At this year’s Gafu-ten, the top shohin exhibit in Japan, there were many examples of what we might call “conventional contemporary shohin displays.” The effect, when scanning the hall, was that a lot of the displays looked similar. In order to be competitive for awards, entrants can opt to follow, or contradict, a number of […]
Bonsai Blog
Search
(Enter search terms and press 'Enter')
Recent Posts
Special displays at the 50th Gafu-ten
I’ve noticed, in recent years, more and more special displays at Japanese bonsai exhibits. I think of a special display as any approach to bonsai display other than the standard arrangement of trees and accents within an approximately six foot space. At this year’s Gafu-ten – the 50th anniversary event – there were special displays […]
Fall work basics – black and red pine
If you haven’t finished your fall pine work, there’s still time! Fall and winter, right up until buds start elongating in spring, is a good time to prune and wire dormant conifers including Japanese black and red pines. The first step is to prune branches in crowded areas, the second step is to remove extra […]
Refining a field-grown cork bark elm
A couple of years ago, I came across a great batch of cork bark elms at Lone Pine Gardens. It had been a while since I’d owned one, so I picked out my favorite and brought it home. Field-grown cork bark elm – December, 2022 I don’t typically do much work on trees until I […]
Developing red maple bonsai
I’ve had a lot of fun working with red maples, also known as swamp maples, over the past few years. The basic training routine is the same as it is for other deciduous species – prune and reduce foliage in the middle of the growing season and then prune again fall. Depending on how vigorously […]