Year End Loose Ends & Shameless Promotion

Just couldn’t resist posting yet another yew (there have been several lately). But, as you can see, it’s not just any yew. I found it here with this caption. Taxus Baccata (English yew) by Stefano Frisoni from Italy. Newsflash! I’ve been having a strange feeling that I’ve seen this tree somewhere before. Turns out it was right here on Bark 17 months ago. Oh well, this photo is much better. Shameless promotion There are three reasons why I spend so much time on Bonsai Bark. To spare you the boredom, I’ll skip the first two… the third is to promote … Continue reading Year End Loose Ends & Shameless Promotion

Small Trees with Big Trunks

Root-over-rock Trident maple from Kaede Bonsai-en. In this case, it might be more accurate to say rock-almost-completely-swallowed-by-roots (which have morphed into a trunk). There are several things that stand out about this tree, not the least of which is the near perfect mix of reds, oranges and golds that make for a striking fall color display. Then there’s the trunk (ex-roots) with its impressive character and substantial girth relative to the pot and canopy size. Such thick trunks for such small trees are almost always the result of reducing trees that were grown in much larger containers (or in the … Continue reading Small Trees with Big Trunks

Traveling Pot Meister

I don’t recognize this sculptural Shimpaku and it’s not labeled on the Japanese Bonsai Pots Blog (random photos section), from whence I borrowed it (it belongs to Mr. Chiu Chung Cheng, see comments below). I like the overall composition; the way the stand, pot and tree go so well together. One thing that seems a little unusual, is how large the live vein is relative to the rather narrow branch that it supports. I’ve been meaning to feature Ryan Bell’s Japanese Bonsai Pots Blog ever since I stumbled upon it a couple months ago. For a relative bonsai newcomer, I’m … Continue reading Traveling Pot Meister

An Embarrassment of Riches

I believe that this is our first tree from Matt Reel’s blog (though we featured a photo of Matt, with a tree that we lifted from Crataegus Bonsai almost two years ago). Matt is an American bonsai apprentice in Japan. We’ll have to more to say about him and his blog another time, but meanwhile, here’s what he has to say about this tree: “This Red Pine has such a broad apex it makes me giggle to myself at times, however, one might feel a little tipsy with all that leaning movement if there was a little dainty apex instead. … Continue reading An Embarrassment of Riches

Deceptively Good – This Time with Attribution

Shohin bunjin? This little Shimpaku looks a lot like a bunjin bonsai, even though it may not fully reflect all the qualities, particularly age, that we associate with larger bunjin trees (the comments on this post may help shed a little light). Also, I wonder about the puffy little foliage pads. Still, in shape at least, I’d say there’s something bunjin about it. No matter, it’s an eye catcher that most of us would be happy to see sitting on our bonsai bench. Like the little trees in our last post, it’s from Bonsai-Mikunien (The Bonsai and the Moss Ball). … Continue reading Deceptively Good – This Time with Attribution

Small Is Deceptively Good

We’ll call this little pine tree number 1 (pretty creative eh?). I’m not sure if this is the best view, but it does provide a clear shot of the trunk which appears to be two trunks that start together, separate and then come back together, though if you go down to the last photo, you might be surprised at all that you can’t see here. Beyond the interest created by the trunk, there’s the branching which is pretty well developed for such a small tree. You gotta love Shohin. All the photos here are borrowed from a Michael Bonsai series … Continue reading Small Is Deceptively Good

Taxus Maximus (It’s all about Yew)

The powerful tree with its heavy flowing deadwood (it reminds me of melting wax) and luscious reddish bark is truly wonderful, but then there’s that little companion too. Have you ever seen a piece of deadwood used as a bonsai companion? This Taxus (yew) and charming little piece of deadwood belong to Mauro Stemberger. The pot is a Tokoname. Species specific series. I’ve been thinking about starting a species specific series (in this case it’s actually genus specific). We’ve devoted posts to certain species before, but haphazardly and without any notion of doing a series. So we’ll consider this the … Continue reading Taxus Maximus (It’s all about Yew)

Ramificato ad Extremo

An exercise in extreme ramification. Mario Komsta’s latest photo of his now famous Hornbeam (Carpinus laxiflora). The three photos below are earlier stages of the same tree. All have been featured on Bonsai Bark and at least two in Mario’s facebook photos. Fine ramification can be the difference between average and exceptional bonsai The photos in this post provide a chronology of a Hornbeam that belongs to Mario Komsta. Though there is much to say about this magnificent bonsai, it’s the fine ramification (branching) that I find the most compelling (taking absolutely nothing away from the trunk’s stupendous base). In … Continue reading Ramificato ad Extremo

Kimura on the Rocks

The mature look. It helps to start with well developed trees. I think most of us would be happy to have trees like these Shimpaku as single bonsai, let alone as parts of group plantings. Kimura’s rock plantings. These photos are all from a facebook posting by Alejandro Sartori that he took during a recent visit to Masahiko Kimura’s nursery. I’ve chosen to pick out some rock plantings from a much larger selection of Alejandro’s photographs of Kimura’s trees. I think they represent an aspect of Kimura’s revolutionary bonsai journey that may not be as familiar as some of his … Continue reading Kimura on the Rocks

Natural Transformation: A Tree’s Life Story by Robert Steven

After. Robert Steven’s simulation of an Olive that was submitted by Gary Howes. There’s a lot to like about this simulation, including just how natural and untamed it looks (even the pot has an untamed quality); untamed in the sense of something that has managed to stay alive and even thrive under some of the harshest conditions that Nature can dish out. Living on the cutting edge. It has been a while since we’ve featured a critique by Robert Steven. If you are new to Bonsai Bark, Robert is one of the world’s best known bonsai artists, whose renown has … Continue reading Natural Transformation: A Tree’s Life Story by Robert Steven