Bonsai

[imatlas]

Originally Posted by LawrenceMD

my hipster neighbors would steal it.

Damn hipsters!

 

[lefty]

Originally Posted by LawrenceMD

I like the view from my pic better. its a Chinese Privet (Ligustrum) so its easy to keep indoors. I guess they grow very fast so you actually need to prune them once a month, or else it becomes a bush (lol). I'd like to own some maple bonsai but NYC apartment living hinders that.

It's the proper front. Prune heavily to get some back budding happening and let those pads for leaves fill out. The wire to put the secondary branches into better positions.

This is what it could look like:

Good luck.

lefty

 

[rach2jlc]

Originally Posted by username79

Some of the examples in this thread are worth several hundred thousand dollars.

Originally Posted by ryoneo

That is incredible. What is the price range that Bonsais go for? And is it that difficult to take care of them?
Exactly. "real" ones are tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. I was at a conference/meeting in Japan a few summers back and they "borrowed" a bonsai for the centerpiece and it was not considered a "superb" example and it was worth around $15-$20,000. As the above said, some of the really classic, perfect examples are easily six figures, maybe even seven. Never underestimate the almost incomprehensible prices of classic Japanese arts.

 

[GSquared]

Super interested, just unsure where/how to start.... here goes 5 hours on google.

 

[imatlas]

Originally Posted by LawrenceMD

here's another i just bought from my guy in brooklyn.

its pretty big at near 30in including the pot. I'm glad the seller recommended and saved it for me:

here's my pic: Lumix GF1 with 20mm pancake

from the original sellers pic it looks more funky.

How old is it?

 

[lefty]

Originally Posted by GSquared

Super interested, just unsure where/how to start.... here goes 5 hours on google.

http://www.bonsaisite.com/
http://absbonsai.org/
http://www.artofbonsai.org/

lefty

 

[LawrenceMD]

Originally Posted by imatlas

How old is it?

almost 30 years old.

 

[Willie5566]

I killed a bonsai. A little weary about trying it again. Beautiful plants though.

 

[drum]

I want to get into this, but my traveling schedule just doesn't allow me to care for them properly. I've seen some bonsai worth ridiculous money, and they're very impressive.

 

[edinatlanta]

pic heavy...Went to a bonsai class at the monastery and snapped some pics.

Forget what this is:

Azalea:

90-100 year old white pine. The guy taking care of it said it hadn't been taken care of properly for about two years, not sure why. But he just started taking care of it and he said its pretty much healty again/where it ought to be.

Wisteria:

Forget what this is:

Serissa and succulent. Succulent going in the grayish green pot in the front. Red is just plastic.

Aaaaaaaaaaaand introducing... Bonsieur the Bonsai! He is a French fellow.

Three jins, one behind the one on the bottom and one closer to the top. Going to hold off on applying the lime sulfur til may (instructions say apply first coat in may/june). it is really BAMF. Got a good literati style. All our bonsai came out really really well. Our instructor was like, if you move, call me because I'll take any of them.

And this is his pot. Got a cool Chinese dragon motif.

Kept some of the clippings we used, going to see if I can't propagate more bonsai from them. Should have grabbed pics of my classmates' work.

My instructor said he has some good azaleas that would be good for starting, he'll sell them when he gets back from his vacation.

So stoked.

 

[lefty]

Interesting literati. Nice start to a difficult tree. Did you shoot the before?

Why didn't you pot it in the centre? I find that it really throws my eye off and keeps drawing me down whereas it should be taking me up along the trunk.

And no bloody ceramic man!

lefty

 

[edinatlanta]

Originally Posted by lefty

Interesting literati. Nice start to a difficult tree. Did you shoot the before?

Why didn't you pot it in the centre? I find that it really throws my eye off and keeps drawing me down whereas it should be taking me up along the trunk.

And no bloody ceramic man!

lefty

Thanks. The monk who works with bonsai likes literati and really liked it as did the manager. ALL OF US realized we should have taken before shots right after our trimming was done. Suffice to say they were all just straight junipers.

It is centered...kind of. Its the root has a lot of curves right at the start. It really is in there as best as possible until I re-pot it. Like we trimmed it a bunch and had to put it in on its side. I'll take a better shot in the AM. Its actually really neat. About three feet tall.

As for the ceramic, well... I like it. Also it was included in the class!

You don't like it? Our teacher brought in his juniper that one first prize at a couple with an unglazed-ceramic pot!

 

[edinatlanta]

so also... most of the bonsai industry escaped damage from the march 11 earthquake. apparently sendai is opposite and far away from the "bonsai center".

HOWEVER... there is one guy who was a bonsai master who lived near the quake site. He had multiple trees worth millions of dollars including on $16 million one. Those haven't been found.

There is a bonsai-centric relief fund however they were out of brochures when I asked for one.

 

[lefty]

No, not "ceramic, man" ... "ceramic man." I would have liked to see the tree in the middle of the pot. Most literati start in the centre unless they double back severely and need the weight of a left or right base to counter balance. I think yours creates visual tension at the pot where there should be calmness and flow. I appreciate I'm only looking at one pic and maybe not even the front, but it actually upsets me visually as it looks like it might fall over. When you repot next year consider a new pot and position. Either way, nice job. It's a hard tree to pull off and few people understand it. Here's a tree that takes your eye up and lets it soar amongst the topmost branches:

lefty

 

[GQgeek]

Originally Posted by lefty

Enjoy a winter view. Forever.

lefty

holy ****... love that one.