Esprit Bonsai International August September 2015

www.en.esprit-bonsai.
com
#77
Esprit Bonsai International #77
INTERNATIONAL
The magazine for bonsai enthusiast s August/Sept. - 20 15
to China
Air-layering
p. 34
What to do
after flowering
p. 50
Bonsai
Basics Correcting flaws p.31 Price: € 11.50
EUROPEAN DEMONSTRATORS
Ryan Neil (USA)
BONSAI-SAN
David Benavente (SPAIN)
El Tim (SPAIN)
Matteo Martin (ITALY)
TOKONOMA
SHOW
DISPLAYS
David Benavente (SPAIN)
Andrés Álvarez Iglesias (SPAIN)
SPECIAL GUEST:
RYAN NEIL
17-18 OCTOBER 2015/ SAULIEU
www.european-bonsai-san-show.com - info@bonsai-san.com - Parc des expositions 21210 Saulieu - FRANCE
VILLE DE
SAULIEU
#77 Contents
p. 14
p. 34 p. 50 p. 68
4 News and resources Techniques in Detail Editorial

The Spirit of Bonsai 48 Pinching pines to improve
7 Trees have much to teach us their density Being
Exhibitions
8 Fédération Française
Spotlight on Broadleaves
50 After flowering,
dedicated
de Bonsaï: an The younger generation in the international
annual convention it’s time bonsai world is starting to show its face
described as “bliss”! to start work and get talked about. We referred to this
in our last issue, and we restate it here
14 China Zun: penjing
on a racetrack 56 Preparing a satsuki potensai by presenting an exciting interview with
Bjorn Bjorholm, an American of whom
Trees and People Spotlight on Conifers you certainly haven’t heard the last! Like
Ryan Neil, he represents a generation of
20 Bjorn Bjorholm 61 An awkward first young and passionate professionals who
“You have to learn the basics” branch – or not want to reveal all the secrets of the art
Task of the Month of bonsai, so that it can really take off in
Re-imagining a Tree a country that is admittedly a little behind
26 Pruning pines 66 A mugo pine clinging in this area. He is adept at using new
to a mountainside communication tools such as social media,
Bonsai Basics and finds in them an opportunity to address
29 Correcting flaws Potters and Pots the largest number of people possible.
68 Milan Klika One of his essential beliefs is in the
Getting Off to a Good Start & Vladislava Kuřátková: importance of learning the basics. Too
many hobbyists want to cut corners as
34 Air-layering: it can make working hand in hand
they seek first and foremost to impose
all the difference Besides Bonsai their personality on their trees, to the
Treegazing 72 Surrender to Pleione’s charms detriment of any respect for the plant or
of the sense of dedication from which
36 On a plateau
Ikebana nobody should ever stray. The right paths
Shohin : Small Bonsai 74 Ohara: preparing for an exhibition to follow in the great adventure that bonds
people to trees – and particularly, here,
38 Elaeagnus pungens : 76 Ikenobo-Senshin: modern simplicity
to bonsai – are certain also to be found
hidden in a mass of foliage
Clubs and Enthusiasts in the excellent article by Jean-François
44 Mame chestnuts: 78
Bonsaï Club Gersois Busquet on communicating with trees.
making members’ lives easier Dedication to the plant world is a quality
yes, it is possible! that is shared by all good practitioners of
the art of bonsai. Bjorn Bjorholm’s work
Publishing Director: ChristianFournereau – Editor in Chief: MichèleCorbihan – Art Director: AntoineSimon – Designers to Layout: and mind-set are a good example of this.
Stéphanie Grevet, Benjamin Madelainne – Translator: Abigail Grater – Contributors to this issue: Cinthya Arenas, Bonsaitranslations, Happy reading!
Jean-François Busquet, Xavier Dreux, François Jeker, Jérôme Hay, Yves Ingels, Gilbert Labrid, Philippe Massard, Bruno Mazza, Eric Mousqué,
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– Reprographics: Antoine Simon – Setting and Printing: Rectiligne – ISSN: 1761-662X CPPAP : 0618K83283 – “Printed in France/
Michèle Corbihan
Imprimé en France”. ESPRIT BONSAI INTERNATIONAL is published by LR Presse sarl: BP 30104, F-56401 AURAY Cedex,
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Juniperus chinensis var. sargentii, photo Michèle Corbihan, design Antoine Simon.
#77 EspritBonsaiInternational - 3
News and
resources
In France’s
On the Web Rhône-Alpes
region
The Rhône-Alpes regional
exhibition of the Fédération
A PASSION FOR YAMADORI Française de Bonsaï (French
http://yamadori-passion.blogspot.fr/ Bonsai Federation – FFB),
Contrary to what you might expect from organised by the Ain–Jura
its title, this Spanish bonsai hobbyist’s blog bonsai club, will take place
does not exclusively cover collected trees. on 24 and 25 October in
But it is clear that these are at the heart of Oyonnax, near the border
his passion for bonsai; and he has been with Switzerland. The
putting them on show since 2008. You can even follow some of programme includes an
their development, through the blog’s pages. The photos of his exhibition of trees from the
trees in progress are of very good quality, and a small amount region’s club, plus workshops
of text is enough for an understanding of the work he has done. and demonstrations.
This is sufficiently rare in blogs to be worth emphasising. Professionals will be attending. 13 September has François
Also notable are the quotations from famous individuals that ¡ Venue: Salle Polyvalente, Gau as a special guest. The
are scattered across the pages, accompanied by beautiful Bellignat, 01100 Oyonnax, exhibition will bring together
and well-chosen photographs. If there is one criticism France (off the A404 a selection of beautiful trees
of such blogs, it is that their design is a bit monotonous. motorway, exit 10). from all over France. Gau
But the content alone makes this one worth visiting. Opening hours: Saturday 1.30 will give demonstrations.
p.m. – 7 p.m., Sunday 9.30 Professionals will be attending.
NIK ART BONSAI BLOG a.m. – 6 p.m. Admission: €2. ¡ Venue: Parc Oriental,
http://nikart-gb.blogspot.fr/ 49360 Maulévrier, France.
Nick Rozman, who is Slovenian, has been Near Opening hours: Saturday 2 p.m.
keeping his blog since 2008. It is not very the Côte d’Azur – 7 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
prolific (an average of 50 articles per year), The very young bonsai club Tel: +33 (0)2 41 55 50 14.
but the subjects he tackles are very varied of Mougins is organising its Email:
and interesting: some are dedicated to his first exhibition on 26 and 27 contact@parc-oriental.com
bonsai and their development, and others September. Several clubs from www.parc-oriental.com
to various exhibitions that he has participated in, with engaging the Provence–Alpes–Côte-
little touristic digressions that put these events in context. In central France
The fact that he is closely acquainted with a number of The Literati Bonsaï Club,
well-known bonsai artists gives him the opportunity to based in Tours, is organising
undertake demonstrations and workshops, essentially in the FFB’s exhibition for the
Eastern Europe and Italy, which allows us to see several Centre region of France, on
interesting reports on bonsai in these regions. 26 and 27 September.
¡ Venue: Municipal
greenhouses (serres),
BONSAI IN TORONTO Bois des Hâtes, 37170
http://lakeshorebonsai.com/ Chambray-les-Tours, France.
And now to Canada, with the blog of a Admission free.
Toronto-based hobbyist. A bonsai enthusiast
since 2004, he began publishing online in The EBA
2012. Since then, almost every month he has convention
posted the results of his work on his trees. Like The convention of the
any true enthusiast, he is always looking for promising specimens d’Azur region will display their European Bonsai Association
to collect. For this reason, he has no hesitation in approaching members’ trees and suiseki. and the European Suiseki
landscape and garden designers, to take advantage of the Professionals will be attending. Association, bringing together
opportunities offered when they remove trees that do not fit in with ¡ Venue: Salle Courteline, some twenty European
their plans; and each time this gives rise to a short report. He also Boulevard Courteline, associations, will take place
regularly visits major Canadian and North American exhibitions, 06250 Mougins, France. in Vilnius, Lithuania, from 4 to
and for our benefit posts photos of the best trees on display. 6 September. The member
In Maulévrier, countries will each display
By Philippe Massard, parlonsbonsai.com western France several of their members’
The Salon National du Bonsaï best trees. The bonsai artists
(National Bonsai Fair) on 12 and Salvatore Liporace (Italy) and
4 - EspritBonsaiInternational #77
www.en.esprit-bonsai.com
Find news in real time on our blog
and on the Esprit Bonsai FACEBOOK page.
Christian Przybylski (Germany)

