I brought the white pine below to an Akio Kondo workshop this past August. The tree looked much like it does now but the old needles had yet to turn brown. New growth had appeared much like it had the year before, and I had prepared to spend an afternoon wiring the tree. Kondo took […]
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Bonsai top dressing
It’s customary, for bonsai displayed indoors, to cover the surface of the soil with moss. Moss, however, isn’t always readily available. What can a bonsai artist do? Here are some solutions from the East Bay Bonsai Society’s 50th Anniversary Show. Moss – nice when you can get it Scotch moss Lava rock Bonsai soil with […]
East Bay Bonsai Society’s 50th Anniversary Bonsai Show
The East Bay Bonsai Society hosted their 50th Anniversary Bonsai Show at the Lakeside Garden Center in Oakland, California, on October 8th and 9th. The show featured a workshop, demonstration and critique by Kathy Shaner, sales and vendor areas, and plenty of bonsai and suiseki. The show program included a history of “The First 50 […]
Sequoia deadwood
Deadwood, beyond fire scars, is not a major characteristic of mature sequoia. It is, however, a major characteristic of their environs as dead trees take a very long time to decompose. The beautiful and sinuous grain of the deadwood offers suggestions for our own deadwood carving. Nature, it seems, always gets it right. Toppled tree […]
Giant redwood – Sequoiadendron giganteum
I don’t know why it struck me so, but one of the first things I noticed about the giants in Sequoia National Park is the ground immediately around their feet. Typically, very little grew close by, and the ground was blanketed by fallen foliage. The golden-brown setting made the base of the giants stand out. […]