Tag: foliage pads

Styling
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Is it just one blob of green?

Manuel Germade re-styles an Itoigawa juniper This very compact juniper, grafted with Itoigawa foliage, has grown out of proportion. The shape of the trunk with its deadwood is very attractive. The main task for Manuel...

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Styling
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Is this worth spending time ?

Prunus spinosa/blackthorn as bonsai Harry Harrington explores the virtues of the blackthorn with its white flowers contrasting beautifully against its dark black bark Prunus spinosa is a tree species native to the UK and Northern […]

Masterclass
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Can Kimura dance with a shari?

Masahiko Kimura rearranges the foliage around a dancing shari Exploring the artistic sensitivity of Mr Kimura, we take a look at the material he will work on. The transformation is not tremendously dramatic, however the...

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Summer
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Growth never stops

Maintenance work on a mountain cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa) During summer you need to deal with the dead leaves formed inside the branches of this very dense-growing conifer. They are removed to prevent ‘stuffiness’. This is...

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Masterclass
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Can it grow upside down?

To get the best results Masahiko Kimura flips a juniper upside down Just turn it upside down, a brilliant idea, which for many would be an impossible option; not so for Masahiko Kimura Another upside...

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Styling
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All-American pine

Bjorn Bjorholm works on a pine grown from seed Bjorn gives an initial styling to a more than 50-year-old pine, grown from seed. This classic informal upright bonsai has a long and much told history...

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Technique
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The branch doctor

Master Oota is the expert on grafting new branches on junipers From grafting branches to finishing a tree and his selection of famous needle junipers, these are trees that have been created by Nobuharu Oota...

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Workshop
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Just too long

Jan Culek copes with a tree that is almost impossible to style The pine Jan has chosen to work on (Pinus sylvestris) hasn’t the most ideal branch setting and trunk shape. It is a clump...

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Seed
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Larch from seed

How to create bonsai from cuttings, grafting and other methods using interesting and unusual species. With the help of illustrations we will see how to take a piece of material through to completion. Here we...

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Workshop
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Upside down

From moyogi to kengai, Martin Nielsen can’t wait to try I got this tree some years ago from one of my old bonsai friends, Kurt Andersen. It’s a locally native tree, Juniperus communis of approximately...

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Technique
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Doing the opposite

Instead of compacting and downsizing, David Soto opens and unfolds cramped branches We are used to seeing how branches and trunks are bent to bring the green areas closer to the interior, compress them and...

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Shohin
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Can you feel it?

Yukio Hirose creates the windswept style from a juniper Hirose Yukio is a shohin expert who shows you here how to create from simple material, a tree shaped by the wind The material that Yukio...

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Masterclass
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No beating about the bush

A very bushy juniper for Mauro Stemberger to style It was January 2020 when I arrived at the small city of Marostica at the foot of the Italian Alps for a demo with Mauro Stemberger....

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Free
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Douglas fir

Douglas fir is flexible and has amazing small needles Seen less often, the Douglas fir has real potential for bonsai. Dominique Bosch discovers the virtues step by step. A fir that is not a fir...

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Styling
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Get rid of undesirable features

Masayuki Fujikawa transforms boring material into a semi cascade Masayuki Fujikawa: ‘The tree shown here is too big to be considered a chuhin, but the idea is not to make it a chuhin for the...

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Case History
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A masterpiece tree has no front

A juniper masterpiece more dead than alive, is totally restored ‘Garyuu’, the history and Kakuryu-an. The oldest photographic record of this tree is from 1962 when it was featured in the auction catalogue for the...

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Masterclass
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The final test

Andrei Bessonov’s final work as an apprentice to Master Kimura After six years of apprenticeship under Mr Kimura, this is the ‘final test’ for Andrei, with a tree that was obtained specifically for this purpose....

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Workshop
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Pimped juniper

A dull juniper is matched with a rock full of character A rather dull juniper can become very striking when a rock with lots of character is added, Nishikawa Tomoya (Shirasagi-en, Himeji) shows how that...

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Free
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Actinidia chinensis (Kiwi)

How to create bonsai from cuttings, grafting and other methods with interesting and unusual species. This time it’s the Actinidia arguta, or hardy kiwi, a very rapid grower. A large woody plant of the silver...

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Case History
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Nobody knew

This deep relationship between artist and juniper spans over 20 years The Nippon Bonsai Saku-futen is a special exhibition that allows professional bonsai artists to display their skill and personal style. At the judging this...

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Masterclass
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Can it be opened ?

Untangling the dense foliage canopy of a sabina juniper Valentin Brose, former apprentice of Kunio Kobayashi, is a refined artist. The sabina juniper has such a dense canopy that all is hidden away from the...

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Styling
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Lost and Found

Making the most of a bad pine Masayuki Fujikawa brings out the hidden character of a white pine (Pinus parviflora) Looking at the four photos below, there is nothing of note that one feels makes...

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Styling
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Don’t hide

The hollow trunk of a Satsuki is made to be a feature rather than hidden Takahiro Yamazaki (Yamazaki Satsuki-en, Nasushiobara City) works on a damaged, but characteristic azalea. The material, a Satsuki azalea that Takahiro...

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Masterclass
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French curves

With almost two branches only, Mauro Stembergercreates one of his best pines Mauro Stemberger’s very full agenda allowed just a tiny opening to work on one of his favourite trees, so he teamed up with...

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Styling
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Power lifting

Bonsai material so large it needs to be lifted by crane, yet that doesn’t mean it has no character. The deadwood and trunk have superb movement and the skeleton of the branch structure has had...

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