will be the weekend’s
featured personalities.
A large number of
professionals will be present.
GATHERINGS
These conventions are paired Artisans Cup, Portland
together with the 4th festival
of Japanese culture,
which will offer numerous
events and activities.
T he Portland Art Museum in Portland, Oregon, USA will host the Artisans Cup from
25 to 27 September – a completely new type of exhibition that promises to be
a great spectacle: “celebrating the beauty of time and the balance of nature”. North
¡ Venue: Lithuanian Exhibition American bonsai is coming on to the scene and seeking to display its know-how in
and Congress Centre the best possible light!
LITEXPO, Laisves ave. 5, The instigator of this project,
LT-04215 Vilnius, Lithuania. and the weekend’s organiser,
www.bonsailithuania.com is the American bonsai artist
Ryan Neil. He wants to show
The Crespi Cup off his country’s best trees
Registration is open for the in an out-of-the-ordinary,
Crespi Cup, one of the bonsai experimental, inspiring
world’s major events this display. Ryan and Michael
autumn! This international Hagedorn have selected
gathering for suiseki and 70 trees which will come
bonsai enthusiasts is a biennial from all over the country, as
event, the 11th edition of well as from Canada; you can
which will take place from see the full list on our blog.
11 to 20 September 2015 Five international judges
in Parabiago. In addition, it – David Degroot (USA),
offers a parallel opportunity Colin Lewis (USA), Boon
to visit the Milan Expo, where Manakitivipar (USA), Walter Pall
bonsai will also be on display. (Germany) and Peter Warren
The weekend of 11 to (UK) – will have the heavy
13 September will feature task of allocating the prizes.
trees by hobbyists, while It promises to be a great show,
that of 18 to 20 September and we won’t miss it for you!
will be dedicated to trees
from professionals and ¡ Venue: Portland Art Museum,
high-level collectors. 1219 SW Park Avenue,
The Japanese master Portland, OR 97205, USA.
Shinsaku Yamahata, who www.theartisanscup.com
works in an avant-garde style,
will lead demonstrations
and workshops. Masayuki Mame in eastern France
Nomura, a Japanese expert The FFB’s national mame exhibition is attend demonstrations by Koji Hiramatsu,
in suiseki, will give a talk. becoming a regular and unmissable date a Japanese master and shohin expert,
To mark the occasion of the for the diary in the field of small bonsai. who is returning again this year to share
Crespi Cup, Esprit Bonsai This itinerant event will take place this year his know-how with us. In addition, he will
International is offering you in Audincourt in eastern France, on 19 and lead workshops and a guided tour. FFB
the chance to win a weekend 20 September, in the very beautiful Salle tutors will also give talks and guided tours.
for two people to visit the de la Filature in the Japy centre, which There will be plenty of professional stalls
exhibition and attend the hosted the European Bonsai Association’s selling tools, materials and trees.
demonstrations (see Esprit convention in 2013. The event is being ¡ Venue: La Filature, Espace Japy,
Bonsai International no.76). organised by the ASCAP Bonsaï Club. Rue de la Filature,
¡ Venue: Corso Sempione 35, The FFB has selected 64 compositions. 25400 Audincourt, France.
20015 Parabiago (Mi), Italy. Besides the exhibition, visitors will be able to www.ascap25.com/psa/bonsai
Tel: +39 0331 491850
Email: crespicup@
crespibonsai.it
www.crespibonsai.com
News and
resources
Exhibitions and
Conventions
Parc Oriental de Maulévrier
€19.90
RHS Flower Show Tatton Park
The Parc Oriental de Maulévrier, in the Maine-
CHESHIRE, UK 22-26 July Bonsai exhibition
et-Loire department of western France, claims Tatton Park, near Knutsford, Cheshire
to be the largest Japanese garden in Europe.
Its landscaping in the spirit of the Far East Sussex Bonsai Group, Bonsai
dates back to the late 19th century, and it is World 2015 at K2, Crawley
Exhibition of trees from the UK and Europe
notably the home of a
n CRAWLEY, 8-9
Demonstrations: Kevin Willson,
Khmer temple built by
K SUSSEX, UK August
Paul Finch, German Gomez
Alexandre Marcel for
A Contact: Tony McKenzie, am.pm@talk21.
tthe 1900 World’s Fair. com ; bw2015@sussexbonsaigroup.com
All the elements of a
A
Japanese garden can EBA and ESA Convention and
VILNIUS, 4-6
4th Japanese Cultural Festival
be found here, such as LITHUANIA September
www.bonsailithuania.com
borrowed landscapes,
bridges, a lake with
koi carp, lanterns, but 11th International Meeting of Bonsai
also elements ts of spirituality representing 11-20 & Suiseki, Crespi Cup 2015 and
MILAN, ITALY
Shintoism, Taois ism, Buddhism and Hinduism. September Milan Expo Crespi Bonsai
www.crespibonsai.com
This magnificent garden
g is well worthy of a
book to recount its history and take readers
on a tour around it. From
F the garden’s Bonsai Clubs International (BCI), the Asia-
Pacific Bonsai and Suiseki Convention
design to the elements that comprise the & Exhibition (ASPAC) and Guangzhou
estate, this book plungges us into another Municipality are co-hosting the next
world and is also an intteresting source of GUANGZHOU, 17–21
convention in Guangzhou, China. The
CHINA September
inspiration. Much of th his is done through theme of the convention is “The infinity
photography, punctu uated by sections of text. of Bonsai & Viewing Stone: A Culture
Voyage from Canton to the World”
In French and English h. www.gzbci2015.com
Code: Maulevri
Soft cover with fla aps, 22 × 22 cm, 124 pages
SINT-TRUIDEN, 19–20 Vlaamse Bonsaivereniging autumn
BELGIUM September meeting, exhibition, demonstrations
Rumiko Style
Modern Flower Design Bonsai Europa: The Castle Armoury,
€39.90 Bury, North Manchester
Editions Stichting Kunstboek Bonsai exhibition in the UK,
Rumiko Manako is a master ikebanist and has BURY, a distinctive approach to classical
10–11
managed to find a style that is hers and hers MANCHESTER, bonsai from European artists
October
alone. Having trained in the Ikenobo School, UK Eight young artists from across Europe are
demonstrating, bringing trees to show etc.
she found her own mode of expression, tonytickle@gmail.com
working with her husband Yasayuki Manako to www.bonsaieuropa.com
create arrangements that “dance like a ballet”.
The European Bonsai-San Show
She adopts unexpected locations to display
Some special guest demonstrators: Ryan
her arrangements, SAULIEU, 17–18 Neil (USA), David Benavente (Spain),
