Pines can look great after decandling and needle thinning. It’s when we have the best view of a tree’s structure which makes it a great time for making styling decisions and wiring. Japanese black pine after decandling and needle thinning About a week after decandling, you may notice some brown needles on your pine bonsai. […]
Bonsai Blog
Search
(Enter search terms and press 'Enter')
Recent Posts
Planting medium for shimpaku cuttings
A few months ago I started a number of shimpaku cuttings. Several different soils were scattered around the workshop so I tried some of each to see if it made much of a difference. I did a similar experiment several years back and found a huge difference between soils (see “Shimpaku cuttings” for details). This […]
Small trees at their best – shohin bonsai on display at the 2017 WBC
The shohin bonsai got a lot of attention at the 8th World Bonsai Convention. One of the most impressive was a shimpaku juniper with beautiful deadwood. Shohin shimpaku bonsai The shohin on display represented a number of different sizes and styles. The quality was high throughout. Jasmine bonsai White pine It was also fun to […]
Historic bonsai on display at the 2017 WBC
Upon entering the 8th World Bonsai Convention in Saitama, visitors are greeted by a large juniper called Hiryu, or, Flying Dragon. Hiryu, Flying Dragon I’d seen photos of the tree ahead of the event and hadn’t been wowed, but seeing the huge tree in person made it clear that it deserved to be the logo […]
Selections from Japan’s top 100 suiseki at the World Bonsai Convention
The 8th World Bonsai convention featured not only some of Japan’s best bonsai, but also some of its best suiseki. Kamogawa yase ishi The 100 stones on display were assembled by the Nippon Suiseki Association. It was an impressive exhibit. Kamogawa ishi Tanba shiun seki Iyo ishi The stones came in a variety of styles […]