Is there a way to determine whether or not my wiring is suitable for creating the bonsai in my mind’s eye? Yes! I learned about it in Mr. Iwakiri’s garden. Iwakiri recommends modeling the trunk line before wiring actual trees. He demonstrated the idea with newspaper and aluminum wire. The idea is to create a […]
Black Pine
A seedling-cutting with too many roots
My recent visit to Japan included a stop at the garden of one Mr. Iwakiri in Miyazaki, Kyushu. Iwakiri has been growing bonsai for more than 40 years and he has a wealth of knowledge on the topic, particularly when it comes to developing black pine. As I mentioned a few weeks ago (see “A […]
Shohin pines at Gashou-en
Here is but a small sample of the shohin pines at Gashou-en. Japanese black pine Black pine Black pine Sasaki clearly appreciates black pines as there was no lack of the variety at his nursery. Some had large trunks, others slender trunks with good movement, and almost all of them were under 8″. Black pine Black […]
A visit to Mr. Honda’s garden
Some 20-30 years ago, Kyushu bonsai hobbyist Mr. Honda began buying pine trees from Nomoto Chinshoen, a Miyazaki bonsai nursery. As the trees had little in the way of branching, Honda planned on developing the branches on his own. He’s done quite a job. Black pine bonsai Japanese black pine The trees aren’t particularly old […]
A visit to Miyakonojou
In the small town of Miyakonojou in southern Kyushu lives one Mr. Fukunaga, a bonsai hobbyist. He’s been growing bonsai for several decades – mostly black pine, white pine, and Japanese maples with some other varieties here and there. Conifers filled his front yard. Mr Fukunaga’s garden Twin trunk white pine Some of the trees […]