such as a street or a FRANCE October EL Tim (Spain), Matteo Martin (Italy) and
bridge. The photos others to be invited in the near future
are mostly full-page, http://www.european-bonsai-san-show.com
and this book is truly The 4th African Bonsai
a feast for the eyes. Association Convention
In French and English. 22–25 Venue : City Hall, Stellenbosch
CAPE TOWN,
Code: Rumiko October François Jeker (France), Ryan
SOUTH AFRICA
Hard cover Neil (USA), Tony Tickle (UK)
ABC4 Project Manager: info@abc4.co.za
with dust jacket, www.abc4.co.za
25 × 29 cm, 112 pages
The spirit
of Bonsaï
Trees have much to our own, and a few cells containing grains
of starch that shift according to gravity. A
to teach us
sense of hearing has been demonstrat-
Today, new technology such as chro- ed in corn; that of smell appears in some
matography and mass spectrometry plants that have been deceived by artifi-
allows the identification and classifica- cial odours; and a sense of touch far more
tion of the molecules that interact with finely tuned than our own is witnessed in
Trees are not just plants. This has enabled the discovery of cucumbers, which react to as little as 0.25
objects planted in more than seven hundred different sen- grams of pressure, while our fingers require
sors – chemical, mechanical, or reacting to at least 2 grams. Aspen and mimosa show
the ground. Scientific temperature or light. It seems that a large signs of memory. Old pines display soli-
proportion of these devices serve to aid darity with the younger members of their
studies have shown communication, whether this be by vola- family, by sending them sugars through
that plants display tile compounds emitted by the foliage or their mycorrhizas in case of drought: they
chemical signals transmitted by the roots. show a form of self-consciousness, and
intelligent behaviour. Trees spend a lot of time sending mes- of consciousness of those close to them.
sages – from one branch to another, or This concept of plant intelligence rais-
Author: Jean-François Busquet indeed to their peers. They are also able es a number of questions, the main one
to put out summoning calls to predators being the place around which it is centred.
N
learly a thousand years ago, of organisms that are attacking them. But Research tends towards the root system,
St Bernard of Clairvaux wrote: there still remain hundreds of molecules with its dense and complex networks where
“You will find more in the woods that are emitted and received, for which there is constant chemical and electrical
than in books. Trees and rocks there is no answer for the time being. activity. These networks are comparable
will teach you things that no master will.” in this sense to other known nervous sys-
Beyond the mystical approach that pre- Plant neurobiology tems. Astonishingly, Charles Darwin already
vailed at that time, today’s latest advances On noticing, in parallel to this chemi- suspected this in 1880 when he described
in science relating to the plant world throw cal activity, some electrical activity of these root networks in his book entitled
new light on these ancient words. the same order as the type that can be The Power of Movement in Plants.
Over the last thirty years, teams of observed in other biological kingdoms With science making faster progress
university-based researchers who are that are described as superior, the most than scientists, a new upheaval is already
at the forefront of their field have been advanced researchers have dared to use underway.
turning received wisdom about these the term “plant neurobiology”. Despite
organisms on its head. It has been dis- the thoroughness of their studies, which Trees help us to grow
covered that they often have a superior have been carried out in universities such Maja Kooistra – a researcher from the
genetic heritage to that of other biolog- as those of Bonn and Florence, these Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature
ical kingdoms. The fact of being fixed in advanced theories have again sparked off Management and Fisheries – has pub-
one spot has caused them to develop an outcry among the scientific community. lished a book whose title is revolutionary
very sophisticated metabolic responses In 2005, a letter was published in a plant in itself: it translates as Communicating
in the face of the situations and dangers science journal, signed by 36 academics with Trees. In it, she relates her stud-
that confront them. Photosynthesis, for from prestigious institutions including ies, observations and deductions and a
example, has allowed them to be liber- Yale, Oxford and France’s INRA, aiming to range of easy exercises to carry out so
ated from the need to feed on other bring down the heretics who were guilty of as to set our prejudices aside. Her work
organisms. superficial analogies and debatable extrap- clearly shows that it is possible to estab-
olations. Ten years later, although there is lish communication with our planet’s oldest
Sensors still some uncertainty, the balance seems organisms, on which we are, furthermore,
The first publication on the reality of to be tipping towards the researchers. A completely dependent. Her ventures are
intelligent plant behaviour dates from phrase penned by the French philosopher supported and promoted by the very seri-
July 1983. It was revolutionary at the time, Nicolas de Condorcet in the 18th century ous Bomenstichting foundation, which has
because it demonstrated the existence of remains fully valid: “The truth belongs to been dedicated to the study and preserva-
a form of communication between trees, those who seek it, and not to those who tion of trees since 1970.
which had been considered up to then as claim to own it.” From St Bernard to Maja Kooistra, things
automata at best. The study focused on appear to have come full circle, giving a
poplars. It would take twenty years and Senses of touch and smell particular resonance to the words of the
numerous additional findings for the sci- Most of the research findings are old bonsai masters who explain that it is
entific community to stop sniggering and astounding: trees possess a sense of bal- trees that help us to grow, rather than the
making fun of these “talking trees”. ance that is governed by an inner ear similar reverse.
The FFB chose Albi, with
Exhibitions its beautiful episcopal
city, to host its 2015
convention. Everyone
who participated was
delighted with this
edition of the event.
FÉDÉRATION FRANÇAISE DE BONSAÏ

