Bonsai Wire, Your Choice: Copper or Aluminum? Japanese or Chinese?

Like most bonsai, this one has been wired. In fact, there’s visible wire on it right now. It’s a Shimpaku that’s from a chapter in our Masters’ Series Juniper book, titled Keiko Tamaki’s Deft Touch. It’s time to reach back into our archives once again (from May, 2013). This time our motives are almost purely commercial. We’ve just put up a big Bonsai Wire Sale (20% to 30% off all wire) and that’s something you should know about. BTW: I think this post is worth re-posting even without our commercial motives; you might find the information useful, and I’m sure … Continue reading Bonsai Wire, Your Choice: Copper or Aluminum? Japanese or Chinese?

Raw Energy & Backwards Bonsai

This powerful Nea buxifolia by Nelson Hernandez won 3rd place in the 2013 World Bonsai Federation Bonsai Photo Contest. You don’t see too many Nea bonsai outside the tropics, though they do pop up from time to time. Buxifolia means ‘box leaf ‘or ‘boxwood leaf’ which seems suitable for a variety with such tiny leaves. This one is resides in Puerto Rico. This and the other two photos in this post are from the North American Bonsai Federation. Third first? I’m not trying to make a statement by showing the 2013 WBFF photo contest third place tree first and the … Continue reading Raw Energy & Backwards Bonsai

The Art & Science of Watering

This drawing is from our Masters’ Series book; Junipers, Growing & Styling Juniper Bonsai. Continuing with our mid-summer archival borrowing program, here’s a post that originally appeared way back in 2009. A perfect complement to this post is a post about summer misting (hamisu) by Michael Hagedorn. The more you know about watering, the better. Without timely, intelligent watering, any plant in a container is at risk. The more you know about watering, the better. But first, a quick word from our sponsor: Check out our big Summer Book Sale at Stone Lantern. 20% to 25% off of our already … Continue reading The Art & Science of Watering

Junipers: Don’t Pinch Too Much!

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. Time for another Summer Rerun (this post originally appeared in 2010). This works because … Continue reading Junipers: Don’t Pinch Too Much!

An All-Time Favorite

After. Finished for the moment. The challenge was for Masahiko Kimura to style a bunjin (literati) bonsai with only one branch (see below for where he started). Its uniqueness lies in its striking simplicity. It’s a Japanese red pine (Pinus densiflora). From a December 2009 post and before that from our Masters’ Series The Magician, the Bonsai Art of Kimura 2 (before that it appeared in Bonsai Today issue 69). This tree and its story are among our all-time favorites . Though it’s hard to say what Kimura would have done with this tangled-up bunjin had he not been challenged … Continue reading An All-Time Favorite

A Mind Bending Transformation

You’ll never guess what happened to this tree (unless you’ve seen our Masters’ Series Juniper book or Bonsai Today issue 21). Here’s a hint: it was flipped upside down somewhere along the way from where it started (below) to where it ended (above). The artist is Masahiko Kimura, aka The Magician. Bonsai Today back issues and our Masters’ Series books present literally hundreds of bonsai techniques. Some are quite simple and suitable for any beginner. Many others are fairly advanced, though doable if you pay close attention and take your time. And then there are the few techniques that no … Continue reading A Mind Bending Transformation

More Root-on-Rock Bonsai & What’s the Difference?

This is what can happen when you have a great rock and excellent plant material to work with (a little skill doesn’t hurt either). It’s by Norboru Kaneko, from our Masters’ Series Juniper book. Last post we featured the development of a root-on-rock planting by Norboru Kaneko from our Masters’ Series Juniper book. Here are two more of his plantings (top and bottom) plus one from Andolfo Bonsai for your enjoyment. If you search for root-on-rock bonsai, what you’ll find, with a few exceptions, are root-over-rock bonsai. I suspect the reason for this is that root-over-rock, though they take longer, … Continue reading More Root-on-Rock Bonsai & What’s the Difference?

Root-On-Rock Bonsai

The result. It’s a Needle juniper (with secondary plants and moss) root-on-rock planting by Noboru Kaneko. All the photos in this post are from our Masters’ Series Juniper Bonsai book. Something I’ve noticed in my countless hours of internet bonsai journeys, is how seldom you see good root-on-rock bonsai (or root-over-rock bonsai for that matter). I don’t know if this is because this style bonsai has fallen out of favor, or if it’s because accomplishing a good root-on-rock is no mean feat, so most people simply don’t try. Or they try and fail. And then there’s the issue of finding … Continue reading Root-On-Rock Bonsai

Wire: What’s the Difference?

Like most bonsai, this one has been wired. In fact, there’s visible wire on it right now. It’s a Shimpaku that’s from a chapter in our Masters’ Series Juniper book, titled Keiko Tamaki’s Deft Touch. Most bonsai are wired at some stage in their development. In fact, bonsai that have been around for a long time may have been wired repeatedly over the years. There are very good reasons for this, not the least of which is, it is often very difficult to get decent results without wire. There’s much more that be can said about this but we’ll leave … Continue reading Wire: What’s the Difference?

Still Sleeping at the Switch

Do you recognize this award winning Shimpaku juniper? It appears in Fine Bonsai, Art and Nature (and older version is in the gallery of our Masters Series Juniper book). It belongs to Masahiko Kimura. The photo is by Jonathan Singer, as are all three photos in this post and all of the photos in Fine Bonsai. The three trees shown here are all from a review of the book Fine Bonsai, Art and Nature, that appears at Smithsonian.com. We were alerted to the review by Matt Calcavecchia in the comments on a recent post (scroll down to the last tree … Continue reading Still Sleeping at the Switch