These simple graphics show three solutions to three common branching problems. From Bonsai Today issue 58.
Green Workshops present and past
Our Green Workshop series is geared for beginners in the art of bonsai. Some earlier Green Workshops are: Wiring basics (using a turnbuckle); Wiring a Young Tree; Fall Transplanting: Pro & Cons; Yet Another Watering Problem; Bonsai Branching Basics; A Simple Wiring Video, and more (just type Green Workshops in search).
This perfectly ramified, wonderfully balanced, natural beauty belongs to Min Hsuan Lo (Min is his family name) of Taiwan. I received it as an email greeting this morning.
Well, actually Merry Christmas
Just to set the record staight, Mr Min’s greeting actually said ‘Merry Christmas and Happy New Year,’ rather than the ‘Holiday Greeting’ you see above.
Min Hsuan Lo. A happy and very talented bonsai artist at work.
If you factor in our site wide sale…
…the discount is more than 50%. How much more depends upon your order (the larger your order, the bigger the discount). Calendars here
Last shipping day before the 25th…
…is tomorrow (Monday the 21st). Orders must be received by 11am Eastern time Monday for Monday shipment.
Our Japanese garden calendar is also 50% off
You like unconventional? Crazy? How about daring and masterful? Notice how the color and design of the pot plays with the wild shari (deadwood) and the small touch of moss on the left mirrors the foliage. Just another bonsai from left field by crafty old Nick Lenz, master left fielder, author, and preeminent (whatever that means) master of cedars, larches and other collected North American gems. This photo is from North American Bonsai (American Bonsai Society – compiled and edited by Martin Schmalenberg), now on sale at Stone Lantern.
When is a cedar not really a cedar?
The tree featured here is commonly called a Northern (or Eastern) white cedar, when in fact it’s actually a variety of arborvitae (botanical name; Thuja occidentalis). Lots of trees that aren’t cedars are called cedar, including at least one juniper (Eastern red cedar; Juniperus virginiana), one false cypress (Atlantic white cedar; Chamaecyparis thyoides), the California Incense cedar (Calocedrus decurrens), Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica) and no doubt others. What most of these share is fan shaped foliage (like Nick’s tree above). Interestingly, true cedars (Cedrus) don’t have fan shaped foliage. Confused? You’re not alone.
When is a cedar a really cedar?
There are a handful of true cedars (Cedrus) in the world, the best known of which are: the Deodar cedar (C. deodara) from the Himalayas, and two from the Mediterranean: the Lebanon cedar (C. libani) and the Atlas cedar (C, atlantica).
An earlier (less professional) photo of the same tree. You can find this one in Nick’s excellent book on collecting bonsai, Bonsai from the Wild (Stone Lantern Publishing).
After. January, 2009 at Bay Island Bonsai’s show “An Exhibit of Fine Bonsai.” If you go to Styling on Bonsai Boon you can see how Boon got from before (below) to here.
Another example of a formidable bonsai artist’s expertise
We’ve featured Boon Manakitivipart on this blog before, and for good reason. He’s a highly accomplished bonsai artist and teacher whose enthusiasm and skill has influenced a generation of aspiring Western bonsai artists. If you are serious about improving your skills, you might want to check out Boon’s intensives.
Before. June 2001. Sierra juniper (no doubt collected somewhere in California’s Sierra Nevada range). For a range of useful information on Juniper bonsai, see our Masters’ Series Juniper book.
If you know the variety of this tiny fruited persimmon (Diospyros kaki), let me know. The photo is from Bonsai Today issue 39. When I first saw it, I figured ‘kaki’ was the variety, but no such luck. ‘Kaki’ just means persimmon in Japanese. Height 33″ (84cm).
Dwarf flowers and fruit
You can make leaves smaller by defoliation (cutting leaves off an entire tree, or section of a tree, resulting in a second, or even third crop of smaller leaves) and to some extent by pruning, confining the roots, limiting water and nutrients, and perhaps other means. But dwarf fruit and flowers are the result of genetic modification. No mechanical means will work, no matter how hard you try. This is why you’ll sometimes see large flowers or fruit on very small bonsai (see below).
This Chinese quince (Pseudocydonia sinensis) is from the cover of Bonsai Today issue 18. Though the tree is small (height 28″), the fruit is full size. Normally, so many large fruit on such a small tree would create too much stress. In this case the fruit were probably left on for show and then removed to preserve the strength of the tree.
More specifically at the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum (through Dec 20th)
Here’s what our good friends and colleagues at the NB&PM have to say about their Winter Silhouettes Exhibit: Winter is the best time to enjoy the true mastery of the art of bonsai by observing the “bare bones” of the trees. With no leaves, the structure of a deciduous bonsai reveals how well the artist has created his miniaturized version of nature. The bonsai curator has selected trees from the museum’s permanent collection for a formal display of these living artworks. Other trees from the permanent collection will be on view throughout the winter in the Chinese Pavilion and the Tropical Greenhouse. Free.
If you have a chance…
…go! It’s a great collection and if you are a citizen of the US, it’s yours and it’s excellent, so you might as well enjoy it. And if you are not a citizen, we’d love to have you visit!
This drawing by Kihara Susuma is from an article entitled ‘Exploring a Collected Needle Juniper’ that appears in Bonsai Today issue 98.
Back issues of Bonsai Today…
…are a great place to study the art of bonsai. Each issue presents a wealth of bonsai art and technique by many of the world greatest masters and teachers.
Issue 98 table of contents
Refining a Satuki Azalea – Beginner’s Section: If You Care – Bonsai Gallery – Beginner’s Section: Trees in Nature – Review: Three Bonsai DVDs – The Pottery of Max Braverman – Styling a California Live Oak – Exploring a Collected Needle Juniper – Penjing: A Chinese Renaissance
You can find this in-training collected Larch in Bonsai from the Wild by Larch Master Nick Lenz (Stone Lantern Publishing). Good tapers on larches are hard to come by. This exceptionally strong taper is the result of what Nick calls a ‘swamp layer.’ For details see the chapter on larches in Bonsai from the Wild (THE book on collecting).
Planting two trunks together that diverge as they ascend is a good way to create the appearance of taper. This image is from an article by Nick Lenz entitled Larch with Taper, that appears in The Bonsai Journal.
Check out our previous post on larches: In Praise of the American Larch: aka the Tamarack
Before you make a decision on what might be one of your most important bonsai investments yet, you can do a little research by checking out Marco Invernizzi’s Ichiban site. In addition to being one of the most accomplished and influential Western bonsai artists, Marco is the designer of the Ichiban.
