Putz Pines & Pots

The rugged and somewhat worn look of the pot mirrors the well-aged bark and overall rugged feel of this European black pine (Pinus nigra Austriaca). All the photos in this post are from Wolfgang Putz’ Bonsaigalerie (a click well worth making). It’s archive time again… Sunday morning, sunny in Vermont and I need to get outside. This post originally appeared in August 2012. The time is ripe This isn’t the first time we’ve featured the bonsai of Wolfgang Putz, but it’s the first time since our original backyard bonsai feature (way back in 2009) that we’ve dedicated a whole post … Continue reading Putz Pines & Pots

Bonsai, Deadwood & Another World Series Win

Deadwood! Just before we originally featured this post (August 2012), we showed a couple of Serge Clemence’ bonsai in a post on deadwood. I guess the reason I didn’t include this Mugo pine in that post is because Serge has so many trees with powerful deadwood. Still…. Got excited about the SF Giants winning the world series last night and ended up sleeping until 9:00am this morning when I was shocked awake by a vicious horn blast from a truck delivering our 2015 calendars all the way from Japan (soil sieves –large & small – turntables and watering cans too). … Continue reading Bonsai, Deadwood & Another World Series Win

Bonsai Stock & Increasingly Severe Restrictions

This impressive and rather massive Mugo pine belongs to Walter Pall. Like the other photos in this post (and the last post) it was taken at the 2014 Noelanders Trophy by Sandor Papp. Continued from our last post… One reasons European bonsai is more developed than North American bonsai is more relaxed import regulations. Much of the high quality stock that has appeared in Europe over the last fifty years or so originally came from Asia. Though some high quality stock has been imported into North America, the U.S.has always had more restrictive plant import laws and over the last … Continue reading Bonsai Stock & Increasingly Severe Restrictions

Pine Boom

The more I look at this tree, the more I like it. It’s a Japanese white pine by Susumo Sudo. Its rugged, naturally aged look (enhanced by the pot and ground cover) stands in perfect contrast to its simple, graceful lines. From our Masters’ Series Pine book. Pine Boom? As far as I know, there is no Pine Boom. I was trying to type Pine Book as a filler until a more suitable name for this post came to me. Then, viola, there it was; Pine Boom. Anyway, I’m trying to pull myself to together to catch a plane, so, … Continue reading Pine Boom

Deadwood, More Deadwood & A Beautiful Weekend

Deadwood! Two weeks ago we featured a couple of Serge Clemence’ bonsai in a post on deadwood. I guess the reason I didn’t include this Mugo pine in that post is because Serge has so many trees with powerful deadwood. Still…. More deadwood! I found this powerful tree on Bonsai Tonight. It’s from the Redwood Empire Bonsai Society‘s 29th annual show that took place in Santa Rosa CA recently. When you see a tree like this and others in the show, it’s hard not to be struck by just how far north American bonsai has come in few short … Continue reading Deadwood, More Deadwood & A Beautiful Weekend

Putz Pines

The rugged and somewhat worn look of the pot mirrors the well-aged bark and overall rugged feel of this European black pine (Pinus nigra Austriaca). All the photos in this post are from Wolfgang Putz’ Bonsaigalerie (a click well worth making). The time is ripe This isn’t the first time we’ve featured the bonsai of Wolfgang Putz, but it’s the first time since our original backyard bonsai feature (way back in 2009) that we’ve dedicated a whole post to Wolfgang’s trees. So the time is ripe. Yamadori pine Based on what you can see here and other trees in his … Continue reading Putz Pines

Restyling a Mugo, Offing a Shari, Bonsai Tourists, More Bonsai Rafting & Some Excellent Events

This old beauty is one of hundreds of quality bonsai that was featured at the 2nd U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition. It’s a Nikko Satsuki Azalea that belongs to The Kennett Collection. It originally belonged to Kunio Kobayashi who started it by planting smaller trees next to each other. The 3rd U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition takes place June 9th and 10th in Rochester NY. It’s not too late to sign up. Now half price. Order this collector’s set from the first two U.S. National Bonsai Exhibitions and save 50% It’s not a bonsai, but it is a sweet photo. … Continue reading Restyling a Mugo, Offing a Shari, Bonsai Tourists, More Bonsai Rafting & Some Excellent Events

Revisiting a Powerful Mugo Pine & Contemplating Two Mysteries

The first mystery. Last time we featured this tree ( a few posts back) I found it on Carlos van der Vaart’s facebook photos (it’s also on his website’s gallery). This time it turned up on Mauro Stemberger’s website as a lead tree on ‘refinishing tips‘. So whose tree is it? Another mystery If you compare this latest iteration (above) with the earlier one (below), it’d easy to see how tree has been improved; the large hanging jin was pushed away from the trunk and twisted a little. The mystery here is; how was such a dramatic change accomplished with … Continue reading Revisiting a Powerful Mugo Pine & Contemplating Two Mysteries

Mugo Pines: A Well Kept Secret

This powerful, well groomed yet craggy Mugo pine jumps off the page. It would be exceptional even if it didn’t have that wild and strange piece of deadwood that doubles back on the trunk; a feature that makes this tree uniquely distinctive and even more wonderful than it would be anyway (though I might remove the straight stick at the end that goes behind the trunk). I might also take issue with the crown; it’s a touch too perfectly groomed and symmetrical for my taste, but still, this is an exceptional bonsai. Worthy of the finest collections anywhere. I found … Continue reading Mugo Pines: A Well Kept Secret

Mugos by Mother Nature & Georg Reinhard

The sculpted look. This Mugo pine by Georg Reinhard combines wildness and elegance with its flowing lines and almost perfectly shaped robust live growth. I particularly like the way the deadwood twists and turns all the way back down to soil and the jagged lightening bolt on the left. Though I know that some people take issue with highly sculpted deadwood, this is so well done that I can’t imagine even the most dogmatic proponents of the naturalistic look being too worked up about it. There are Mugos, and then there are Mugos… I don’t think we ever see Mugo … Continue reading Mugos by Mother Nature & Georg Reinhard