Restyling a Mugo, Offing a Shari, Bonsai Tourists, More Bonsai Rafting & Some Excellent Events

This old beauty is one of hundreds of quality bonsai that was featured at the 2nd U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition. It’s a Nikko Satsuki Azalea that belongs to The Kennett Collection. It originally belonged to Kunio Kobayashi who started it by planting smaller trees next to each other. The 3rd U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition takes place June 9th and 10th in Rochester NY. It’s not too late to sign up. Now half price. Order this collector’s set from the first two U.S. National Bonsai Exhibitions and save 50% It’s not a bonsai, but it is a sweet photo. … Continue reading Restyling a Mugo, Offing a Shari, Bonsai Tourists, More Bonsai Rafting & Some Excellent Events

Walking Around in a Daze & Shin Boku’s Open House

A little piece of the Shin-Boku stroll garden. Two of the best tree nurseries anywhere If you’re ever in northern New England you might want to visit two of the best tree nurseries anywhere. Shin Boku and Baker Valley Nursery in Wentworth N.H. are home to some of the most wonderful specimen landscaping trees I’ve ever seen. The first time I visited Shin-Boku and Baker Valley (thanks to a tip from Doug Roth of the Japanese Garden Journal) I walked around in a daze. Now, after three or four visits a year for the last four or five years, I … Continue reading Walking Around in a Daze & Shin Boku’s Open House

Attention Bonsai Detectives: $250 Mystery Contest

Tree number one Here’s what you have to do Tell me something about each tree. The more accurate the information you give, the better your chances are. The two most obvious pieces of information you can provide are: who the artist is and what kind of tree it is. Or maybe you know something about the pot. Another useful piece of information is where you found the tree (that way I can verify the ones I don’t know). Really anything you know about the trees. What you’ll win First place: The person who give the most accurate information on the … Continue reading Attention Bonsai Detectives: $250 Mystery Contest

World Bonsai Day, Fuji Bonsai & Putting on the Glitz

If it weren’t for the three fingers at the bottom, there’d be no way to tell just how massive this Pomegranate trunk is. It’s from Fuji Bonsai (Roy Nagatoshi’s nursery) via Capital Bonsai, the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum‘s excellent blog. You can see the whole tree below. Better late… Looks like World Bonsai Day almost got away from me. It’s tomorrow and the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum is hosting an open house in its honor. My apologies to you and the good people at the National Arboretum for not putting this up sooner. The Glitz The good news … Continue reading World Bonsai Day, Fuji Bonsai & Putting on the Glitz

Naturalistic? Not Exactly

Here’s a Kimura tree that I’ve never seen. This, and the other photos in this post are from Owen Reich on facebook. Owen lives in Japan and takes bonsai photos. In addition to his facebook offerings Owen has a blog that is rich with excellent photos. Not so naturalistic It’s not my intention to reopen the old naturalistic versus sculptural bonsai debate. It’s just that when you look at some of Masahiko Kimura‘s bonsai, the question seems to arise on its own; his highly refined deadwood-dominant bonsai stand in contrast to what you find in nature. Beyond that, I don’t … Continue reading Naturalistic? Not Exactly

Bonsai Sculpture, a Wonderful Video & Great NEW Tools

Sculpture. What comes to mind when I look at this manicured Buddleja is ‘sculptural bonsai.’ Though I don’t think it would ever be admitted to Kokufu-ten (Japans most famous bonsai exhibition) I do think it has something going for it. I especially like the wavy pot and the fluid split trunk (or is that two trunks?). It’s from Higurashi Jardineria Creativa on facebook. Here’s their website. Take a look. Have you seen this video yet? If you haven’t, or even if you have, take a look. And then sign up for the 3rd U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition. Simplicity. Here’s … Continue reading Bonsai Sculpture, a Wonderful Video & Great NEW Tools

Weekly Wire: Bonsai Elegance, Yellow Flowers, Yang Ya & Tiny Assassins

Elegance. I’ve never been to the Omiya Bonsai Art Museum, but if the elegance of the display shown in this photo is any indication, maybe I should start saving my yen. Goyomatsu. Japanese white pine from the Omiya Bonsai Art Museum’s gallery. Yellow flowers. You don’t see many bonsai with yellow flowers here in North America. Japan might be another story; Classic Bonsai of Japan features several and this one is from our 2012 Japanese bonsai calendar (sold out). I can’t read the Japanese, but it looks like a Winter hazel (Corylopsis spicata). More mellow yellow. Speaking of, I … Continue reading Weekly Wire: Bonsai Elegance, Yellow Flowers, Yang Ya & Tiny Assassins

Bonsai Rafting One Year Later

Though a purist might find fault, I love everything about this wonderful raft-style planting: the way the trunks are joined together by the snakelike surface root; the way whole thing undulates across the pot; the aged bark; the lush foliage that imparts a feeling of robust health; its overall shape and the shapes of the individual pieces; and of course the wonderful pot and the unity of the pot and the planting (if you bothered to read this far, you win a prize – see *** below). Begging the question I found the photo above (and the one below) at … Continue reading Bonsai Rafting One Year Later

A Magnificent Bonsai with a Strange & Wonderful Shari

Hanging out. Or just hanging in? I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a shari quite like this one; it seems to be floating in the opening of the sabamiki (trunk’s hollow). Still, I think this would be a wonderful tree even without the shari; the sabamiki, the nebari and the superbly textured bark all create a powerful sense of age and character. I found both photos shown here at Michael Bonsai. They are originally from Bonsai Tonight. Does the shari draw your attention to, or distract from, an otherwise magnificent trunk? What would happen if you removed the shari … Continue reading A Magnificent Bonsai with a Strange & Wonderful Shari

Cut Paste Versus Natural Healing

One of Peter Tea’s freshly worked-on Trident maples. You’ll have to use your imagination to get a feel for what this tree will look like when it fills out. But if your imagination fails you, it still looks pretty good, just as it is. Borrowing from Peter… Once again, we are borrowing from Peter Tea’s excellent bonsai blog. This time it’s a story of two Trident maples. We’ll just whet your appetite here; for a whole series of instructive photos and insightful text, you can visit Peter’s blog. Cut paste versus the natural way Here is the West some people … Continue reading Cut Paste Versus Natural Healing