Last summer, Akio Kondo visited California to work and to teach bonsai. During a Bay Island Bonsai workshop, Kondo made an interesting suggestion for improving one of my pines. The tree looked great from a distance, but he quickly noticed that the tree had no interior buds. Without interior buds, the tree had no future. […]
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Fall decandling
I decandled one of my black pines this week. I can’t say it makes much sense on the surface, but I have reason to believe good will come of it. I gave this a try at the suggestion of Akio Kondo. In a couple of years I’ll know more about the technique – for now […]
Bonsai soil
I’ve been spending my free moments sifting bonsai soil for the past few weeks – a bag here, a bag there. I know that I have a lot of trees to repot this winter and I don’t like to start the soil-making process from scratch when I’m ready to repot, so I’m getting started while […]
Decandling a red pine forest – part 2
I decandled the red pine forest below about 3 months ago (see Decandling a red pine forest). The summer growth has come out and the trees look much fuller than they did in June. But because the summer was cool, this grove isn’t as far along as I’d expect for this time of year. No matter, […]
Bonsai accents
Redwood Empire Bonsai Society members take their exhibits seriously. They do a great job with their trees, their backdrops, their program, and even their accents. Here are some of the accent plants, pots, and suiseki on display at their 27th annual show. Accent plant in blue pot Accent plant Accent plant Accent plant pot Bamboo accent […]