What’s Wrong with these Trees (or not)?

This sturdy little Ficus may (or may not) have a problem. Is there anything wrong with the trees shown here? Robert Steven, world famous bonsai artist, teacher and author thinks so. In his own words: “Have you ever made the same mistake I did on my deciduous/broad leaf/ tropical bonsai? …..and what are they? (Don’t be ashamed, they are common mistakes being taught all over the world).” Take a look at the trees shown here. Start at the top and look at the first four photos. Is there something wrong? If you can’t find what’s wrong (according to Robert at … Continue reading What’s Wrong with these Trees (or not)?

No Watering, No Fertilizing, No Trimming, No Weeding…

Looks a lot like a Shohin bonsai display (this and the other photos in this post belong to Ken To). We’ve shown Ken To’s magnificent little wire sculpture bonsai before. Most people love them, but we have gotten at least one complaint in the ‘they’re not bonsai‘ vein. But that’s okay, Ken’s skill and feel for what makes a bonsai beautiful is impressive. Right down to the finest detail. There are some are real advantages, especially for our brown thumb friends… No water necessary. Indoors year round, no problem. Low light no problem. No fertilizers, no insects, no temperature issues, … Continue reading No Watering, No Fertilizing, No Trimming, No Weeding…

The Biggest Challenge with the Smallest Trees

I won’t guess the species this time (crabapple?), I’m not good at it anyway. What I will guess is that these are fairly normal human fingers, which means this is a very small bonsai. This and two other photos in this post are from Eric Sin’s facebook page. Last two days of vacation. Rather than actually work at putting together a new post, we’ll dive back into our archives. This one appeared just over three years ago (Tiny Bonsai). We’ve done some essential editing, enlarged the photos and added one tree. The biggest challenge with the smallest trees Mini bonsai … Continue reading The Biggest Challenge with the Smallest Trees

Robert Steven Critiques a Black Pine and Offers Some Insights into the Five Schools of Penjing

Robert Steven’s simulation of a Japanese black pine that was submitted by Mike Liu (Mike’s original is below). I’m on a vacation of sorts, so we’ll dip back into our archives. This one is from 2010. I picked it for a couple reasons: first, Robert Steven is one of those bonsai artists that bothers to explain how he gets from point A to point B and why he takes the path he does. The second reason I chose to re-post this one has to do with Penjing and its place in the world of bonsai. Much of what we do … Continue reading Robert Steven Critiques a Black Pine and Offers Some Insights into the Five Schools of Penjing

What if you woke up on September 25th and realized that you’re not at the Artisans Cup?

You know there has to be a living vein somewhere, but it must be hidden behind all that impressive deadwood. The crown belongs to a Shimpaku juniper that was grafted onto a collected Rocky Mountain juniper. The tree belongs to Michael Hagedorn (an Artisans Cup prime mover), as do all the trees (and boots) shown here. What if you woke up on September 25th and realized that you’re not at the Artisans Cup and it’s too late to get there? Your friends are there and some of the best bonsai in North America are there, but not you. Sadly, you’ll … Continue reading What if you woke up on September 25th and realized that you’re not at the Artisans Cup?

Snake Dance & other Tropical Wonders

This Pemphis acidula was styled by Gede Merta and currently belongs to H.N. Holiq Effendi. Gede Merta titled it Snake Dance (I know of at least one other Gede Merta bonsai called Snake Dance). It’s height is 57cm (22.5″) and, as you can see it’s a rather spectacular bonsai. I don’t know how hard Pemphis wood is and how difficult it is to keep the deadwood from rotting, but it looks like it has been treated with lime sulfur. A good place to start. All the trees shown here were styled by Gede Merta. His nursery is called Bonsai Bali … Continue reading Snake Dance & other Tropical Wonders

Finding Great Rosemary Bonsai Is Easier Said…

You’ve probably never seen a Rosemary bonsai that looks quite like this one. To my eye the deadwood and the way the branching and foliage are styled is reminiscent of an old yamadori Shimpaku from Japan. This remarkable tree belongs to Peter Warren. It originally appeared on Peter’s Saruyama blog (and then in a Bark post from last year). Below, there’s another version of the same tree, also from Peter’s blog. We led off our last post with a Rosemary bonsai, so in an effort to keep going in that direction, I just spent about an hour online looking for … Continue reading Finding Great Rosemary Bonsai Is Easier Said…

Bonsai Shape, Texture, Color, Density, Leaves, Trunk, Bark, Deadwood, Size, Pot, Overall Feel & More

Bjorn’s caption for this photo says: Shimpaku Juniper, great day’s work in AL. A mystery, but only for a moment. With just a little nosing around, we came up with Brian Van Fleet’s Itoigawa shimpaku. This photo and the others in this post are from Bjorn Bjorholm’s facebook feed. One thing you might notice about the three trees shown here is just how different they are. From each other, and in the case of the bottom two, from most other bonsai. Not different in terms of the five main traditional styles (two of them fall into the informal upright style), … Continue reading Bonsai Shape, Texture, Color, Density, Leaves, Trunk, Bark, Deadwood, Size, Pot, Overall Feel & More

Judging Bonsai & a Propensity for Understatement

This powerful kuromatsu (Japanese black pine) won the Culture Minister’s Prize at the 20th Green Festa Kokubunji bonsai fair. It is 19″ (48cm) high and about 55 years old. It is owned by Toyoyuki Hamabata from Takamatsu’s Mure town in Shikoku. It appears at Bonsai World, a Japanese English language website. Out of town acting as nanny (remember Suthin?) for my grand kids, so we’ll sneak back into our archives. This time we’re borrowing from two posts: one from way back in 2009 and one from last year. Both feature Japanese black pines with very stout trunks. Here’s what the … Continue reading Judging Bonsai & a Propensity for Understatement

How to Take an Exceptional Old Bonsai & Make It Extraordinary

This Ezo spruce (Picea jezoenis) belongs to Walter Pall. The hand built tray accentuates its untouched natural look. The tree was originally collected in Hokkaido, Japan sometime before 1950 and is over 100 years old. The tray (Walter calls it a stone) is by Dietmar Popp. This photo and the rest in this post are from Walter’s facebook photos. In addition to his excellent bonsai, I like Walter Pall’s instructive step-by-step presentations (you can find them on facebook and on his Bonsai Adventures blog). It’s like you’re standing right there looking over his shoulder. Or in this case, Thomas’s shoulder … Continue reading How to Take an Exceptional Old Bonsai & Make It Extraordinary