The bonsai museum at Shinpukuji Temple features some great tosho, or needle juniper. Here are some of my favorites. Boon and tosho Many needle juniper bonsai are collected. Among the most prized features are knobby deadwood – ibo-jin, or wart-jin, in Japanese – and thin life lines with good movement. Ibo-jin Needle juniper Formal upright […]
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How to fertilize bonsai
Before jumping into the topic of fertilizing bonsai, I’ll share a tip. Bonsai can roughly be lumped into two categories – trees in development and trees in refinement. A tree is in development when: The trunk has yet to reach the desired size Primary and secondary branches have yet to reach the desired size or […]
What kind of bonsai fertilizer do you use?
I hear the question a lot – “What kind of fertilizer do you use?” The answer is a moving target. So far this year I’ve used various combinations of six different fertilizers. My go-to fertilizers remain cottonseed meal and fish emulsion. They are affordable and they keep my trees healthy. It’s not the cleanest solution nor […]
Shopping for bonsai at Green Club
There’s a big difference between shopping for bonsai at Green Club and buying bonsai at Green Club. I’m happy shopping – the quality is often outstanding – but it doesn’t stop me from imagining I’m in the market for trees like this. Maybe I’m looking for a large pine with great bark – show ready […]
Shinpukuji Temple bonsai museum
The bonsai museum at Shinpukuji Temple near Okazaki has many outstanding trees. Visiting is like attending a mini exhibit, but an exhibit of Kokufu quality. Many of the trees in the garden have appeared in Kokufu, and several have won awards. Here is a selection of the trees that were on display during Boon’s visit […]