An annual convention
described as “bliss”! Author: Michèle Corbihan
The annual convention of the Fédération Française de

Bonsaï (French Bonsai Federation), held in Albi in May this
year, was unanimously hailed a success. Quality was its
hallmark, not just of the trees on display but also in terms
of its programme and its friendly atmosphere.
Everyone who attended the

2015 convention of the Fédération Française de
Bonsaï (French Bonsai Federation – FFB), whe-
ther a club president, an organiser or simply a
visitor, enjoyed the same experience of happy mo-
ments spent sharing with others, centred around
a beautiful exhibition. Held in Albi on 23 and 24
May, the FFB convention seems to have returned
This May 2015 edition of the FFB’s convention was marked to its former glory, with an organising commit-
by the quality and diversity of the trees on show.
tee that has brought together all the ingredients
Didier Weiss has been working on
his spruce for about ten years.
Outstandingtrees
Spruce, Didier Weiss
Azalea, Didier Weiss
Hornbeam, Philippe Massard
Box, Roger Liovat, Bonsaï Club du Cantal
Scots pine, Jean-Pierre Cardinal, Bonsaï Club de Mougins
Scots pine, Frédéric Dragonneau, Bonsaï Club de Mougins
Mountain pine, Marie-Hélène Brenn, Club Palois du Bonsaï
Mugo pine, Gabriel Chapuis, ASCAP Bonsaï Club
Shohin composition, Jean-Marc Ladagnous and Florence
This “outstanding tree”, a spruce by Didier Weiss, was Bardot, Club Palois du Bonsaï
unanimously voted best in show by the judging panel.
which make the difference between a mere ex- My visit naturally began with the exhibition,
hibition and a true convention. Tree displays, a which featured around a hundred trees and
“New Talent” competition, talks and demonstra- shohin compositions. It is worth mentioning here
tions, traders’ stalls and the FFB’s annual general that the FFB’s annual convention brings together
meeting: it was a very full event. the trees that were selected the previous year in
The only downside to the weekend was the low the nine regional exhibitions by the federation’s
attendance levels, which would have been more regional delegates. It therefore represents the best
appropriate for a major regional conference than of its amateur members’ trees at a given time.
for a national convention. It’s true that the big “The quality of the trees is great, better than the
events in the bonsai world struggle to attract the ones at last year’s convention, and there’s qua-
crowds in the South of France. lity in their diversity. There are lots of different
species, which is a real boon compared to other
Quality in diversity countries,” remarked Jean-Marc Pouillon, the
The venue itself certainly had its fair share of FFB’s president.
charm, being situated a few hundred metres from
the wonderful episcopal city of Albi, which has The undisputed winner: a spruce
been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site The quality of the displays and the diversity of
since 2010. Here, the festivities unfolded in magni- the trees certainly deserve to be highlighted. This
ficent sunshine. The Pratgraussals function room, edition had plenty of nice surprises in store, es-
overlooked by the bell tower of the Cathedral of pecially in including species that are rarely seen
St Cécile, was set up to accommodate the exhi- in European exhibitions. While conifers usually
bition, demonstration and market stalls. A very dominate, here we were able to admire a Phillyrea
handsome old farm building housed workshops, angustifolia, winged spindle trees, ash trees, a
talks and a restaurant area. sagebrush, a honeysuckle, a crape-myrtle,
Exhibitions
Outstanding tree: hornbeam

by Philippe Massard.
Outstanding tree: common

box by Roger Liovat.
Outstanding tree:
Scots pine by
Jean-Pierre Cardinal.
Outstanding tree:
mugo pine by
Gabriel Chapuis.
An old farm
building provided
a venue for
the talks and
workshops.
Francisco Ferreira worked on this

