Redwood Empire

Though the trunk on this two header monster expresses sheer power, the branches and foliage are surprisingly delicate and graceful. The tree is a Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens), a species* that happens to be the tallest tree on this planet (there are a few hidden in the wilds of northwest California that tower to as high as 400 feet – 122 meters). You don’t see that many top notch Redwood bonsai and, in my experience, most of the ones you do see come from members of the Redwood Empire Bonsai Society (who knew that the group that calls themselves Redwood Empire would have … Continue reading Redwood Empire

NEW 2018 Bonsai Calendars Are Here!

2018 Bonsai Calendars They’re here and they’re beautiful – Enjoy 26 powerful Japanese bonsai Next year you can cut off the dates & enjoy beautiful wall hangings 30″ x 14″ – 13 pages – made in Japan – Note: The photos shown here are from 2017 Our photographer is off for a couple days & we didn’t want to wait we’ll have our 2018 photos by Tuesday special extended one day! BONSAI AESTHETICS TOOL SPECIAL 30% OFF LIST PRICES extended until tomorrow Aesthetics tools for the budget minded bonsai enthusiast special ends Monday Nov 6th at noon EST

Bonsai – Small – Medium – Large

Based on the brilliant little apples and what look like apple leaves, you might conclude that this is a crab apple. The whole tree is shown below All the photos shown here are from a post titled Small – Medium – Large on Morten Albek’s Shohin-Europe blog, though medium and especially large bonsai are pretty scarce. Here what Morten wrote about them… “The Danish Bonsai Society – and the local group mainly – did an exhibition over the past weekend. I visited and found some very nice displays. Autumn is a great time to display, especially Shohin that express the seasons … Continue reading Bonsai – Small – Medium – Large

Bonsai Baby

Couldn’t resist this monster tree with its perfect baby accent. Based on the caption with the photo below and other compelling evidence, I think it’s a safe guess that this photo was taken at Luis Vallejo’s Museo De Bonsais Alcobendas and the baby belongs to Mariusz Janusz Komsta (or perhaps more accurately, Mariusz belongs to the baby) We’ve featured Luis Vallejo’s bonsai numerous times here on Bark (very recently too) and the same goes for Mariusz Komsta’s bonsai. But never quite like this. BONSAI AESTHETICS TOOL SPECIAL 30% OFF LIST PRICES Aesthetics tools for the budget minded bonsai enthusiast special ends Nov 5th at noon … Continue reading Bonsai Baby

Art Shots from a Famous Bonsai Museum

The bark on this tree speaks of age and combined with the low somewhat twisted shape of the trunks, creates a story of harsh conditions (most varieties of deciduous trees that grow in open easy conditions, tend to grow more upright). The photo was posted by Luis Vallejo. Based on the leaves, I’m guessing it’s a Chinese elm (but that’s just a guess… see below). All the photos shown here are from Luis Vallejo’s Museo De Bonsais Alcobendas. Some are what you might call art shots, with emphasis on features rather than the usual straight on full bodied front shots. Luis doesn’t identify the trees, so I’m … Continue reading Art Shots from a Famous Bonsai Museum

Shimpaku Bonsai Before & After

This Shimpaku juniper before and after with it’s striking deadwood, single living vein and masterfully redesigned crown (not to mention the perfectly chosen pot), stands out as an impressive work of bonsai art. The artist is Naoki Maeoka. At first glance you might call this a ‘maintenance’ before & after, where an already established bonsai is simply brought back to it’s original beauty with some trimming, wiring and cleaning up. But as soon as you take a closer look, it’s obvious that there’s more going on than just that. Continued below… Bonsai Fertilizer Special 30% OFF LIST PRICES In addition to Green Dream & other … Continue reading Shimpaku Bonsai Before & After

More Great Shots from Bonsai San

The way the foliage clings to the trunk gives this tree a wild unstyled look. The deadwood and aged bark don’t hurt this effect either. I lifted the photo from Harry Harrington’s timeline. Here’s Harry’s caption… “This was one of my personal favourite trees in the Show (one of many), a Pinus mugo/Mugo Pine by Václav Novák in a Klika-Kuratkova bonsai pot.” The internet is swamped with great photos from the just completed European Bonsai San Show. Rather than attempting to show them all we’ll settle for the ones we’ve already posted (here and here) and the ones in this post that we borrowed from Harry Harrington. Continued … Continue reading More Great Shots from Bonsai San

Japanese Maple Bonsai Adventure

We’ve been indulging our annual fall color fixation lately, so why one one more… albeit a subtle one? This Japanese maple is from Korean nursery-grown stock. We found it on Walter Pall’s Bonsai Adventures blog. You might notice how the two smaller trees lend perspective and exaggerate the effect of the main tree. Monday morning and pressed for time, so we’ll take a little shortcut. This post originally appeared one year ago today, with a little value added Back in the mid-to-late 20th century, when the average person had no idea what the art of bonsai was, almost all bonsai in … Continue reading Japanese Maple Bonsai Adventure

Best Conifer, Best Artist, Best in Show

Andres Alvarez Iglesias just won Best Conifer, Best Artist and Best in Show for this exquisitely powerful and distinctive Scots pine at the European Bonsai San Show in Saulieu France. Congratulations to Andres Alvarex Iglesias for a great tree and a great honor!… Here’s facebook’s translation (lightly edited) of what Andres wrote today about winning Best Conifer, Best Artist and Best in Show at the European Bonsai San Show… “It’s difficult to explain with words the feelings that I have in this moment. Thanks to every body who made it possible!!!” Andres’ original Spanish is below Continued below… 7.95 FOR 500 GRAM ROLLS OF BONSAI WIRE IS TOO GOOD TO … Continue reading Best Conifer, Best Artist, Best in Show

Another Brilliant Bonsai in Full Fall Foliage & 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. Suthin’s luminous little tree above plays well with our ongoing fall foliage theme, while the rest of the trees shown here, play well with our long standing appreciation of Suthin’s bonsai. Continued below… Two NEW Yoshiaki Sales Yoshiaki Japanese Bonsai Wire 40% OFF LIST PRICE YOSHIAKI JAPANESE BONSAI hand tools 40% OFF LIST PRICE Yoshiaki, a leading name in Japanese Bonsai Products This Tsukomo cypress-on-a-half-shell was offered … Continue reading Another Brilliant Bonsai in Full Fall Foliage & Other Famous Trees