Mr. Kita’s bonsai

Last fall’s visit to Mr. Kita’s bonsai collection was a real treat – I can only imagine how nice it would be to see such a scene in one’s own backyard.

Boon Manakitivipart, a white pine, and Peter Tea

A towering hornbeam

Few gardens include large Chojubai like the specimen below.

Japanese quince ‘Chojubai’

Kita’s garden had two.

A stately pair of Chojubai

The hinoki in Kita’s garden offered examples of what we aim for when we develop trees with similar growth habits.

Hinoki

Beneath the foliage of each pad lie scores of thin branches that lead back to each primary branch – development that requires both time and technique.

Well-developed branch pads

Hinoki branch pads – side view

Hinoki

It was also clear that these trees received a lot of food. In many cases, fertilizer baskets completely lined the perimeters of the pots.

Fertilizer baskets

In keeping with the aesthetic of the synthetic turf that lined the ground, the trees were displayed on cement tables I’d seen in a number of Japanese enthusiasts’ yards. The tables can let water drain or pool to retain moisture as the season requires.

Cement bonsai table

These details, however, received little notice – we were too busy with trees like the famous white pine below.

White pine

Tekka Kazura – Trachelospurmum asiaticum

Black pine

Persimmon

Chinese quince

Hawthorn

Eleagnus