comments). The second was There Are … Continue reading Pointing the Way

Bonsai Beautyberry & Other Little Gems

This brilliant little Japanese beautyberry (Callicarpa japonica) is well named indeed (it’s nice when the name of a plant says something about how the plant looks; an onamonapia of sight). I found this photo on Bonsai Empire They attribute it to AR&B*, but I think AR&B picked it up somewhere else and failed to attribute. Looking at the tree, I’m almost certain that it’s a Japanese bonsai. The rest of the photos in this post are from an old Bark post called Luminous Fruit. The artist is Katsumi Komiya. If you’ve ever tried to grow fruiting bonsai, you know that … Continue reading Bonsai Beautyberry & Other Little Gems