pine during a demonstration.
Guilhem Maillot won the 2015

“New Talent” competition.
a shadbush and a pear tree. This profusion

of species and broadleaves gave the event a good
injection of freshness, while there was still no
shortage of pines to admire.
It was a spruce tree by Didier Weiss that was
unanimously voted the best among all the trees
that were picked out by the judging panel. Eight
trees and one shohin composition formed the
line-up of “outstanding trees”, as there are no
prizes awarded at the FFB convention, but sim-
ply honourable mentions. These trees will be on
display at the 2016 convention of the EBA (Euro-
pean Bonsai Association) in Hungary.
All of the bonsai were well structured, even if
there are always some of lesser quality. Pierre
Hérault, one of the judges, emphasised: “Aside
from last year when there was a bit of a dip, the
quality of the trees is generally on the up, and
this year I found their quality very good indeed.”
Initial work
Outstanding tree:
The convention is also an occasion to see the rising
Scots pine by
stars of bonsai competing against each other in the Frédéric Dragonneau.
“New Talent” contest. Each of the FFB’s regions
presents the candidate selected during the regional
competition. This year there were seven contes-
tants in the line-up, as two regions did not put
anyone forward due to a lack of candidates.
Exhibitions
Outstanding shohin
composition:
five-needle
pine, hornbeam,
maple and elm,
by Jean-Marc
Ladagnous and
Florence Bardot.
Outstanding tree: azalea by Didier Weiss.
Outstanding tree:
mountain pine by
Marie-Hélène Brenn.
and numerous workshops. Francisco Ferreira led
the weekend’s only demonstration, using a very
attractive pine: “The aim of this demonstration
is to show that initial work can be carried out
The principle of the competition was simple: even though you know that you’ll change it in
style a small juniper within three or four hours, the coming years, because too many demonstra-
under the watchful eyes of the judges. Guilhem tions have been done that focus on the tree’s ulti-
Maillot, a member of the AFAB (French Bonsai mate appearance.” An easygoing and very well-
Hobbyists Association), near Paris, managed to attended demonstration.
win the judges over with his effort. Claude Dominici gave a talk on pruning pines: he
As for the events programme, convention parti- explained that he models his work on the activity
cipants and visitors could treat themselves and of processionary caterpillars, which eat pine need-
satisfy their curiosity at the demonstration, talks les twice a year, moving up and down the tree.
Jean-Bernard Gallais (right) led an
open workshop in which Marie-
Hélène Brenn, whose mountain pine
was one of the outstanding trees
selected by the judges, took part.
Claude
Dominici
gave a talk on
pruning pines.
Ruud Halink
(left) led a
An interactive talk with Gilles workshop that
Vuillaume on tree aesthetics. focused on
dealing with
deadwood.
A tribute to Thierry
Bruno Simon chose as the subject of his talk participants. The club’s members managed to ge-
“Plant roots and their application in bonsai”, nerate a warm and convivial atmosphere, which
while Fredy Filiot presented bonsai work on ash contributed to the event’s success. So, congratula-
trees. Gilles Vuillaume, meanwhile, gave a very tions to all the volunteers who worked away for
interactive talk on the theme “Do you have the months to make the FFB’s convention such a won-
same vision as the tree’s owner?”. Using photos of derful celebration of bonsai.
prize-winning trees in international exhibitions, A date for the diary: the 2016 convention will take
he presented three images of each, two of which place on 25 and 26 June in Villeneuve d’Ascq, near
he had doctored: which was the prize-winning Lille.
version? A good exercise to hone your artistic eye.
Two workshops were led by FFB members: an
open workshop with Jean-Bernard Gallais, and
another on deadwood with Ruud Halink.
The convention paid particular tribute to one of
its most talented members, who passed away in
April 2014: Thierry Font. A bonsai professional,
he had an unparalleled artistic sensibility. Some
of his superb drawings were put on show: an
emotional moment in memory of Thierry, who
was so dear to us.
“It’s bliss”: these brief words from Jean-Marie An exhibition of Thierry
Font’s drawings paid
Couderc, president of the Bonsaï Club de l’Albi-
homage to this bonsai
geois who was in charge of organising this 2015 professional who
convention, sum up the feelings of the weekend’s passed away in 2014.
Exhibitions
CHINA ZUN
The entrance of China Zun is spectacular,
as are the collectors’ trees that were
displayed in October 2014 at Yuyao
city, south of Shanghai, in China.
Penjing on a racetrack
China
There are large numbers of penjing collectors in

China. They display their best trees at the China Zun.
Report on the 2014 edition, in admiration of the little
trees – though not as little as all that.
Author: Michèle Corbihan
China Zun, the National Exhibition

of Collections of Chinese Penjing Collectors, is one
of the best national penjing exhibitions in China,
because it features the most beautiful examples of
trees from Chinese collections. The 2014 edition
took place from 31 October to 2 November, in the
Gaofeng Middle School, Yuyao city, 200 kilometres
(120 miles) south of Shanghai. Su Fang, president
of the China Penjing Artists Association (CPAA) –
The opening ceremony and prize-giving began with a full-on show. which organises China Zun in collaboration with
the government of Zhejiang province – was kind
The penjing were exhibited all around the sports
ground of the Gaofeng Middle School, in Yuyao city.
Two professionals, German Arellano First all-round winner: Pinus thunbergii,

(Colombia) and Sergio Luciani (Argentina), collection of Geng Garden. Height: 100 cm.
pose in front of a very large pine.
enough to invite me to visit the event, along with The exhibition is held in the sports ground of the
international personalities from the bonsai world. Gaofeng Middle School, the set-up of which was
This second exhibition in China was an asto- a real surprise to me and the people I was with:
nishing sight, the size of both the trees and the the garden was decked out with magnificent pines
venue being far beyond what we are used to imported from Japan, and superb koi carp were
seeing in the West. swimming in ponds.
The 120 or so penjing were displayed outside, all
Around the sports ground around the school’s sports ground. Small rostrums
My visit began with the opening ceremony on 30 each held two trees, one on either side of a white
October, the day I arrived in China, after dining panel with decorated edges.
at the hotel. An enormous hall, full to bursting, There were no shohin here; the vast majority of
welcomed all the invited guests: demonstrators, penjing are over a metre tall, with the largest one
exhibitors and various personalities from the pen- more than 1.5 metres. The trees were well structu-
jing and bonsai worlds. Traditional music, songs red, and pines and junipers were present in force.
and dances with special lighting offered a lead-in However, there was not much in the way of land-
to the prize-giving ceremony. I only got to see the scapes, unlike at the exhibition I had the oppor-
award-winning trees the following morning, in a tunity to visit in Guangzhou, southern China, in
mixture of sunshine and rain. 2013.
Exhibitions
Ficus microcarpa,
collection of Li Zhengyin.
Height: 110 cm.
Second all-round winner:

Pinus thunbergii,
collection of Geng Garden. Third all-round winner: Juniperus
Height: 95 cm. Juniperus chinensis var.
sargentii, collection of Geng
Garden. Height: 108 cm.
Diospyros armata,
collection of
Yang Guisheng.
Height: 125 cm.
The“Black Scissors”
The “Black Scissors” is a movement that brings toge-
ther artists from all around the world, its aim being to
seek new paths of creativity and innovation for the
display of bonsai and penjing. Founded by Su Fang,
the movement has already attracted a large number
of key figures in the international penjing and bonsai
worlds.
Juniperus formosana,
collection of Bao Shiqi.
Height: 115 cm.
Points on display
While the junipers, mostly Juniperus chinensis,
displayed handsome and very twisted deadwood,
the same could not be said of the pines, which
sometimes contented themselves with a few very
discreet little jin. Most of the pines were Pinus
thunbergii, P. parviflora or P. densiflora. As for
the broadleaves, Ficus microcarpa and Podocarpus
macrophyllus led the field.
Ten judges were responsible for attributing the
prizes: eight Chinese, one North American (Wil-
liam N. Valavanis) and one Brit (Tony Tickle). Ficus microcarpa, collection of Xiao Gengwu.
Each of them awarded points to each of the trees Height: 130 cm.
on display: a mammoth task which extended well
into the night, by torchlight, as Tony Tickle repor-
ted. The Western judges were very surprised to and Kunio Kobayashi with the assistance of Isao
see listed on a large panel, two days later, all the Fukita (Japan).
marks attributed by each judge to each tree … It In China, there can be no penjing without a scho-
was explained that this precaution avoids com- lar’s rock. A large hall accommodated dozens of
plaints about the results; the organisers have cer- stones, each one more beautiful than the one
tainly embraced transparency. before. Again, the sight of this was astounding!
After lunch in the school’s canteen, we – figures The wooden stands (daiza in Japan) made for
from the worlds of penjing and bonsai who had the rocks were very finely worked, forming
come from Japan, Taiwan, China, Vietnam, Italy,
the UK, Korea, the USA and (in my case) France –
were invited to participate in a discussion on the
evolution of penjing in China, and the differences
between penjing and bonsai. We each took our
turn giving our thoughts on the subject. Then it
was Su Fang’s turn to present the “Black Scissors”
movement, which he has founded.
Rocks on the table The marks awarded by

