Although Daisaku Nomoto is well known for his pine work, he’s also a big fan of junipers and deciduous varieties. Walking through his nursery was a great opportunity to see trees that were well developed next to trees still in the project phase. Large shimpaku Shimpaku Shimpaku with great deadwood Shimpaku […]
Japan
Chojubai and white pine from Nomoto Chinshou-en
Tsutomu Nomoto started Nomoto Chinshou-en on his birthday in 1973. Bonsai had been a family hobby for several generations but it wasn’t until Tsutomu turned away from veterinary medicine – the default line of work for his family – that the hobby became a business. Tsutomu studied at Nakanishi Chinshou-en in Shikoku’s Kinashi bonsai district (more at […]
Nomoto Chinshou-en
For those curious about my visits to so many Kyushu bonsai gardens, the answer is simple – Daisaku Nomoto. In addition to hosting the Kyushu portion of my recent visit to Japan, long-time friend and teacher Nomoto designed an itinerary to suit my interest in developing bonsai from scratch. So instead of visiting some of the top […]
Chojubai
In addition to growing white and black pines, Mr. Iwakiri has a fondness for deciduous trees – chojubai in particular. Japanese flowering quince – chojubai Iwakiri offered some details about how he’s developed these trees. Many of the clump-style specimens are actually bundles of cuttings from the same tree that have grown together for 20-30 years. […]
White pines from Iwakiri’s garden
Kyushu bonsai enthusiast Mr. Iwakiri has been growing white pine for about as long as he’s been growing black pines. His garden provides plenty of evidence for this. Iwakiri’s pines Triple-trunk white pine Iwakiri reaches for a branch After pointing out a young white pine with a massive trunk, Iwakiri showed us the pot the […]