Selling Out & Going Fast

This gracefully flowing Hornbeam is from Bonsai Today issue 94. It seems to me that deciduous bonsai are somewhat under-appreciated and under-explored in the west. Along those lines (so to speak) you might notice the near perfect taper from the base of the trunk out to tip of each twig. This level of detailed development is still somewhat rare in Western deciduous bonsai, but quite common in Japan. Bonsai Today issues are now 75% off. We just increased the discount to 75% off on Bonsai Today back issues. In case you’re not familiar with the wonders of Bonsai Today, each … Continue reading Selling Out & Going Fast

Bonsai Globetrotting, Make Your Own Rock, A Wild & Wonderful Hornbeam, The World’s Most Amazing Garden

This powerful pine with its lush, full (almost yellow on my screen) canopy that’s shaped more like something you’d see on a deciduous tree (or a roof on an abstract pagoda), makes little attempt to appear like a pine in nature. Still, naturalistic or not, it’s hard to deny how the power of its trunk and the lush beauty of its canopy complement each other. I found it here on facebook. It looks like it’s part of a Japanese bonsai nursery, but I couldn’t find any verification. Dan Robinson’s wild and wonderful Hornbeam resides at the Pacific Rim Bonsai … Continue reading Bonsai Globetrotting, Make Your Own Rock, A Wild & Wonderful Hornbeam, The World’s Most Amazing Garden

Bonsai Today Back Issues 65% off

This Hornbeam appears in a bonsai gallery in Bonsai Today issue 94. Get yours before they are gone For years Bonsai Today was the premier English language bonsai magazine. Fortunately we still have a selection of back issues that feature how-to articles and world class bonsai from most of the world’s greatest bonsai masters (East and West). However, we are determined to sell them all to make space for our expanding bonsai tool and wire selection. So don’t wait! Many issues are already gone and many others will be gone soon. And yes, you read it correctly, that’s 65% off … Continue reading Bonsai Today Back Issues 65% off

That Natural Look

Natural beauty in fall color with a single root system and multiple trunks. Another facebook find (somewhat crudely cropped for a closer look and to eliminate background distraction – the uncropped original is below). It looks like it might be a hornbeam, but that’s just a guess. Moss I’m not sure about the moss. It look good, but can’t be that healthy for the tree in terms of aeration and related issues. Normally, it’s better to leave some exposed soil. My guess is that it’s just for show and some of it will be removed later. That natural look A … Continue reading That Natural Look

Imperfect, Yet Compelling

Imperfect, unfinished and unbalanced… yet, still compelling in its naturalness and with its luminous foliage, aged bark and deadwood (if you ignore the unfinished jin at the top). By Andrei Darusenkov. Just a little luck This larch is a little different from the one in our last post, which featured a near perfect little collected larch (the kind you could spend a lifetime looking for). This one shows a type tree that us ordinary collectors with our limited experience and just a little luck might find sometime. Taking a few liberties and indulging in a little imagination I don’t know … Continue reading Imperfect, Yet Compelling

Better Now? Revisiting Mario’s Famous Hornbeam

The latest incarnation of Mario Komsta’s extraordinary and now somewhat famous Hornbeam. Balance Is the balance better now (comparing the photo above with the earlier photo immediately below)? Does the elongated first branch (left) help to counter balance the slight rightward lean of the apex? The base of the trunk The base of the trunk appears stronger in the earlier photo below. Is it just the photo, or does the extended branching and the new pot diminish the power of the base? Ramification No matter what our thoughts about balance and the base of the trunk, the impeccable patience and … Continue reading Better Now? Revisiting Mario’s Famous Hornbeam

The Attribution Question

This is a wonderful tree and the presentation is quite good (though it is difficult to make out the companion plant and some of the details on the main tree). I think it might be a hornbeam. It’s from Bonsaimania on facebook. All it says is: La foto de este bonsái pertenece al álbum de Jordi Escaler (The photo belongs to Jordi Escaler’s album). Do you think this tree belongs to Jordi? When I tried to follow the link provided, ‘content unavailable’ came up. When I searched Jordi Escaler bonsai, I struck out. Attribution would be good, no? Facebook and … Continue reading The Attribution Question

Super Mario

Hornbeam (Soro in Japanese) by Mario Komsta. Mario Komsta is his name Once upon a time, when I was the publisher/editor of Bonsai Today, we featured an article by a rising young European bonsai star (issue 102 – we also featured him in issue 105). His name was Mario Jano. Or so we thought. Turns out, we were wrong (for the whole story see Bonsai Today issue 104 page 53). His name was, and remains Mario Komsta, and judging by the photos here (there’s more on his site) he’s a bonsai star that has fully risen. Japanese winterberrry (Umemodoki). Another … Continue reading Super Mario

Fall Color: Writ Small

Trident maple from the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum, North American Collection in Washington DC. Donated by Brussel Martin. You can tell by the color It’s most definitely fall here in Vermont (you can tell by the color and the swoonable luminous sunny days). But even though our fall color is renowned, we’re not the only place with such good fortune. Washington DC, Japan, Germany, pretty much everywhere there are distinct seasons have their own psychedelic displays. This time it’s a Japanese wax tree (Rhus succedanea) in Japan. The photo is from Bonsai Today issue 26. Fall color in Germany. … Continue reading Fall Color: Writ Small

That Nasty Summer Heat Wave

Both photos in this post are courtesy of Randy Clark of the Bonsai Learning Center. More to come? We just received the article below from Randy Clark of the Bonsai Learning Center in North Carolina on how to deal with the extreme heat that much of the country has been experiencing this summer. I may be a little late for those of us in the Northeast (at least here in northern Vermont), but for those of you further south, there may be more to come. Summer in the Carolinas by Randy Clark The Southeastern US is suffering from the heat … Continue reading That Nasty Summer Heat Wave