Potentilla Bonsai, Before & After – As Fragile as Stained Glass

Potentilla fruticosa before and after from Lakeshore Bonsai. There’s a lot more than meets the eye when it comes to styling and caring for Potentilla Yesterday we featured a couple little Potentilla, so let’s stay on theme. This one was styled by Aaron at Lakeshore Bonsai in Toronto. The following is quoted directly from Lakeshore’s site… “This Potentilla is as fragile as a stained glass window and parts of it literally crumble away every time I work on it. It has undergone some pretty radical changes since I acquired it in 2011, and certainly does not look like the tree I initially envisioned it would … Continue reading Potentilla Bonsai, Before & After – As Fragile as Stained Glass

Two Potentilla Bonsai & Two Brand New Books

Would you ever guess that these two little gems are Potentilla? Both are sweet in their own way, and so’s the photo; the muted painterly background, the contrasting pot colors and contrasting dead and live wood on both trees. I don’t know what the little companion is, but I like it too. I found it on Roman Stresow’s timeline. His caption is Just two Potentilla When I saw the photo above and then read that the trees were Potentilla (aka Cinquefoil), I felt a little tug of excitement. Not only were both little trees unique, but they’re Potentilla, a type tree I have … Continue reading Two Potentilla Bonsai & Two Brand New Books

Bonsai on Instagram – Great Trees, Great Stones

There’s a lot going on with this one. Especially the two types of exposed roots – the long aerial roots growing down to the flat stone on the right, and the other set of roots fanning down the side of the large stone (the stone is another nice feature). I couldn’t find the type tree (looks like it might be a Ficus) nor any info on the artist/owner. Unless the person who put the photo up is the owner (there’s a name embedded in the Instagram address) Just ventured onto Instragram for the first time. So far I like it. It’s an easy … Continue reading Bonsai on Instagram – Great Trees, Great Stones

Bonsai Skill & Vision – Before & After

Before and after Procumbens Juniper by Todd Schlafer at the Des Moines Botanical Gardens Continuing with our venerable Before and After tradition… This is only the second time* we’ve featured bonsai by Todd Schlafer, but there will certainly be more. Todd is one of a significant (in numbers and skill) crop of young North American bonsai artists . You can enjoy more of Todd’s bonsai on his First Branch Bonsai website, on facebook and in the 5th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition Album BONSAI SOIL SPECIAL ENDS SUNDAY 25% OFF LIST PRICES Special ends Sunday at 11:59pm EDT Before. As you can see, the trunk is already … Continue reading Bonsai Skill & Vision – Before & After

More Tiny Trees from Our Mystery Bonsai Artist

A lot of age and character packed into such a small pot. I’m not sure what kind of tree it is. Perhaps and Ilex of some sort? Continuing with our unknown artist’s tiny trees from the other day and our love affair with small bonsai. A love affair that grows as we age (sooner or later old backs and heavy bonsai must part ways). There are no varieties listed, but some are easy. Others, not so much. Here’s your fb link for our source BONSAI SOIL SPECIAL ENDS SUNDAY 25% off list prices The berries look like Pyracantha and so do the leaves … Continue reading More Tiny Trees from Our Mystery Bonsai Artist

Coming Soon! Another Great Bonsai Expo

Based on what we’ve seen and heard about their past shows, this one promises to be a real winner. I wish we could say see you there, but we’ve got other plans. Still, I hope you can make it. I’m sure you’ll be happy you did. Here’s your link to their website Our Enormously Popular Tie Pots Are Back! We just got a shipment of 81 Tie Pots Monday and 36 more yesterday, and already there are only about 40 left. We’ve got more coming in 3 or 4 weeks, but if you’d like some sooner, better order yours now… 18.00 each for 1 or … Continue reading Coming Soon! Another Great Bonsai Expo

A High Degree of Bonsai Skill, Artistic Vision & No Lack of Deadwood at the Recent European Bonsai-San Show

Close up of the intricate deadwood on a Sabina juniper (Juniperus sabina) that belongs to Xavier Massanet. You can see the whole tree below Finally, some good photos from the recent European Bonsai-San Show! Salvatore Liporace was kind enough to post them on his timeline under the heading European Bonsai Show Saulieu Awards 2018!!!. No mention is made of which tree won which award, but Salvatore did bother to put up the names of the owners and the names of the trees, a real plus in our sometimes sketchy online universe, where these valuable pieces of information are often overlooked By the way, Salatore Liporace is one of Europe’s most … Continue reading A High Degree of Bonsai Skill, Artistic Vision & No Lack of Deadwood at the Recent European Bonsai-San Show

Tiny Bonsai & Colossal New Book Special

I’ve never seen such a small bonsai with so much deadwood. Looks like it a must be a tanuki (Phoenix graft). There no varieties given in English where I found this, but it’s pretty clear that this is a Shimpaku juniper There’s something about very small bonsai. Especially when they are hand held… a good way to tell just how small they are. There’s also something about discovering a new (to me at least) bonsai artist. Even if I can’t read their name (there is a hint in their email address – see below) COLOSSAL NEW BOOK SPECIAL 30% to … Continue reading Tiny Bonsai & Colossal New Book Special

Bonsai Stempede & You Don’t Need to Remove ALL the Wire

Stampede. This photo is from Michael Hagedorn’s Crataegus Bonsai blog. It was taken just after restyling by Micheal and friends. The tree is a Ponderosa pine. The story of its name ‘Stampede’ is in a caption below (second photo down) Two for one. I wanted to show you a post about removing wire that Michael Hagedorn put up on his Crataegus Bonsai blog recently. Problem is, we need a good lead photo of a bonsai for all our posts (don’t ask, it’s just the way we’ve always done it) and Michael doesn’t provide one in his removing wire post. So I picked some photos and text from a … Continue reading Bonsai Stempede & You Don’t Need to Remove ALL the Wire

One Sweet Little Tree While Waiting for More

Our first photo from the just completed 2018 European Bonsai Sans Show. The tree belongs to Carlos Beto. I couldn’t find the species or size, but it looks like a Sohin (small) Cotoneaster. In any case, it’s got all the right stuff; heavy trunk with good movement, a strong nebari, and attractive little berries with a pot to match (red pots are on rise!). The moss is good too, with enough variation in texture and color to create interest (this is an often overlooked feature… slapping some moss on or just using sand or gravel isn’t good enough for a top show). Some might … Continue reading One Sweet Little Tree While Waiting for More