Spotted in the Wild
Historical Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and RSS posts previously curated by the club (2017–present). Not authored by the club — preserved here since the original source feeds no longer carry this history.
More Collecting, A Couple More Examples
An Early Start On Collecting Season
Ume observations and cutback
I’ve been curious, for the last month or so, if my ume was planning to drop its leaves this winter. Ume with green leaves in December Upon taking a closer look this week, I noticed that the lowest branch had lost all of…
Kokko-En Bonsai Garden of Yasushi Yoshimura
The 2019 7 th Winter Silhouette Bonsai Expo, sponsored by Steve Zeisel, was a huge success. The bonsai, displays, demonstrations, critique and vendors were all wonderful and well attended. On Saturday afternoon a…
Refining cork oak – initial styling
I’ve been preparing a cork oak for its initial styling for two years now. In winter of 2018, I worked on the roots and planted the tree in its current container. This past February, I reduced the branches that I didn’t…
Swamp Maple #2
More Fall Work – Water-Elm
2019 7th Winter Silhouette Bonsai Expo
The Winter Silhouette Bonsai Expo is being held in Kannapolis, North Carolina, near Charlotte, on Saturday and Sunday 7-8, 2109. This special exhibition is held in an elegant venue covered with marble walls and floors…
Thinning shohin Japanese maple
Creating branch ramification on shohin Japanese maples doesn’t happen quickly. After three years of producing short internodes, the tree is now ready for cutback to improve the silhouette and branch structure. (You can…
Pot selection exercise – contorted quince
Now that temperatures have cooled a bit, I’ve started repotting. Sometimes I return trees to the pots they were growing in, and other times I select new containers. Here are eight options I considered for a contorted…
Using Accessory Plantings For Displaying Bonsai
This blog was written to answer a question for a member of the Bonsai Nut Forum who asked about my display comments. I wrote too much for the answer and thought others might find my personal thoughts interesting. Enjoy!…
Bonsai Odds & Ends – Oak, Oak, Sweetgum
Designing Bonsai Displays For The Winter Silhouette Bonsai Expo
Oto Hime Japanese Maple for display I spent all afternoon designing my three displays for the Winter Silhouette Bonsai Expo next weekend in Kannapolis, NC. There is more than picking out a tree, table, wiping them off…
Flat-Top Bald Cypress Design Work
New book – The Little Book of Bonsai
This Thanksgiving weekend, I’d like to introduce a project I’ve been working on for the past two years: The Little Book of Bonsai ! Cover of The Little Book of Bonsai The book is a beginner’s guide that introduces…
A Huckleberry Bonsai For 2020
Five patterns for pulling needles on black pine
When thinning needles on black or red pine, I treat branches differently based on my goals for refining them. I typically want weak branches to grow stronger and strong branches to slow down, but there are cases in…
A Visit To Tokoname – Home To World Famous Bonsai Containers
Tokoname is one of the six old Japanese kilns which have continued to support Japanese living for over 1,000 years. Tea pots and sewer pipes are the most famous items crafted and produced in the city of Tokoname, a bit…
A visit To Shunka-en Bonsai Museum
Last week we visited the museum of bonsai artist Kunio Kobayashi in Tokyo. He had just returned from a convention in Viet Nam, but he still had the energy to welcome our group with his wife and curator of his museum,…
2019 39th Nippon Bonsai Taikan Exhibition – Part 4
An important part of any bonsai exhibition around the world is the sales or vendor area. Most people visit to see and enjoy the trees, but they eventually end up in the sales area purchasing something for their…
2019 39th Nippon Bonsai Taikan Exhibition – Part 3
This year there are five special displays in the Nippon Bonsai Taikan Exhibition. Funayama Display Mr. Funayama lives in the northern area of Japan and has large powerful evergreen bonsai. Mr. Morimae is his bonsai…
2019 39th Nippon Bonsai Taikan Exhibition – Part 2
Some impressive bonsai and displays from the 2019 39 th Nippon Bonsai Taikan Exhibition in Kyoto, Japan. An ancient Sago palm, Cycas revoulta. Rita and Mark Cooper next to their Trident maple bonsai in the exhibition!…
2019 39th Nippon Bonsai Taikan Exhibition – Part 1
The 39 th Nippon Bonsai Taikan Exhibition is being held on November 22-25, 2019 at the Miyako Messe Exhibition Hall in Kyoto, Japan. Shinji Suzuki is chairman again this year. Quite a bit of advance promotion was…