Some Silly Blog’s Tips for Repotting

A Camellia from a transplanting article in Bonsai Today issue 96. Some silly blog? Okay, it’s not really a silly blog. In fact Michael Hagedorns’ Crataegus Bonsai is one of the best blogs around. It’s just that Michael referred to it as a silly blog and it struck me as a catchy title for this post (after four years of posting 3-4 times a week, desperation sets in). Anyway, Michael’s Crataegus’ post on repotting is definitely worth a look. To peak your interest, here are two of Michael’s seven repotting tips: “2. As a general rule, don’t bare-root your trees. … Continue reading Some Silly Blog’s Tips for Repotting

Eye Popping Color, Some Spring Shows with a Northern California Bias & Boreal Bonsai

Great tree, great pot. It belongs to Wolfgang Putz. The pot is by Ingrid Kralovec. At the risk of stating the obvious, I’ll venture that it’s the eye popping color, the muscular well-gnarled lower trunk and the soft glow of the pot that caught your eye (in exactly that order no less). The tree is a Korean hornbeam. The botanical name is Carpinus turczaninowii (though you’ll sometimes see them referred to as Carpinus coreana). So many shows, so little… time, money, get up and go?. Though we just did a post about some upcoming bonsai shows, I’ve decided to follow … Continue reading Eye Popping Color, Some Spring Shows with a Northern California Bias & Boreal Bonsai

Bonsai Events, Dirty Pick Ups and a Few Loose Ends

This pine (looks like a Japanese white; Pinus parviflora) is from the 2011 Taikan-ten bonsai exhibition in Japan. The photo was borrowed from Empire Bonsai. You don’t see that many great multiple-trunk bonsai (here’s another one we posted recently) and I think this one qualifies. It’s hard to tell from this angle if all the trunks are sharing a single root-system. It could be a twin-trunk tree and a triple-trunk clump combined. Upcoming events. It’s time to catch up on some upcoming bonsai events and some other loose ends. Which reminds me, if you’d like to promote an event, just … Continue reading Bonsai Events, Dirty Pick Ups and a Few Loose Ends

It’s No Secret

Michael Hagedorn worked on this spectacular Ezo spruce while I labored trying to follow his wiring instructions. He used copper wire because it’s a conifer (he uses aluminum wire on deciduous trees) and he frequently stopped to mist the foliage as he went, explaining that spruces are prone to dropping needles when disturbed and that spraying helps prevent this. I don’t think it’s a secret that Michael Hagedorn is an elite bonsai artists. I know this in part because I spend a lot of time looking at bonsai from around the world. Also, when I talk to other world-class bonsai … Continue reading It’s No Secret

Lost & Found

Shadow dance. Here’s one that we didn’t show on our now vanished post (see below). The tree was on display at the Noelanders Trophy Exhibition and the image is courtesy Crataegus Bonsai, as are all the images in this post. I don’t know who the artist is. One more time. A week or so ago I accidentally deleted a post on the Noelander Trophy Exhibit. I had borrowed the images from Crataegus Bonsai, so I thought I’d go through and post some again, including one that was posted before. Speaking of Crataegus Bonsai, I just finished studying wiring with Mr. … Continue reading Lost & Found

There’s Something About Shohin

Itoigawa juniper by Michael Hagedorn. Michael is one of our favorite American bonsai artists. If you haven’t visited his site (Crataegus Bonsai) this is as good a time as any. BTW: Michael is the author of Post-Dated – The Schooling of an Irreverent Bonsai Monk a fascinating read, bonsai or otherwise. The advantages of Shohin (small) Bonsai On the back of our Stone Lantern book Majesty in Miniature; Shohin Bonsai (by Morten Albek) it says “When compared to large bonsai, Shohin cost less, take less time to develop, take less space, are easier to move, and are less apt to … Continue reading There’s Something About Shohin

Digging Around Pays Off

You can find this monarch of bunjin pines and other great trees on Michael Hagedorn’s Crataegus Bonsai website. This one is from the 2004 Taikan Ten show in Japan and is part of an article called Japanese Shows that Michael posted in 2008 (the caption says White pine; however, it looks like a Black pine to me). Digging around Sometimes digging around through old material pays off (if you call 2008 old). I found this powerful, stately old pine (above) and several other magnificent trees while digging around Michael Hagedorn’s postings on Crataegus Bonsai. It’s part of a posting called … Continue reading Digging Around Pays Off