Because of this discussion, which continued for the judges were posted
on display panels: Tony
a good part of the afternoon, I was not able to at-
Tickle (UK, right) and
tend the various demonstrations given by Cheng William N. Valavanis (USA)
Cheng Kung (Taiwan), Robert Steven (Indonesia), couldn’t get over it!
Exhibitions
Juniperus chinensis var. sargentii,

collection of Guan Shan. Height: 100 cm.
Members of the Black Scissors signalling their affiliation to the movement.

From left to right: L. Crespi (Italy), S. Bum-Young (Korea), G. Arellano
(Colombia), S. Luciani (Argentina), Pui Khiang Kang (Malaysia), T. Tickle (UK),
Su Fang (China, organiser of China Zun) and R. Steven (Indonesia).
Ficus microcarpa,
collection of Bao Shiqi.
Height: 100 cm.
an ensemble with the stones themselves and

sometimes extending their illusion. Large tables
in the middle of the space presented stones as if Juniperus chinensis var. sargentii,
ready for a meal. Surprising and impressive! collection of Chen Mingxing.
Height: 85 cm.
There was light rain as the afternoon drew to a
close, and I left to set off back to France the fol-
lowing day.
My lasting impression of this exhibition is that and to increase exchanges with other countries.
penjing is a rapidly evolving art, the rules of For example, the fact that the 2015 convention of
which may sometimes escape us, but which Bonsai Clubs International is being organised to
comes across as very fine indeed. China is see- be held in Guangzhou from 17 to 21 September
king to show off its know-how, to develop its art this year is clear evidence of this.
Trees
and People
Originally from Tennessee, Bjorn

Bjorholm was only 22 years old
when he began his apprenticeship
under the Japanese master Keiichi
Fujikawa of Kouka-en, in Ikeda City
near Osaka, after obtaining an MBA
from the University of Memphis.
Known for his YouTube videos on
bonsai, he has an air of serenity
when discussing his art.
I met him near Heidelberg, in
Germany, in March this year, during
a bonsai event that showcased the
young generation in bonsai.
Bjorn
Known for his
YouTube videos, Bjorn
Bjorholm, a talented
29-year-old from the
USA, already has a
solid training and a
promising future.
Bjorholm
“You have to learn the basics”
Esprit Bonsai International – Why did you
chose Fujikawa as a master?
Bjorn Bjorholm – When I was 16, in my home-
town, there was a cultural exchange programme.
Every year they’d offer high-school students a
In 2008, Bjorn two-week trip to Japan. I got chosen and my host
began his family liked bonsai, so they took me to his nursery
apprenticeship because we were in Osaka. It was the first time
to the
Japanese I’d met him and he said jokingly: “When you get
master older, if you want to come back to Japan and be
Fujikawa, apprenticed here, you can.” But I took it to heart.
near Osaka. Another reason was his trees. His styled trees are
He was 22. really nice, they spoke to me more than anybody
else’s. They’re quiet trees, it’s not like a lot of
Interview by Michèle Corbihan deadwood, a lot of curving. Another reason is
Photos: Bjorn Bjorholm, unless stated otherwise Osaka, which is a nice part of Japan, a nice place
He worked as
an apprentice
where I really want to live, so it was a combination E.B.I. – What are your future career plans? in his master’s
of all those things. Stay in Japan, go back to the USA? workshop for six
years, until 2015.
B.B. – It’s booming right now in the US. Probably
E.B.I. – You’ve finished your six-year appren- in two years from now, I’ll move back to the US
ticeship; are you a professional right now? and set up a shop there, doing some importing
B.B. – In April [2015], I officially graduate from the from Japan. I’ll go back to Japan at least probably
nursery and get certified by the Japanese bonsai twice a year, maybe for one or two months each
association as a bonsai professional. I’m on the time, but I want to be based in the US eventually.
road six or seven months a year to different areas The reason I say two more years is because I’ll
– Europe, Australia … and I go to the United States get my PhD (in businessBusiness) finished – my
two or three times a year. It’s my main career now. side project.
Trees
and People
An award-
winning
E.B.I. – Which species do you prefer?
Japanese B.B. – When I start with a tree, the number one
white pine thing is the tree has to survive whatever I do to it.
styled by I’m working with living plant material, and I’ve got
Bjorn for the respect for that, so that is the base line. Most of
Taikan-ten
exhibition
the time in Japan, I’m working on junipers, white
in Kyoto. pines … In terms of my favourite species to work
with, actually I like the deciduous trees quite a little
bit more, but you have to work ten, fifteen, twenty
years on it before the tree is good. I understand
how many years and how much dedication it takes
to make a deciduous bonsai versus yamadori you
get in the mountains. I also have respect for those,
but in terms of techniques and the amount of train-
ing for a bonsai, it’s a very minimal amount of time
compared to deciduous trees. With the deciduous
trees you really have to take care, right from the
beginning, and make sure to choose the right tech-
niques, decade after decade, to get it just right. To
me, that’s the height of bonsai.
E.B.I. – What will be your style?

