Bottoms Up! More Nebari How-to

This natural scale nebari (surface roots and flare at the base of the trunk) stands in contrast to some of the more exaggerated nebari that we’ve been featuring (including the one at the bottom of this post). Bill Valavanis, who seems to spend half his life in Japan, took this photo at the Uchiku-Tei Bonsai Garden at S-Cube Bonsai Garden in Hanyu, north of Omiya. Continuing our discussion of nabari, here’s another how-to post from our archives (with the exception of the photo above and the one at the bottom of the post which we borrowed from Bill Valavanis’ Bonsai … Continue reading Bottoms Up! More Nebari How-to

Begin Work on the Nebari the First Time You Transplant

This Trident maple (Acer buergerianum) is sporting a rather impressive nebari. Does it look a bit like a clown’s oversized shoe? Or does it suit you just as it is? The original appears in Bonsai Today issue 70 in an article titled “Transplanting to increase the feeling of age,” by Kazunori Kamiya. Continuing our series on nebari. This one is originally from April 2009 (with a few changes today). It was titled, In Search of the Perfect Nebari 3. For some more good how-to nebari tips, take a look at our last post. No matter how you view the nebari … Continue reading Begin Work on the Nebari the First Time You Transplant

Still Searching for the Perfect Nebari

This Chinese quince (Pseudocydonia sinensis) presents a number of striking features, not the least of which is its powerful nebari (surface roots). The photo originally appeared in Bonsai Today issue 35. Yesterday we featured a post on nebari, part of a long history of posts on the topic. Today we’ll go all the way back to April 2009 (our infancy) for our third ever nebari post. It was titled In Search of the Perfect Nebari – part two (Part one was comprised of An Ingenious Technique and An Ingenious Technique part 2 taken together). Continued below… Special Kilo Bonsai Wire now … Continue reading Still Searching for the Perfect Nebari

Grotesque? Or Alive & Absolutely Awesome?

Here’s part of what Juan Andrade wrote about this highly unusual Trident maple… “4 generations in the making, 120+ years old… this tree was started by my Oyakata’s great grandfather…. Nowadays its very hard to find ‘Miyasama’ Trident maple of this caliper in Japan…. This Miyasama encompasses a lot about Aichien deciduous style: power, ramification, age and uniqueness.” See below for your link to Juan’s untruncated quote. I suppose I need to get over my ideas about what is and isn’t grotesque. At lease when it comes to nebari. After all, highly respected bonsai artists – mostly Japanese – seem … Continue reading Grotesque? Or Alive & Absolutely Awesome?

Soft & Squishy

Juan Andrade’s caption for this photo is… “Keto, mochi and wet cement. Soft and squishy was today’s theme.” We’ll skip the mochi and wet cement for now, and focus on the Keto. BTW: I don’t know if you noticed, but this is a very unusual tree (eccentric works)… one feature that stands out is the trunk’s horizontal thrust and then the sudden shift to vertical. This abrupt effect is softened by all the movement. In particular the way the live vein snakes along the deadwood and the curlicue vertical section. There are other striking peculiarities, but we’ll leave those to … Continue reading Soft & Squishy

A Study in Deadwood

A great tree for a study in deadwood. It’s a Juniper procumben from Luis Vallejo’s website. I cropped the photo a bit, but you can see the full size original just below. Very busy right now with little time to put together a new post. Yesterday it was the remarkably talented Luis Vallejo’s bonsai, so today we’ll stay on the same track. This post originally appeared in June, 2015. I just spent the last digital hour or so wandering around Luis Vallejo’s Bonsai Studio (Estudio de Bonsai) and his Bonsai Museum (Museo del Bonsai). Given just how prolific Luis is, … Continue reading A Study in Deadwood

Saburo Kato, Bonsai Master for the Ages

This very large forest was on display at last month’s World Bonsai Convention in Japan. It was originally created by Saburo Kato, who was one of the original old masters of Japanese bonsai. One of the things Mr Kato was known for Ezo spruce forests, so we’ll assume that this planting is an Ezo as well. The photo was borrowed from Mark Fields, one of our lucky friends who made the trip to Japan. It has been a while since we featured the bonsai of Saburo Kato, one of the most accomplished and most revered of the old Japanese bonsai … Continue reading Saburo Kato, Bonsai Master for the Ages

No Matter Where You Go, Sooner or Later You’ll Find Walter

This tall, wild looking Sabina juniper was styled by Walter Pall. The photo is from The Art of Bonsai Project. The pot is by Bryan Albright. Got a load of topsoil coming this morning, so we need to make this quick, and what could be quicker than borrowing from our archives? This one is from October 2013. “No matter where you go, there you are” (Buckaroo Banzai) could be paraphrased, “no matter where you go on the web, sooner or later you’ll find Walter Pall ” (the Buckaroo of European Bonsai?). Walter is both prolific and very good at what … Continue reading No Matter Where You Go, Sooner or Later You’ll Find Walter

Famous Bonsai Artists, their Demo Trees & the Omnipresent Green T Professional Hydraulic Lift Bonsai Turntables

Bonsai Master Masahiko Kimura’s rock planting perched on a Green T Professional Hydraulic Lift Turntable at last month’s World Bonsai Convention Time to pay another visit to last month’s World Bonsai Convention. This time it’s about the demonstrators, their demo trees and the heavy lifting, omnipresent Green T Professional Hydraulic Lift Turntables – the quiet stars of the show. Continued below… 2 Day Fertilizer Sale Ends Tonight 40% off our large selection of Bonsai Fertilizers two thing to know… 40% off is a lot… …and don’t blink this special ends tonight (Friday) at 11:59pm EDT That’s famous bonsai master, … Continue reading Famous Bonsai Artists, their Demo Trees & the Omnipresent Green T Professional Hydraulic Lift Bonsai Turntables

Brilliant Bavarian Backyard Bonsai Garden

Harmut Muenchebach’s brilliant Bavarian backyard bonsai garden. It wouldn’t be hard to indulge in a little envy here, but better to just enjoy. Just stumbled upon these brilliant photos of Hartmut Muenchenbach’s magical Bavarian backyard bonsai garden. They’re from a post on Walter Pall’s timeline titled Jennifer Price at Hartmut Muenchenbach’s. The only other text says This is in Bavaria, Germany. 3 DAYS ONLY 40% off 2 or more 500 gram Bonsai Aesthetic Wire only 8.70 per roll and just in case you’re new to this, 8.70 a roll is so very low this special ends Wednesday night at 11:59pm EDT … Continue reading Brilliant Bavarian Backyard Bonsai Garden