I fully defoliated a shohin Japanese maple about six weeks ago. Here’s what the tree looked like after removing all of the leaves. Shohin Japanese maple – April 30 After a week, small buds started to appear along the branches. May 10 – new buds appear Tiny back buds The first new leaves waited almost […]
Shohin
Defoliating a shohin Japanese maple
I started working on a shohin Japanese maple about a year and a half ago. Here’s what it looked like at the end of 2016. Shohin Japanese maple The first order of business was repotting. I found the tree didn’t have a lot of roots so I was expecting it to grow slowly. And as […]
Alternative approach to creating shohin pine bonsai
I’ve been following the same approach to creating pine bonsai for the past few years now. It’s time for a change! I outlined the basic approach for starting informal upright pines five years ago (see “Wiring 3-year-old black pines“). Sometimes, instead of removing the lowest needles before wiring, I leave all of the needles on […]
Bonsai displays at the 16th biennial Shohin Seminar
With small bonsai display, the focus tends to be on the arrangement of elements as much as on the individual trees themselves. The great challenge, then, isn’t just developing trees that work on a small scale, but in having enough different trees from which selections can be mixed and matched to create compelling displays. Easier […]
2018 California Shohin Seminar – selections from the exhibit
This past weekend the California Shohin Society hosted the 16th Biennial Shohin Seminar in Santa Nella, California. The event was a huge success. It revolves around a full day of workshops and features demos, a large vendor area and an exhibit of small-sized bonsai. Below is a selection of the trees on display in the exhibit. […]