B.B. – I take pride in a sort of exactness of my work.
Not that I want the tree to be like plastic. I still want
it to look natural, refined and elegant. I want you
to see the detail. I focus very very closely on the
details in my work.
E.B.I. – How would you contribute to the evo-

An award-winning lution of the world of bonsai?
shimpaku juniper
B.B. – Up until very recently, people who’ve done
styled by Bjorn
for the Taikan- bonsai professionally, for the most part, have tried
ten exhibition E.B.I. – What do you expect with bonsai? to keep the information for themselves. To me, the
in Kyoto, 2013. B.B. – There is nothing else I’d rather be doing. I only way that bonsai gets better and everybody
wake up seven days a week now and start: bon- gets better is everybody has access to the best
sai, bonsai, bonsai. That’s it. I have to be out and possible information. It should be free and avail-
I have to be with the trees. There’s a connection. able. That’s why I started doing bonsai art in Japan
The biggest thing is that everybody should keep on video series on YouTube a few years ago, and
a level head about doing bonsai. When I’m doing putting out all sorts of detailed techniques that
all this work, there’s a tendency to get burned out most people don’t necessarily know. That’s sort of
travelling. I started this because it was fun, and I what I’m hoping to bring with the new media – basi-
keep it fun, I keep a level head about it. If you think cally using Internet, using video and giving informa-
about it, we’re not saving the world or children in tion, so more people on my side of the planet know
Africa, we’re just playing with lots of trees. It’s fun. what we’re doing and the techniques. The only
That’s probably the base line for me in terms of my reason people know who I am is the video series.
approach to bonsai. It’s going to be fun, we get to It’s a lot of work putting it together and you don’t
Juniperus rigida.
have a good time with it. get a direct benefit from it. I put hundreds
Bjorn with a white
pine he styled on
display at Nobuyuki
Yanai’s Daitoku-ji
exhibition, Kyoto.
Japanese
white pine
on display
at Nobuyuki
Yanai’s
Daitoku-ji
exhibition,
Kyoto.
Trees
and People
Bjorn worked on a lot of white pines in Japan.
Zuisho and white pine in a beautiful clasped-to-rock composition.
The tree must

be natural.
White pine.
and hundred of hours into the videos, but is second generation. His dad started the nursery,
I come here and I can see the people who are so those trees I know came to the nursery with
inspired by the work that I did there. a trunk maybe the size of your thumb and now,
they are beautiful, no scars. That is my inspira-
E.B.I. – Do you want to work breaking rules or tion. It inspires me to think about thirty, forty, fifty
using traditional rules? years down the line. Fujikawa-san is getting close
B.B. – In most stuff in Japan, there is an art element to retirement age. He is kind of more chilled out
underneath the craftsmanship element, so you get about the business. He’s done well for himself and
outside the technical side. It’s finding a balance brought the business up and it works well. I am in
between the two of those, because I take this very front of that and I consider go, go, go, go. Thirty
seriously as a craft. In school where I’m getting my years down the line is ok, starting now, if in thirty
PhD it’s very science-oriented, and I have a sort of years I have this. That is the inspiration for me: to
an aversion to the title of artist, I don’t necessarily think how this family was able to be successful in
like being called an artist, but a lot of people really bonsai and how I might be able to pull off the same
like that. You need to learn the basics and you also thing on the other side of the world.
need to be able to step outside the box and apply
your own feeling and understanding to the tree. In E.B.I. – How do you see yourself in thirty years?
Tennessee, for most people it’s not about learning B.B. – Absolutely with bonsai. Right now I am plan-
the basics first, what they do is they want to put ning on going back in two years to the States. I want
their own personality into the tree, and they even to buy a piece of propriety, maybe three, four, five
end up destroying the materiel. But if you learn the acres to set up a nursery and a bonsai school. In my
basics, if you go all the way down that path, you will part of the country, the south-east, there is really
build up from there and then you can put your own nobody there right now. All the big-time artists
feeling into the tree. The way it works in Japan is you are on the West Coast, in Oregon or in California.
do an apprenticeship so you learn all the basics. I want to set up a school where people can come
and learn and really be good at bonsai. I want to
E.B.I. – What inspires you? build that in the next few decades. In thirty years,
B.B. – I consider really my only teacher is Fujik- I want to have my own apprentices at some point,
awa-san. Some of the trees at the nursery have I can run my nursery, I can teach other people and
been there for thirty, forty, fifty years because he everybody gets better. And I am also producing
24 - EspritBonsaiïInter
tern
rn
national #77
This
American is
very rigorous
in his work.
a lot of stuff right now. I think twenty, thirty, forty

“I’m working with living material,
years down the line, I can have a lot of really nice and I’ve got respect for that.”
material that we can say it is completely grown in Juniperus chinensis yamadori.
the United States. We don’t have to import from
Japan, we can grow the stuff here, and you can
see, there are people in the States who can have
that dedication the Japanese have.
E.B.I. – How do you consider the world of bonsai

in the USA now?
B.B. – It’s booming, I think. You’ve got people like
Michael Hagedorn, Ryan [Neil], Matt Reel and Boon
[Manakitivipart], a lot of people who really know
what they’re talking about. More and more people
are going to gravitate towards those profession-
als and it is making everything a lot better. People Juniperus
are starting to understand how much money it chinensis
yamadori.
takes to buy quality material, and they are spending This young
more and more. From a business perspective, in professional
my opinion, right now is a great time to be begin- likes elegant,
ning at bonsai professionally. Right now there’s refined trees.
a huge boom. People are collecting yamadori in
the mountains and they’re starting to figure out
how to maintain them. We are still behind Europe.
I think a part of it is the culture, too. In the US, it’s
very individualistic and it makes it really hard to
teach people the basics. But people are starting
to change a little bit. Maybe in the next ten, twenty
years, the quality will be going through the roof.
E.B.I. – What do you have to say to beginners?

