Triple trunk style – This has three, five, or seven trunks of different trunk diameters growing from a single root ball. If there are three trunks of differing diameters, it is referred to as a […]
Author: René
Never fix a screw into a bonsai
Viet Luan Tran (40) went to Germany in 1979, son of a high ranking army officer at West Point. He and his family had arrived as Vietnam War refugees. ‘I feel neither Vietnamese nor German. What I can say is I wear Vietnamese roots and Germany is my home.’ Bonsai is his passion, his guide for life....
On being a deshi in Shunka-en
A professional gardener, German Valentin Brose’s love of bonsai drew him to Japan to learn more about this fascinating art. So he
decided to quit his job and went to work for famous Master, Kunio Kobayashi. He soon found out that life as a student is somewhat
different …
Going wild
Ageing a Prunus avium – wild cherry It was a journey of more than 15 years that began with simple native garden material and resulted in a stunning small-sized bonsai. Morten Albek guides us through […]
The Bonsai Ballerina
Jennifer Price discovered bonsai 8 years ago after retiring as a professional ballerina. She had the opportunity to study with long-time friend and teacher, Jim Doyle and, through Jim’s influence, went to work with artists […]
Warren does it
Peter Warren (UK) shows you how to style a buxus Peter
Utah Juniper
Now that I have settled back in California, it’s time to rebuild my Bonsai collection! For the past 6 months, I have been slowly rebuilding the Bonsai business I left behind and have worked with many terrific people. I have study groups that have formed throughout California and even in other States! You can say that I’m living the Bonsai dream! I hope to play my part in helping the promotion of bonsai in the United States and get good information out there to those that want it. My other goal is also to build a quality bonsai collection for myself and not just enjoy the final development of the trees, but the journey as well.
Yose-Ue | Forest/group style
Forest/group style – We can see this as a small forest in a flat pot. It should create the illusion of a miniature version of a forest. The distances between the trees should be different. Do […]
Moyogi | Informal upright style
Informal upright style -The trunk is slightly bent and tapers toward the top. The top of the tree is straight above the base of the trunk. The branches are distributed asymmetrically. The lower branches must […]
Chokkan | Formal upright style
Formal upright style – The trunk is straight and tapers toward the top. The branches of the bonsai must gradually become shorter and thinner from the bottom to the top, be horizontal compared with the […]
Sabamiki | Split trunk style
Split trunk style – Usually has the base of its trunk split or hollowed out. In nature this style is usually found in very old trees. In bonsai, Sabamiki can add a feeling of great […]
Bunjin-gi | Literati style
Literati style – This strange style is characterized by a thin slender trunk with only a few branches. The lower branches are often dead and barren, but the trunk itself is full of great character. […]
Seki-joju | Root-over-rock style
Root-over-rock style -A rock planting where the roots grow over the rock and disappear into the ground. In nature, trees are forced into all kinds of shapes under the influences of weather, wind and placement. […]
Ikadabuki | Raft style
Raft style – This represents a fallen tree, with the trunk buried under the soil. The branches at the top of the fallen tree grow straight upwards as trunks. In nature, trees are forced into […]
Kabudachi | Clump style
Clump style – This is basically the same as the double-trunk style (Sokan). However, we only refer to a multi-trunk style if three or more trunks are growing out of the ground from a single […]
Ishitsuki | Rock-clinging style
Rock-clinging style – A planting where the tree grows on a rock, or the roots cling in a small rock crevice where there is a little soil. In nature, trees are forced into all kinds […]
Sharimiki | Driftwood style
Driftwood style – A tree where the trunk is mostly deadwood, more commonly seen on junipers and yews where the trunk is primarily deadwood with one or two live veins running up to the remaining […]
Netsuranari | Sinuous-root style
Sinuous-root style – Resembling the Yose-Ue style, but all the trunks are connected by a single root system. It consists of a primary tree with multiple stems, each of which has emerged from various points […]
Kengai | Cascade style
Cascade style – In nature, this tree grows on a rock face and, because of snow and wind, it first grows downwards and then upwards again. In Kengai the leaves grow lower than the pot. […]
Hokidachi | Broom style
Broom style – Trees in this style have an upright trunk with branches and foliage radiating outwards in the shape of a Japanese fan or an umbrella. In nature, trees are forced into all kinds […]
Shohin
Miniature trees – Bonsai are classified in sizes. The most commonly known are Mame (5–15 cm / 2–6 inch), Shohin (13–20 cm / 5–8 inch), Chiu (41–91 cm /16–36 inch) and Dai (76–122 cm / […]
Shakan | Slanting style
Slanting style – In nature, a tree can lean to one side when there is a prevailing wind direction, or when a tree is standing in the shade and growing towards the light. In the […]