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tapering
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 Europe and incredibly desirable for bonsai. Wild blackthorn flowers profusely in March/April each year and
A wooden base?
A practical case study of trident maple by Andrea Meriggioli Andrea: I want to show you how correct timing and techniques may turn initially poor material into a good tree you can work on over a long period of time. In practice, when you have a real plant in front…...
A good omen
It is a deciduous tree of the Fagaceae family and grows naturally in the mountains of various parts of Japan, also on the coastline on the side of the Sea of Japan. The oak’s local name is ‘Kashiwa’ and is mainly planted as a windbreak in those areas where it…...
One became two
Martin Nielsen divides a Japanese maple into two new trees Martin describes his work with a Japanese maple where one tree becomes two. It’s a tree with a fine nebari grown from a seed in Japan. A tree that came to Europe almost 30 years ago, during which time it…...
A powerhouse
Mike Lane gives an in-depth look at the venerable Sea Hibiscus An unassuming bonsai subject at first glance, the sea hibiscus appears to lack any of the desirable traits we pursue when looking for good bonsai candidates. I had overlooked this abundant material myself, during my initial years in bonsai…....
Fine and fiddly
Yukio Hirose guides you through the defoliation and wiring of maples and elms Yukio Hirose: ‘First I will introduce this tree, a trident maple (Acer buergerianum) that is halfway through its development. The reason for entirely defoliating this tree rather than a partial defoliation is to be able to see…...
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 This is a Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga), also known as Oregon fir, which we bought at…...
The monster elm
The story of an elm found abandoned in a field. Would it survive? Martin Nielsen tells the story of how he created a bonsai from an elm, wondering if he could keep it alive. Then, once it showed growth, he started to make plans for its development. I have a…...
Bonsai timetable
Bartoz Warwas knows that a good plan is the key to bonsai success Before Bartoz explains his timetable for planning the development of bonsai, he will tell you the story of a European hornbeam that has been with him for more than 10 years In all probability, we are living…...
Worth working on?
There is almost no material that is completely useless David Soto: ‘My students, often try to mimic the work of great masters. It’s only natural, and if you don’t own one of those very high quality pieces of material that we are accustomed to see in different articles or during…...
The wild one
Wild olive trees provides one of most ideal materials for bonsai Marcial Yuste Blasco, who runs a bonsai school in Spain, prefers to work on material from the wild. For Marcial, it possesses the characteristics needed to create fine bonsai and the olive has all the qualities that he favours…....
Betula – Tough to work on
The birch has many virtues, it can prosper in the harshest environments, but as bonsai you need to be a little more patient and gentle to achieve good results. Harry Harrington gives us his hands-on approach on how to grow birch. Betula is a genus of about 60 species of…...
Can this become a bonsai?
Garden material can be most interesting for bonsai. It can also be very challenging because it was not really grown for bonsai purposes. Bruno checks out a garden hinoki cypress to see if it can be made into a good-looking bonsai. This tree originated from a garden centre some time…...
Yew can do it
A simple yew can be made into a stunning small bonsai in just a few steps. Michael Tran of Minoru bonsai guides you step by step in how to create a bonsai from a yew. Yews are a very robust and a great species for bonsai. Their hard wood makes…...