Stumbling Upon Some Strange & Wonderful Bonsai After Six Plus Years of Blissful Ignorance

I’ve never seen a bonsai quite like this. It would be unusual even without that long joining root and those stubby trees in the back. With these almost alien features (and others), it stands alone as an absolute one-of-a-kind bonsai. It is also the only photo in this group (from bonsai4me) to give the artist’s name (Richard R Gomez) and the type tree (Strebulus asper). This is a first. A post on bonsai in the Philippines. After over six years of blissful ignorance, I discovered these wonderful (and in some cases, strange) bonsai by accident this morning. I won’t bore … Continue reading Stumbling Upon Some Strange & Wonderful Bonsai After Six Plus Years of Blissful Ignorance

John Naka, Dave De Groot & the Principles of Bonsai Design

This has got to be one of the most magnificent Chinese hackberry (Celtis sinensis) bonsai anywhere. Though the distinctive split trunk needs no comment, you might also notice the highly developed ramification (fine branching). The tree was donated to the Pacific Rim Bonsai Collection (now the Pacific Bonsai Museum) by Ben Oki. There are a couple good reasons for resurrecting (with a whole lot of enhancing and editing) this post from 2013 . First, just looking at these magnificent trees might inspire you to visit the Pacific Bonsai Museum, and second, it provides a good excuse to talk about Dave De … Continue reading John Naka, Dave De Groot & the Principles of Bonsai Design

Back Budding – Feed Your Bonsai!

This shohin Carpinus coreana (Korean hornbeam) by Mario Komsta has appeared here on Bark before. As a companion plant no less (see below). No problem though. Any tree this good deserves to be shown more than once. As a companion or by itself. You might wonder why we’re headlining a dormant tree in mid-summer. Well, it’s a great tree and it goes with this post which has appeared twice already here on Bark (with some value added each time). I have been trying to get a few of my trees to back bud lately. So far to no avail. But … Continue reading Back Budding – Feed Your Bonsai!

Pointing the Way

Three years ago when we originally showed this tree we didn’t have any idea who the artist was. We were none the wiser until someone offered this in the comments (from the second posting last year ): “The first sabina juniper you mention is from Patrick Cremers..” Once we had a name it was easy to find this newer and better photo (the original is below). This post is worth a third time. It’s rich in bonsai beauty and information. First time was titled The Trend Only Gets More Outrageous (be sure to read the comments). The second was There Are … Continue reading Pointing the Way

Only the Surface Waves

These three trees belong to Masahiko Kimura. I lifted (and cropped) this photo from El Tim Bonsai. It’s a Spanish language blog with an English language option. The Tim. I have long admired the great photos and great dedication to bonsai expressed on the El Tim Bonsai blog (the original Spanish language version and an English language version). The photos shown here are from El Tim’s visit to Masahiko Kimura’s nursery on a recent Japan trip. They are the tip of the Kimura iceberg and only the surface waves on El Tim’s vast ocean of great bonsai photos. If … Continue reading Only the Surface Waves

Unlocking Valuable Bonsai Wisdom

This remarkable Satsuki azalea belongs to Teunis Jan Klein. It’s not very often you see a cascade with such a long reach. What’s more remarkable is the mass of flowers around the tip, which seems to be as strong as the crown. That much strength so much lower than the base is no mean feat. This photo is from Hans Van Meer’s blog. It was taken at the 7th Het Westen Bonsai Show in Delft. The photo above is to grab your attention. Now that we’ve succeeded in that, we’d like to help unlock some valuable bonsai wisdom (borrowed from … Continue reading Unlocking Valuable Bonsai Wisdom

Our Masters Series Juniper Book Is Due Back in December – Bonsai Wire & Tool Sale

The Magician again. This sculpted Shimpaku juniper is by Masahiko Kimura, a master of stylized and not so stylized bonsai. From our Masters’ Series Juniper book (out of print, but due back in December). There are also numerous examples of Kimura’s bonsai in The Magician, another Stone Lantern Masters’ Series book. 25% off 500 gram (1.1 lb) rolls of Bonsai Wire Plus 10% off for Stone Lantern orders 100.00 or more 25% off Roshi Bonsai Tools Plus 10% off for Stone Lantern orders 100.00 or more

Master Bonsai Magician

This powerful and famous Yew by is by Bonsai Master Masahiko Kimura. It’s from The Magician (below). It also appears in Bonsai Today issue 56. Archives plus today. Most of this post originally appeared in February 2010 and again last year. It was originally titled ‘Eccentric Bonsai: Fearless Master Kimura Again’. I’ve added some copy and killed some of the original copy in an attempt to reduce the wince factor. I’ve also added another photo for your enjoyment. Same species but very different tree. Though it’s not as powerful as many other Kimura trees (see above and below), nor … Continue reading Master Bonsai Magician

Don’t Starve Your Bonsai

Lush summer foliage and impressive deadwood on an old Shimpaku juniper.The lush foliage is the result of timely feeding. The photo is from our Masters Series Juniper book (due back in print in December). I know the tree is from Japan, but don’t know who the artist is. Many, if not most people underfeed their bonsai. There are many reasons why ample fertilizing is critical to developing healthy and beautiful bonsai. I’ll list a few (if I missed something important, please let us know in the comments). 1. It’s up to you. Most bonsai soils don’t contain nutrients. This means … Continue reading Don’t Starve Your Bonsai

More Deadwood & Six Reasons to Love a Bonsai

The uninitiated sometimes wonder how a tree like this stays alive. The answer; excellent care and that live vein that snakes its way up the trunk. The feature that really sets this tree apart (taking nothing away from the live vein and the tree’s overall beauty and balance) is that delicious deadwood reaching into the sky. I think it’s the fluidity of the movement that keeps it from being over the top (so to speak). The tree belongs to Nicola Kitora Crivelli. It’s from a gallery on Bonsai Empire. More deadwood. We’re on a roll so we’ll just keep … Continue reading More Deadwood & Six Reasons to Love a Bonsai