Creating exposed root pine bonsai is simple – plant a seedling in a deep container with large soil particles that can give the roots an interesting shape. Here’s what the process looks like in detail. Start with young pines and a deep container. Deep container Young pines As for soil, use what works best for […]
Bonsai Development
Bonsai Development posts form the heart of Bonsai Tonight. Learn about varieties like Black Pine, Shimpaku and Japanese Maple, techniques like Decandling and Grafting and Air Layering, and bonsai features like Deadwood.
Repotting an old San Jose juniper
I began work on an old San Jose juniper bonsai this week. The tree had been trained as bonsai years ago but never reached a refined state. For the past several years, the tree was watered and fed but not pruned or repotted. San Jose juniper Before making any decisions about how to style the […]
Cutback on field grown trident maple
One of the challenges of working with field grown material is replacing large, straight branches with slender shoots that have better movement. I’ve been doing this work incrementally with the trident maple below. Trident maple Even though it’s November, fall has been mild where I live so the leaves are still healthy. Here’s what the […]
Fall cutback on young Chinese quince
Several years ago, I started some Chinese quince from seed. They grow rapidly and have proved to be a fun variety to grow. Young Chinese quince I’m cutting them back this fall to remove branches that lack curves. This will encourage the remaining branches to thicken. Here’s a close-up of the tree above. Straight branches […]
Refining a large cork oak
I’ve really enjoyed working on cork oak bonsai this year. The bark can be beautiful and the variety grows quickly where I live. This fall, I contributed to an article published in the current issue of Bonsai: Journal of the American Bonsai Society that focuses on oaks. One of the trees I wrote about is a […]