Bonsai Beasts of the Southern Wild

Beast of the Southern Wild. We don’t know the dimensions of this monster, but we know its name. It’s a Pithecellobium unguis (Catclaw black bead), a genus and species completely new to us (and probably new to you too). As you can see, this particular bonsai is about as unique as they get with nature doing most of the work and Nacho Marin providing the finishing touches. Getting ready to head out of town for a little mixed R&R and work (there’s always some work), so we’ll take a shortcut today. This post originally appeared in February, 2015, though from where we sit now, it … Continue reading Bonsai Beasts of the Southern Wild

A Bonsai Life

This prize winning Ficus neriifolia belongs to Ed Trout. I like its relaxed, almost sensuous look. Or if you’re not into anthropomorphizing bonsai, you might just notice its wide stable nebari and its stout well tapered trunk and leave it at that. All the photos in this post are from Bonsai Mary. In keeping with our tropical theme from yesterday and our mention of Mary Miller (Bonsai Mary) from the day before, I dug up this up from our archives (April, 2010, with some editing today) Mary Miller’s years of experience as a bonsai teacher, author and grower come together very nicely in her Bonsai … Continue reading A Bonsai Life

Tropical Bonsai Before & After by Robert Steven

Before and after by Robert Steven. The before is a photo that was submitted to Robert by David Royinsyah. The after is a digital simulation by Robert. The tree is a Tamarindus indica, a type of tropical legume. The photos are from the Black Scissors Community. It has been a while since we posted one of Robert Steven’s simulated before and after photos. In addition to being one of the foremost bonsai artists in the world, Robert is a bonsai teacher, so his before and afters are always information rich, with comments about style, technique, horticultural considerations and even bonsai history. Continued below… Brand … Continue reading Tropical Bonsai Before & After by Robert Steven

More Magnificent Mugo Pines

This superb Mugo pine has a distinctly natural feel. Almost as if someone found it just as is, growing somewhere high in the European Alps. Still, whenever you see a bonsai, a human hand is intimately involved. Even when the tree appears perfectly natural (in some cases, especially when the tree appears perfectly natural). In the case of both trees shown here, the human hand belongs to Georg Reinhard. We borrowed the photos from a post we did in November, 2010. It was titled Mugos by Mother Nature & Georg Reinhard Continuing with our Mugo pine theme from yesterday… I … Continue reading More Magnificent Mugo Pines

Bonsai Wizardry – Before & After

Hinoki cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa) before and after. The artist is Suthin Sukosolvisit, who wrote that it took only one year from before to after, which might lead you to believe that the before tree is bigger than it looks. Here’s your link to the original Suthin, day three… Part of this post is from one we did back in December 2013. It was titled Flying High with Suthin (don’t even think it… I was on a plane). Coincidentally, in that original post I happened to mention a bit about flying by the comedian Louie C.K., who unfortunately is in the news this week . NEW Bonsai Aesthetics … Continue reading Bonsai Wizardry – Before & After

Japanese Maple Bonsai with a Natural Look

This rugged, natural looking Japanese maple belongs to Walter Pall, an artist with a longstanding commitment to natural looking bonsai If there’s one thing you could say about Walter Pall (aside from his prodigious skill) it’s that his bonsai never look over styled. They tend toward the natural untouched-by-human-hands look, though in fact, Walter’s hands are deeply involved every step of the way. Continued below… NEW KOYO BONSAI TOOL SPECIAL all Koyo Tools 25% to 40% off list prices Masters Sword Shears one of over 50 different Koyo tools we offer this special ends Nov 14th, at noon EST – A closer look … Continue reading Japanese Maple Bonsai with a Natural Look

A Masterful Example of how Energy Can Be Redirected

This powerful old cascading Japanese Black Pine (Pinus thunbergii) is a masterful example of how energy can be directed downward in a tree that naturally wants to grow upward. The photo is from Bonsai Today Master Series; Pines. A late start today, so it’s time for a journey into our past. This post was one of our very firsts (Feb 2009 with an added azalea photo from a later post), but like so much with bonsai, is still 100% pertinent today… and tomorrow, and so forth. Whenever you prune, trim or pinch, you are redirecting energy. If you remove a … Continue reading A Masterful Example of how Energy Can Be Redirected

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

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

Another Outstanding Before & After Bonsai

Before and after by Mariusz Komsta. Mariusz doesn’t identify the tree, but I’ll go out on a limb and say it’s a yew (Taxus). Two recurring themes these days are before and after bonsai and yews (Taxus). I like both and you seem to feel the same, so why not? All the photos in today’s and yesterday’s posts were borrowed from Mariusz Komsta, a long time favorite here on Bark LOWEST WIRE PRICE YET 500 gram (1.1 lb) BONSAI WIRE ONLY 7.95 PER ROLL this special will end November 8th at noon EST Before… After. From overgrown to a balanced, open and refreshed … Continue reading Another Outstanding Before & After Bonsai