Pacific Rim Bonsai Collection Now Open to the Public

Note: much has changed since we originally posted this. The Pacific Rim Collection is now open the the public and has been for a long time (posted 12/10/2012). The following bit of sobering hard times news is from Weyerhaeuser’s Website. Weyerhaeuser Announces Closure of Pacific Rim Bonsai Collection Federal Way, Wash. (March 4, 2009) — Weyerhaeuser Company announced today that it will indefinitely close to the public the Pacific Rim Bonsai Collection, located at its corporate headquarters in Federal Way, Washington, effective April 2.

Bonsai from Nursery Stock – part two

This Burning Bush (Euonymus alatus compactus) is from Reiner Goebel’s bonsai gallery on his beautifully designed website. The tree started out as very ordinary looking nursery plant (see below) in 1998. BTW: if you want to set up your own back yard bonsai display and are looking for inspiration, take a look at Reiner’s back yard. Judging by the photos, it looks like one of the best home displays I’ve seen. And while you’re there, check out Reiner’s, and two guests,’ very sweet bonsai galleries. Though Reiner had already done some pruning and wiring by the time he took this … Continue reading Bonsai from Nursery Stock – part two

Post-Dated Wins Gold!

This cropped cover shot of Michael Hagedorn’s Post Dated provides a powerful hint why the Publishers Association of the West choose it for a Gold Award in design. If you been following this blog for a while, you know that we featured a review of Michael Hagedorn’s ground breaking book and a two part interview with Michael in February. Since then, my enthusiasm for Michael’s fascinating bonsai and life adventures in Japan, hasn’t wavered a bit. It’s still a great book and I still recommend it with the full confidence that you will enjoy it as much as I have.

How to fertilize for a better nebari

This very useful tip comes courtesy of from Michael Hagedorn of Crataegus Bonsai, author of Post Dated: The Schooling of an Irreverent Bonsai Monk. For those of you who like growing maples and other deciduous trees that might develop a marvelous fused nebari, when that tree is young, fertilize right next to the trunk of the tree. Fine fusable roots will grow right under your fertilizer cakes, the kind that develop into the solid nebari pancakes that we see on really old bonsai and trees in the wild. If we fertilize only at the outside of the root system, the … Continue reading How to fertilize for a better nebari

Kato sama, Kato sensei, but never Kato san

This photo of Saburo Kato was taken by Morten Albek in June of 2005 during an interview he and two friends conducted with Mr. Kato, Japan’s most famous bonsai master of his generation. Kato sensei passed away in February 2008. I only saw Saburo Kato once. It was in 2005 at the WBC (World Bonsai Convention) in Washington DC. I was busy selling books and magazines from our booth when he walked by. He was immistakenly unmistakenly himself, very old and thin, with an air that radiated dignity. I was so taken by surprise that I blurted out “Kato san!” … Continue reading Kato sama, Kato sensei, but never Kato san

Artofbonsai Nursery Stock Bonsai Gallery

Sinuous root style Rockspray Cotoneaster (Cotoneaster horizontalis) in splendid fall color, by Bill Valavanis of International Bonsai. When I first started playing with bonsai almost thirty years ago, nurseries were bonsai stock gold mines. Now, because bonsai enthusiasts have caught on, old forgotten potential bonsai are a little harder to to find. But don’t lose heart, they are still there. You just have to look a little harder. Bill Valavanis’ sweet sinuous root Cotoneaster (above) is one of many bonsai from nursery stock currently feature on Artofbonsai.org. Some other well-known featured artists are: Walter Pall, Morten Albek (author of Shohin … Continue reading Artofbonsai Nursery Stock Bonsai Gallery

Vaughn Banting; Artist, Adventurer & Friend

Two of Vaughn Banting’s beautiful maple bonsai in a memorial evening display. The following is from the NBF Winter 2008 Bulletin: Vaughn Banting, a long-time member of the National Bonsai Foundation Board of Directors and an ardent supporter of the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum, died in New Orleans, Louisiana on October 11, 2008 after a brief illness. A garden designer and horticulturist, a war veteran and adventurist, a bonsai artist and haiku writer, a teacher and friend, he possessed an undaunted spirit that gave hope to all who knew him. For the complete article, including more photos (and the … Continue reading Vaughn Banting; Artist, Adventurer & Friend

A trip well worth the trouble

This majestic old pomegranate (Punica granatum) was styled by John Naka. After John died, his wife Alice donated it to the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum in Washington DC. You can view it and a host of other masterpieces first hand if you’re up for the journey; a trip well worth the trouble, especially if you’ve never experienced the power of a large world class bonsai first hand. No matter how good the photographer, or how expensive the camera, a photo will never capture the full dramatic force of a living bonsai. I’ve been a fan of the National Bonsai … Continue reading A trip well worth the trouble

bonsai4me.com on Field Growing

This Goldflame Japanese Spirea (Spiraea japonica ‘Goldflame’) was originally dug from a garden in the UK. It was styled by Harry Harrington. You can view it and numerous other noteworthy bonsai at bonsai4me.com. One reason we’ve been featuring field growing so much is that the US government restrictions make importing quality stock from Asia somewhere between difficult and impossible (Europe is a whole other story – it’s easy for them to import Asian stock – which helps explain some of the differences between European and North American bonsai). This means that if we are going to develop quality bonsai stock … Continue reading bonsai4me.com on Field Growing

Two Junipers for the Price of One?

In the expert hands of Michael Hagedorn, this collected Rocky Mountain Juniper (Juniperus scopulorum) in transformed into two noteworthy bonsai. A remarkable transformation of a Rocky Mountain Juniper …actually, two Rocky Mountain Junipers. When I first posted this (just a couple minutes ago) I was convinced that Michael made two bonsai from the collected tree in the box above. It turns out that there were two distinct trunks and root systems, but Michael says that one of them is unused. Still, it looks to me like he ends up with two different trees. Take a look (you have click on … Continue reading Two Junipers for the Price of One?