Before & After – Yearly Work on any Juniper

Before and after on cleanup day. It’s a Tam juniper (Juniperus sabina ‘Tamariscifolia) that belongs to Michael Hagedorn. Here’s copy about the tree shown above that I lifted from Michael Horndorn’s Crataegus Bonsai: “The day these photos were taken was a basic ‘clean up day’ for the juniper—no wire was applied, removing only old and dangling foliage and shortening shoots that were overlong, and also sanding the bark, cleaning deadwood, and applying lime sulfur. This is yearly work on any juniper.” It’s a little hard to fathom that the tree above is the exact same variety as this low … Continue reading Before & After – Yearly Work on any Juniper

An Independence Day History of Bonsai in the U.S.

This wildly expressive Wisteria reminds me of exploding 4th of July fireworks. The photo is from Bill Valavanis‘ Classical Bonsai Art (out of print). The tree belongs to Robert Blankfield, who originally styled it at a workshop with Bill. This post is resurrected from Independence Day, 2013, with a few additions and subtractions. Tomorrow is Independence Day here in the USA. To help you celebrate, why not enjoy a sampling of home grown bonsai? But first, because many of our readers are not U.S. citizens and because some U.S. folks don’t know much about history anyway, a quick American history … Continue reading An Independence Day History of Bonsai in the U.S.

An Irreverent Bonsai Monk

This tree is a Sonoran scrub live oak (Quercus turbinella). Michael Hagendorn says of this tree: “I collected this oak from a mountain range in eastern Arizona in 1999, at around 5,000 ft. It was growing much like old pines or junipers along rocky breaks, in a ‘captive root’ situation. There were fine roots in a pocket of soil on bedrock. I cut the anchor root, lifted the tree, and it went into a small box. The oak from the start was very vigorous, and one or two years later was in a bonsai pot. The photo is from 2008, … Continue reading An Irreverent Bonsai Monk

Solid Gold Money Tree & Two Big Bonsai Events

A little tacky for sure. But how often do you see a ‘solid gold’ money tree? It’s from Bill Valavanis’ bonsai blog. He discovered at a Chinese restaurant while in the Philippines in March. Bill Valavanis has two exciting bonsai events coming up. First and foremost is his 5th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition in September. Second is his tour of the 2017 8th WBFF Bonsai Convention in Saitama (Omiya) Japan. Details and links for both are below. In addition to Bill’s big bonsai events, you might like to know that we have 4 New Sales at Stone Lantern, including 25% … Continue reading Solid Gold Money Tree & Two Big Bonsai Events

Two Pines, an Honest Effort (& Something New for You)

I like this tree’s fluid movement with its strong changes of direction. I also like the pot, though if you’re showing a tree like this, it could be a little smaller. Here’s our rough translation of the caption with this photo: “This charming and elegant image that we’re sharing is from Bonsai Albar (does someone knows who it belongs too? Thank you).” The original Spanish is below.* Today we’ve got two pines for you. A little digging unearthed the tree above as a Mugo** but the artist is unknown. The tree below is the reverse; the artist, Kevin Willson is … Continue reading Two Pines, an Honest Effort (& Something New for You)

Brilliant Bonsai Pots – Site Wide Sale Ends Tonight

This brilliant bonsai pot is by Satomi Terahata, as are the other pots shown here There are two ways to look at bonsai pots – with and without trees. Pots with trees are often overlooked, especially by less experience bonsai enthusiasts, who may not yet fully grasp the importance of the relationship. How a bonsai isn’t a bonsai without the pot. Or, in the eyes of some, ‘without the right pot.’ In this post it’s pots without trees. This offers a chance to appreciate the art of bonsai pottery simply as is (no tree required) and an opportunity to imagine … Continue reading Brilliant Bonsai Pots – Site Wide Sale Ends Tonight

Old Bonsai Beauty – Site Wide Sale Ends Tomorrow

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 small Nikko’s next to each other. The 5rd U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition will take place September 10th & 11th in Rochester NY. See you there! Running a little behind schedule, so we’ll dip back into our deep archival pool once again. The photos and some of the text in this post are from May 2012. You may notice … Continue reading Old Bonsai Beauty – Site Wide Sale Ends Tomorrow

Excellence in Bonsai for Over Fifty Years

Massive trunks and extensively carved deadwood aren’t the only way to go. Delicacy, grace and color work too. This photo and the others in this post are from Rosade Bonsai Studio. The tree looks a lot like a Virginia creeper. It has been a long time since we visited Chase and Solita’s Rosade’s Bonsai Studio. If you’re old enough, you might even remember when it first opened. I don’t know the exact date, but I do know that it was over fifty years ago (proof is just below). Which must make Rosade Bonsai Studio one of the older Bonsai nurseries … Continue reading Excellence in Bonsai for Over Fifty Years

Beating a Dead(wood) Horse

Flowing graceful lines with a minimum amount of foliage and a copious amount of masterfully carved deadwood. And though some people may take issue with this abstract, highly stylized type bonsai, to me this is sheer beauty. A delight to behold. One misconception about highly stylized bonsai with extensive carved deadwood is that they violate some basic principle of bonsai and nature. The famous John Naka line “The object is not to make the tree look like a bonsai, but to make the bonsai look like a tree” is sometimes used to reinforce this view. I think Mr Naka’s quote … Continue reading Beating a Dead(wood) Horse

It’s a stunningly gorgeous Vermont day and good sense dictates that it’s time to get out and work on our bonsai and pull some weeds in the garden, but first, take a look at this!

Harry Harrington’s latest iteration of his English yew. Here’s what Harry said about this tree : “Finally, work on my Taxus baccata/Yew bonsai completed with the branches wired and laid-out. Height 25″/61cm, trunkbase (inc root jin) 12″/30cm. Pot by Victor Harris of Erin Pottery.” It’s a stunningly gorgeous Vermont day and good sense dictates that it’s time to get out and work on our bonsai and pull some weeds in the garden. So rather than taking the time to put together a new post, I’m going to show you one of my favorites from our archives (last November). It’s titled … Continue reading It’s a stunningly gorgeous Vermont day and good sense dictates that it’s time to get out and work on our bonsai and pull some weeds in the garden, but first, take a look at this!