Junipers: Don’t Pinch Too Much!

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Even if you’re one of those curmudgeons who complains about the overly sculpted look of some Japanese bonsai, you’ve got to admit that this powerhouse Shimpaku approaches perfection. That trunk draws your eye like few trunks anywhere, with its single living vein, mysterious hollow at its base and the spidery fingers and hole at the top. But it’s the tight lush foliage that I want to point out here; the result of some serious trimming and pinching. The photo is from our Juniper book. Artist unknown.

A question about pinching on Michael Hagedorn’s site
The following is from the Seasonal section of Crataegus Bonsai (Michael’s site). It starts with a question by Ron Verna: I have a shimpaku juniper that I’m concerned about it has lost a lot of foliage and doesn’t look as bushy as I would like. Would piching and repotting help?

Michael’s reply
Hello Ron, Although it is difficult to advise without seeing an image, in general, we pinch far too much on junipers. I recommend cutting the longer shoots that push out of a foliage pad with a scissors, a couple times a year, rather than trying to create density with pinching. That tends to greatly weaken junipers.
Repotting can rejuvenate a tree that is metabolically slowing down because the pot is full of roots.

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You can pinch with your fingers (but not too much!), and….

Continue reading Junipers: Don’t Pinch Too Much!

Support the National Bonsai Foundation!

postcard

Just got this postcard in the mail from my friends and compatriots at the NBF. The tree is a formal upright Japanese White pine. Decent formal uprights are rare and this splendid samurai is far beyond just decent. So far in fact, that it takes me back to the stunningly powerful and surprisingly elegant monster trees (giant sequoias) that I had the good fortune to be bowled over by last fall. If you ever get a chance, visit Sequoias National Forest and make it point to spend some time with General Sherman. Meanwhile, speaking of chances….

Your chance to do something worthwhile
Here are some very affordable ways to support your National Bonsai and Penjing Museum:
Student: $15
Basic: $35
Organization: $50
Contributor: $50 – $99
Sponsor: $100 – $249
and so forth…

Send your check or CC info to:
National Bonsai Foundation
3501 New York Ave NE
Washington DC 20002

Join (or renew) online at:
bonsai-nbf.org

A Lost Treasure #3: Lakeside Planting

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Lakeside with Lingering Snow, our second in a series of plantings from Toshio Kawamoto’s Saikei classic. The trees are the same (cryptomeria) as in our last post from the book (creating a deep ravine planting), the pot is almost the same and the landscape is similar, though this one is softer. The focal point, the large single mountain stone that elevates the planting from good to extraordinary, is enhanced by a little touch of snow. The author doesn’t say what the snow is and it’s hard to tell from the photo. It would be ideal if it were simply part of the rock.

An invitation
The purpose of this section is to show how to create lakeside saikei. In fact, if you look at the drawings throughout the book it’s almost as if the author is inviting you to duplicate his work. If you don’t have the book, don’t worry, we’ll be posting photos and the drawings. Meanwhile you’ve got two to go on (deep ravine and this one).

lake2Front schemata. The pot is 26″ x 13″ (66cm x 33cm) unglazed oval by Tokoname. There are 27 cryptomeria that range from 2.5″ to 4.5″ (6cm to 11.5cm) tall. The soil is regular bonsai soil (he doesn’t say which regular bonsai soil, but the Japanese almost always use akadama or an akadama mix for conifers). The other materials are peat (it’s unclear how he uses it, see below), green moss and black river pebbles (the lake).

Continue reading A Lost Treasure #3: Lakeside Planting

$100 Contest: Eight Down, Two to Go

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Contest entry number eight by Jonathan Pessin. There’s something going on with this little juniper, though I’m not sure where’s it’s headed. Cascade? In any case, it’s potential will have a hard time developing in such a small pot. Most of the best shohin are grown in larger pots (or even in the ground) and then reduced. As it is, unrefined potential is probably the best description. I do like the heavy little trunk and think that over time and with some work the deadwood might add character. Maybe it could go all the way down to the base of the trunk and even be hollowed out some at the bottom. Is it just the photo, or is the wire already digging in?

Once again, let’s get this over with
Two more entries and we can award one of you a $100 gift certificate to Stone Lantern. What are you waiting for? Details here.

Back Savers #6: A Connoisseurs Gallery

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The gnarled, cracked deadwood tells this old olive’s story. It’s by Carlos Brandão of Portugal. Height: 7″ (18 cm). Yixing pot. Courtesy of The Art of Bonsai Project.

Just back from vacation…
There’s almost nothing better than landing in that familiar place we call home after that little break we call vacation. Until you go back to work that is and the magnitude of just how far behind you’ve fallen sinks in (you should see my inbox!).

