Tiny Bonsai & Colossal New Book Special

I’ve never seen such a small bonsai with so much deadwood. Looks like it a must be a tanuki (Phoenix graft). There no varieties given in English where I found this, but it’s pretty clear that this is a Shimpaku juniper There’s something about very small bonsai. Especially when they are hand held… a good way to tell just how small they are. There’s also something about discovering a new (to me at least) bonsai artist. Even if I can’t read their name (there is a hint in their email address – see below) COLOSSAL NEW BOOK SPECIAL 30% to … Continue reading Tiny Bonsai & Colossal New Book Special

Brilliant Bonsai in Full Fall Colors & Other Famous Trees

Always nice to lead with a little color. This cheerful full fall color Trident maple belonged to Suthin Sukosolvisit when we first showed it way back in 2009. I don’t know who the lucky owner is now Still trying to catch up from vacation so it’s archive time again. I used to have a 30 hour a week office person, but now it’s just me (with a little help from a friend), so keeping up, let alone catching up, requires more time, though new technology and other innovations help, but only to a point. The photo at the top of this post originally … Continue reading Brilliant Bonsai in Full Fall Colors & Other Famous Trees

Pomegranate Bonsai in Full Fall Color

You can find this brilliant, full fall color Pomegranate (Punica granatum)and a whole host of other powerful bonsai at Bonsai Mirai. I’m on vacation so we’ll resort to our old tricks. This one originally appeared October of last year. It’s the beginning of fall color time at home, so the time is right I’ve been meaning to feature Ryan Neil’s Bonsai Mirai since we saw them at the 6th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibiton with their vendor’s display of some of the best trees in the building (including the display area). If you don’t know Bonsai Mirai, you’re in for a treat. And if you’re … Continue reading Pomegranate Bonsai in Full Fall Color

One Trunk Dead, the Other Alive & the Importance of Identification

Pine with parallel slanting trunks that start as a single tree and split at the base. One trunk dead, the other alive. It caught my attention because it’s a somewhat unusual slanting tree with the pot and the visual weight of the foliage balancing each other perfectly. This and the other photos shown here were posted by Scott Lee. The caption reads Back in the studio with Peter Tea and Bonsai Kazem #japaneseart Sticking with Scott Lee (see yesterday’s post) we’ve got three photos that he posted on facebook recently. Unfortunately, none are identified. I’m not sure why so many people put … Continue reading One Trunk Dead, the Other Alive & the Importance of Identification

Another Impressive Before & After Bonsai Transformation

Though we often expect miracles when it comes to transforming mediocre or otherwise undeveloped bonsai into something as impressive as this one, in reality seven years strikes me as about right amount of time for such a radical transformation. The artist is Alfredo Salaccione and the tree is a Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris). Today’s before and after Scots pine is rather famous. So famous that is has a name of its own – Black Desire (Desiderio Nero).* Actually, I’ve seen not-so-famous trees that have been given names, but in this case I think famous works – at least in Europe – as witnessed … Continue reading Another Impressive Before & After Bonsai Transformation

Deconstructing Nacho

Even though Nacho Marin doesn’t mention the species, the origin of the crazy pot or give any indication of the tree’s size, I couldn’t resist. Here’s Nacho’s caption… “El estudio de la dinamica y el movimiento en el proceso de la deconstruccion de la imagen siempre arroja resultados impactantes.” And here’s my translation… “The study of the dynamics and movement in the process of deconstructing the image, always yields impressive results” All the images in this post are from Nacho’s timeline It has been awhile since we visited Nacho Marin, someone who was an accomplished artist before he started with bonsai. This … Continue reading Deconstructing Nacho

One More Time – A Spectacular Bonsai Event

Kuhen Smith’s Rough bark Japanese maple won the Finest Japanese Style Display at the 6th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition. Unfortunately you can’t make out the bark in this photo. No blame to Oscar Jonker, the photographer. The lighting in the display area was good for viewing but not necessarily for photos. I cropped Oscar original. The original is below Today, it’s the final two prize winning bonsai at the 6th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition. And some more photos by (or of) Candy Shirey. I hope you have enjoyed the series and maybe this will encourage you to make the trip to Rochester in 2020 Thanks to … Continue reading One More Time – A Spectacular Bonsai Event

Natural Bonsai Winner

Mark Arpag’s American larch won the All American Bonsai award at the 6th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition. The rough hewn pot and stand (looks like a piece of wood), along with the wild ground cover, provide the perfect complement to the natural feel of the tree. I cropped Oscar Jonker’s photo for closer look at the tree. The original photo is below Just one tree today in our series on the prize winning bonsai at the 6th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition. It’s a American larch (Larix laricina) and its natural untamed look strikes me as the right choice for this species. This might be because … Continue reading Natural Bonsai Winner

Two More Award Winning Bonsai Favorites

I like the undulating parallel living veins on Jeremiah Lee’s ABS award winning Sierra juniper (Juniperus occidentalis). I cropped the original (see below) for a closer look Continuing with the prize winning bonsai from the 6th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition, today we’ve got Oscar Jonker’s photos of the winning ABS Award Bonsai and the Finest Tropical Bonsai POTTING SPECIAL ENDS SUNDAY 30% OFF LIST ON OUR HIGH IMPACT PLASTIC BONSAI POTS 30% OFF LIST ON BONSAI SOIL & SOIL INGREDIENTS special ends tomorrow, Sunday Sept 16th at 11:59pm EDT – This one of my favorites. For starters its sheer size is a mind stopper. I don’t know the … Continue reading Two More Award Winning Bonsai Favorites

Winning Shohin & Mame Bonsai

The winner of the Finest Mame Bonsai at the 6th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition. It’s a Willow leaf ficus (Ficus neriifolia) that belongs to Johnson Teh. No dimensions are given, but some sources list mame as up to 4″ (10cm) tall. Others go a little taller. Oscar Jonker took the photo. I cropped it for a closer look. Oscar’s original is below Continuing with the prize winning bonsai from the 6th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition, today we’ve got Oscar Jonker’s photos of the winning Mame bonsai and the winning Shohin display NEW KOYO JAPANESE TOOL SPECIAL 30% OFF LIST PRICES ON ALL KOYO TOOLS – The winner … Continue reading Winning Shohin & Mame Bonsai