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How to improve euonymus
The winged spindle tree charms with its cork bark and deep crimson foliage There are a number of species in the Euonymus family that have been appreciated as bonsai for a number of years. They are shrubs which holds interest with both the colours and fruit of autumn. Additionally, the…...
Acer deshojo
Simple adjustments can make a big difference Kenichi Suzuki (Onari-en) is very much into shohin-size bonsai. With simple material he demonstrates how you can change the design by adjusting the planting angle, or the pot. Deshojo maple on rock A tree planted on a rock that Kenichi Suzuki acquired last…...
Is crataegus ideal for shohin?
Harumi Ishii (Ueharu-En) will guide you through the techniques of creating shohin from hawthorn Material 1: Japanese hawthorn (large tree) All the branches are focused in the top section of the tree and there are none at all further down the trunk. Initially it was thought to create this in…...
Italian heart
Creating a moyogi with a small pine Under guidance of Hiroki Miura (Miura Baijyu-en) Ayaka Yamamoto, lead singer of the Japanese girl band NMB48, works on creating a small black pine in the informal upright style. Although it is a thin tree, it has been cultivated in a pot for…...
What’s under the soil?
Repotting your bonsai is rather like a health check The trees of Hiroshi Takeyama, the head of Fuyo-en bonsai nursery, have a distinctive character and elegance. He is renowned for his conscientious and thorough work, particularly with repotting, and is considered to be one of the most skilled at developing…...
Heavy bending
How to bend thick branches Sometimes wire is simply not enough to bend the branch in the desired position. Here we sum up the proper techniques to make things bend smoothly. Lower a branch by pulling a guy wire Even though you wire it from the base, if a branch…...
Where are the roots?
Air-layer experiment. What works best: Sphagnum or a tourniquet? Yukio Hirose (Yamato-en) is up for an experiment. Which of the air layer techniques gives best results, the one that uses sphagnum only, or the technique that uses a wire, or so-called tourniquet? Air layers are most usually performed between March…...
Easy elm
Japanese elm is ideal for bonsai and easy to grow Being a rapid and very vigorous grower makes it possible to have quick results with Zelkova. The downside is that the elm can overgrow very quickly and so it needs regular pruning and re-styling to stay in shape. Here we…...
Is this a satsuki?
Satsuki specialist Tadao Tabata saw bonsai potential in the many trunks In a field at the base of Mount Akagi more than a thousand satsuki were planted and then grown wild. Two years ago this tree was lifted from the field and now, in its third year, it is ready…...
Fabulous feet
Thread and approach grafting new roots to improve the nebari Many enthusiasts would like to improve the nebari of their bonsai. By using thread grafting and approach grafting techniques this can be easily done A young and pliable branch from either a separate plant, or the bonsai itself, is threaded…...
The first cut is…
If the branches only have twigs at the tips it is time for drastic measures. Andrea Meriggioli, author of ‘Bonsai Maples’, explains how to create a denser ramified maple using graft techniques A Japanese maple (Acer palmatum ‘Arakawa‘) is in need of improvement. At first sight everything looks good, but…...
Give me space
Understanding the basics of repotting through the example of a young tree One of the big objectives in repotting is to remove a tree’s old roots to provide more space for new roots to grow into, allowing it to flourish continually. The actual techniques used in transplanting are not that…...