“How do landscape, native flora, and cultural practices shape bonsai expression?” This is the question Aarin Packard and the Pacific Bonsai Museum investigate in their current exhibit, Bonsai United. The exhibit investigates ways in which the environment, the culture, and the expression of bonsai differ in fifteen countries around the world. Shimpaku grafted on Sierra […]
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A visit to the Bonsai Collection at Longwood Gardens
When I was in town for the MidAtlantic Bonsai Society’s Spring Festival I made a side trip to Longwood Gardens. Located in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, Longwood features over 1000 acres spread over several properties of incredible gardens. It also features a bonsai collection. The collection got its start almost 70 year ago with thirteen trees […]
Highlights from the MidAtlantic Bonsai Societies’ 2026 Exhibit
The Mid-Atlantic Bonsai Societies is a network of eleven bonsai clubs in New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Delaware, and Pennsylvania. Each spring these clubs are invited to display trees at the region’s annual convention, the Spring Festival. Peter Warren, Kaya Mooney, and I were invited guests at the event and we had a great time. […]
A visit to Masahiko Kimura’s garden
One of the most anticipated stops on our tour this year was a visit to Kimura’s garden. The section that’s open to the public is relatively small and almost exclusively filled with pines and junipers. The most famous of these is a shimpaku named Toryu no mai (“Dance of the Ascending Dragon”). Shimpaku – Toryu […]
Taisho-en: the garden of Taiga Urushibata
Among the handful of gardens I’m happy to visit every time I go to Japan, Taisho-en is a favorite. World-class trees. World-class work. Taisho-en is managed by Taiga Urushibata. His father, Nobuichi Urushibata, was a prominent shohin professional. Taiga, who apprenticed with Masahiko Kumura, is well-known for working on trees of all sizes. Walking among […]