Windswept style – You should imagine this as a tree through which wind is blowing at that very moment. The main branches stay in position; only the thin branches and leaves position themselves according to […]
Han-kengai | Half-cascade style
Half-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. […]
Bankan | Coiled style
Coiled style – This twisted style is probably the closest to what came from China; often called the ‘dragon style’ (or ‘green dragon’) it is a favorite in Chinese bonsai and is an auspicious presence […]
Neagari | Exposed-root style
Exposed-root style – The roots of the neagari emerge above the surface of the soil. These uncovered roots give the impression that the tree has been exposed to soil erosion for many years. In nature, […]
Gokan | Five/seven-trunk style
Five/seven-trunk style – This has a multitude of trunks, usually of an odd number. Gokan (five trunks) and Nanakan (seven trunks) refer to those bonsai with distinct, countable trunks, each of which has a stronger […]
Ginkgo biloba
Ginkgo biloba.
The challenge is to create a finished tree starting from scratch,
Weigela
Weigela florida may well be the most common and popular species along with its cultivars:W. ‘Foliis purpureis’, slower-growing dwarf form of compact habit with attractive purple-flushed leaves and pink flowers; ‘Variegata’, a form with compact […]
Celtis
The Celtis (Hackberry) originates from China and Taiwan and has a strong yet graceful trunk with neat oval leaves. In southern Europe, bonsai amateurs often grow the Celtis australis, but nurseries tend to import the […]
Carmona
Fukien tea Ehretia Buxifolia is a very common ‘supermarket’ bonsai also known in the bonsai world as Carmona microphylla. It is a nice shrub from the South China province of Fuijan. It’s an evergreen tropical […]
Podocarpus
Podocarpus, or Chinese yew, Buddhist pine is a gymnosperm, a conifer of the Podocarpaceae family. More than 100 varieties live in the whole world. But for bonsai we are interested by Asian varieties. P. macrophylla […]
Chaenomeles
The quince is perhaps the only fruit and flower bearing tree with so many attractive qualities. The dramatic movement and the purple brown flaking bark of the trunk make it stand out from other deciduous […]