…and just in time
However, there’s good news. Michelle at BUNJINJOURNAL.COM has alerted me to a most excellent (really!) shohin gallery at The Art of Bonsai Project. Not only is it most excellent (already said that, but still..) but it saves me the trouble of putting together my own post just when I need it most. So thanks Michelle and thanks also to the Art of Bonsai crew for lending a helping hand.

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The massive old trunk with it’s bumps and crack that tell an ancient story, captures our eye; but what about the fine branching on such a small tree? This type of refinement that is often overshadowed by thick trunks and dramatic deadwood, also tells a story; a story of time put in trimming and wiring and waiting for new shoots to grow. The artist is Mario Komsta and the tree is a Carpinus turczaninovi. Height 7″ (18 cm). Antique Chinese pot.

Want more?
Go here for the whole gallery

Shohin book

Bonsai Indoors: Ficus Gallery

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This powerfully built gem is from Ficus, the Exotic Bonsai by Jerry Meislik. It looks like a Benjamina cultivar, though I can’t be sure because my copy of the book is in Vermont and I’m not.

On the road number three
Still on the road and just have time to put together a little ficus gallery for your enjoyment. Two are from Jerry Meislik’s book, and the other two are from the web.

Big ficus fan
If you want to grow bonsai indoors (winter or year round), you’ll be hard pressed to find subjects better suited than ficus, though some varieties are better suited than others. A couple that I’ve had luck with are the Green Island (F. microcarpa) and the Too Little (F. benjamina ‘Too Little’). I’ve also had some luck with the Willow Leaf ficus (F neriifolia – there is some disagreement about the botanical name – here’s a discussion by Robert Kempinski, author of Introduction to Bonsai). If you have any experience with other varieties (successful or otherwise), let us know.

Continue reading Bonsai Indoors: Ficus Gallery

Master Potter Nakano Plus One Monterey Cypress

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On the road again
This is our second post from the road. This time it’s The Central California Coast with it’s gnarly wind-shaped Monterey cypresses. We’ll have more on those later after Amy and I have time to sort through hundred of photos. Meanwhile, here’s a few of Gyozan Nakano’s pots that I prepared before we left, plus one old natural bunjin cypress to whet your appetite.

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This little taste is pretty representative of what you might expect on California’s Central Coast. It’s from neartica.com by Charles Webber, California Academy of Sciences.

Continue reading Master Potter Nakano Plus One Monterey Cypress

A Couple Bonsai & A Point of Distinction

pinusparviflora2This gnarly old Japanese white pine (P. parviflora) is from a Japanese gallery that originally appeared in Bonsai Today issue 85. It looks a bit like something you might find on Point Lobos (more about that below). Artist unknown (to us, at least).

Somewhere on the Monterey Peninsula in search of sun and trees of distinction
Today a friend and I are going to visit Point Lobos. Hyperbole aside, it’s one of the most mind bendingly wildly beautiful places on this planet. I’ll keep you posted. Meanwhile, here are couple trees plus a taste of what’s in store for the day.

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A piece of Point Lobos. Shooting landscapes is a bit like shooting bonsai. No matter what you do, the shot is never as powerful as the real thing. Still, this might give you some idea of the extreme natural beauty that exists here and there on this planet. The photo is borrowed from the web. With a little luck we’ll have some good ones of our own soon.

Continue reading A Couple Bonsai & A Point of Distinction

Twelve Colors: Which One Works Best?

4pots1You pick ’em
This post shows a Satsuki azalea in twelve digitally colored* pots. Is one color better than the others? Are there several that work? Do they all work? One question that might come up is: what color are the flowers? Would your choice (or choices) be different if the flowers were white? Pink? Red? Coral? Two tone? Tricolor? The photos are from Bonsai Today issue 25. *Colors will vary depending upon our scanner, the settings on your screen and who knows what else? Don’t worry though, it’s all just play and there’s no one right answer.

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Saikei: Creating a Planting with a Deep Ravine

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This planting from Toshio Kawamoto’s Saikei classic (see previous post) is quite similar to the planting on the cover (below): same trees (cryptomeria), same (or nearly the same) pot and somewhat similar rocky ravine separating two tree and moss covered areas. The man difference is that this one shows a deep ravine. The rocks that define it represent tall vertical cliffs.

How to create a deep ravine saikei
The purpose of this section in the original book is to show how to create a deep ravine saikei, just like the one in the photo. In fact, if you look at the drawings, it’s almost as if the author is inviting you to duplicate his work.

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Continue reading Saikei: Creating a Planting with a Deep Ravine