You know it’s a good day when a bonsai display makes you do a double take. Slant-style spruce Yep, the tree is sitting on a sheet of glass. Better yet, the glass is supported – balanced no less – by two grooved wood slats. Spruce display by Eric Schrader The display is part of the Bonsai […]
Search Results for: oak
Setting a display with a Western juniper and Japanese maple
I’ll be showing a medium sized Western juniper and Japanese maple at this weekend’s Bay Island Bonsai exhibit – that much is clear. What I’m still working on is how they’ll be arranged and which stands work best. Here are the two trees – the maple on a hexagonal stand, and the juniper is on […]
Redwood Empire Bonsai Society’s 34th annual show
This past weekend the Redwood Empire Bonsai Society held their 34th annual show at the Memorial Veterans Building in Santa Rosa, California. Coast redwood The show is the largest in Northern California featuring over 200 bonsai on display. Cork oak California juniper The show requires a full day of setup and lots of help from […]
Thinning a cork bark black pine
In the mid-1990s, I created a cork bark black pine by grafting foliage on a young pine I’d started from seed. The foliage was yatsabusa cork bark – cork bark that produces very dense foliage and lots of buds. Every year or two I thin the tree out, and on occasion I wire the youngest […]
Improving drainage in a compacted rootball
Midway through repotting a procumbens juniper, I found that the center of the rootball was dry. This is common when a tree has gone too long without repotting. Even heavy and frequent waterings – or incessant rain – may not be enough for the water to soak the entire rootball. Rootball with dry center Finding […]