B.B. – Buy my online classes [laughter] … Focus
on the basics to start with. You get into bonsai
because it’s fun, and it is art, and you like that part
of it. But make sure you learn the technical stuff
first, because if you don’t, you’re going to get five,
ten years into it, and you’re going to realise that you
wasted all that time. You’ve really got to start with Juniperus
the basics. And then you can put your personality chinensis
into the trees later. yamadori.
Task of
the Month
Pruning pines
Pines should be pinched back in the
spring and pruned in the summer,
but this task is not without its risks,
and must be carried out properly, on
vigorous trees, to give good results.
Author: Gilbert Labrid
T
he best time to embark on one of the most-used
techniques in pine shaping is right in the heart of
summer. It is better to prune pines in the summer 1 Once the candle has been pinched back in
than in the winter. After pinching them back in the spring, the spring, the needles develop freely.
use scissors or shears for structural pruning, to increase
light penetration and to reduce the size of the needles.
This technique is particularly applicable to black pines avoid weakening the tree by repeating the operation
with long needles and vigorous regrowth, but if carried out too frequently. For others, at least three consecutive
at the wrong time it can damage the tree’s development. years are needed to significantly reduce the size of
Pruning for needle reduction consists of the needles. If you didn’t remove the old needles last
removing all or some of the pine’s new candles. autumn, there is still time to do it now. Avoid tearing them
To successfully perform this task: off by hand, as you then risk simultaneously detaching
1 – the tree needs to be vigorous and not the buds that are located at the bases of the sheaths,
to have been repotted in the spring; which are needed to form the new branches. The most
2 – the needles need to be fully formed and mature. important thing is to determine your intended outcome,
Depending on the climate, the period ranges from early depending on the tree you are working on. To do so, you
July to early August. Beyond this, there is a risk of new need to understand the species, evaluate the stage of
growth getting off to a poor start or being too weak. shaping that has been reached and consider the tree’s
Alongside this operation, a plan for applying fertiliser overall form, because, depending on the style, some
needs to be developed for the autumn months (and areas have a tendency to take precedence over others.
not at the same time), to restore the tree’s strength.
Weaker trees and those that already have short After pruning
needles should be pruned in July, while black pines In any case, summer pruning is an operation that forces
with large new shoots should be pruned in August. the tree to make a sustained effort to produce new
Summer pruning allows a second growth period to needles, without which it cannot survive. For some
be sparked off (after the one in the spring), which trees, it is not advisable to prune every year. Weak or
will benefit from the autumnal increase in vigour. sick trees, or those whose ramification is already well
formed and mature, should not be systematically
Using fine scissors pruned. There are other, gentler techniques for
The technical aspect is simple: use fine scissors to cut balancing out growth on these trees, such as pinching.
the part without needles that is situated between the Pruning for needle reduction is not the only
new and old needles. The task can extend to cutting method to create fine ramification, but it does
back over-long new branches by severing them above allow the process to be speeded up and for several
a new shoot. The second growth period will use up the stages to be negotiated in a single season.
tree’s reserves, which are already well underway after the Once the pruning has been carried out, avoid
spring, but only if no fertiliser is applied until the autumn. excessive watering and do not apply fertiliser before
This is very useful with long needles (Pinus thunbergii, the autumn. Since the new growth will occur at the
black pines) and medium-sized needles (Scots pine, end of the summer, place the tree in a sunny spot to
red pine, mugo pine). However, for small-needled trees encourage it to produce buds on the pruned areas
(Japanese five-needle pine), care needs to be taken to and especially in the inner zones of the branches.
2 In June, the extension of the new growth leaves an empty 5 The tidying exercise can be finished off by cutting back
space between the old needles and the new ones. the twigs and swiftly plucking the needles.
3 In July, the needles are hard and almost mature.

Cut in the middle of the empty space.
6 Cut back the twigs that are too long,

to encourage interior buds.
4 Trim back the points that are too long as well as any new shoots
that are overly thick or poorly placed. Radically cut back the points of 7 In areas that are very exposed to sunlight, especially the apex,
branches and the apex, the busiest and most dynamic area of the tree. it needs to be cut back and thinned out.
Summer pruning is pruning is not

- an act that exhausts the tree’s reserves - a matter of simply replacing needles
- a second possibility for controlling bud growth - the only method for reducing the size of needles
- the best way to balance out the vigour of areas of growth - a risk-free technique that can be used on all pines
- a good way to ensure dense foliage with short needles - a technique that should be carried out every year
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Bonsai
Basics
Approach grafting
To improve nebari, approach
grafting is a commonly used
Correcting
technique for adding roots.
flaws 1 Prepare young

plants, one to
two years old.
Author: Bruno Mazza
F
laws are fundamentally they develop live veins on impres-
linked to the aesthetics sive sections of deadwood on
of bonsai, which was the their trunks.
subject of our last issue’s Bon- To obtain broad, flat nebari,
sai Basics section (Esprit Bonsai plants need to be cultivated in
International 76). They involve shallow containers, as far as their
aspects of ugliness or lack of characteristics and essential 2 Wire the plants and bend
them to about 90° to be able
beauty in bonsai, which need to be needs allow it. At each repotting,
to graft them properly.
improved or eliminated to make take care to trim the roots that
the bonsai more attractive and have sprouted from the under-
valuable. side of the stump: this way, the
When faced with a flaw, a root system will gradually become
beginner might well think that it is naturally broad and flat.
enough just to camouflage it – to
cover it with a stone if it occurs • Grafting
at root level, or with a branch and In cases where some roots are
foliage if the imperfection is higher missing in the nebari’s fan-shaped
up the tree. But this is not the case! structure, it is possible to make 3 Prepare the nebari
at the place where you
More often than not, attempts at approach grafts or to insert a plant
are intending to graft.
camouflage serve only to attract in a hole drilled into the bonsai’s
attention to the thing that you are trunk. These two techniques can
trying to conceal, giving the oppo- be used successfully for grafting
site effect: instead of being hidden both roots and branches.
from view, the flaw is highlighted. Where junipers are concer-
In general, you should start exa- ned, in view of their ample root
mining the plant by looking at the production, it is possible to use
root structure, then at the trunk approach grafts to improve the
and lastly at the ramification and tree’s aesthetic quality, reduce its
foliage. We will approach the pro- height, or create several plants by
cess in the same order here. subdividing large specimens.
The nebari • Air-layering 4 In spring the

following year, graft
Good nebari should consist of In the case of very poorly struc-
the plants. When the
roots that are well proportioned in tured nebari, it is possible to air- grafts have taken,
relation to the trunk and that fan layer the trunk. Most broadleaves after two years or
out from it, although they should react well to this technique if it is more, remove the
be slightly less developed around carried out correctly. It is crucial to unusable part of the
grafted plant. Time
the front. They should enter the respect one very important condi-
and treatment will
soil at a good angle and spread tion: the plant must be healthy and improve the scars.
out flat to indicate the plant’s vigorous, otherwise there will only
advanced age. be weak and partial root growth.
The only exception to the rule Of all the broadleaves, maples
is juniper nebari. Junipers struggle are the ones that put out copious
to produce fanned-out roots, but quantities of roots most quickly.
Bonsai
Basics Insert the plant
so that the roots
can improve
the nebari.
A variant of approach grafting

involves drilling a hole in the
trunk to place the plant that
is to be grafted in the desired
position. The hole is barely
wider than the plant’s diameter.
As for conifers, pines do not years later, and a better base to be

lend themselves well to air-laye- obtained.
ring, while junipers produce a large Of course, these tasks need to
quantity of roots quickly and easily. be carried out carefully and step
by step. They are a good exercise
• A variant in patience, and sometimes offer
of air-layering the only possibility of improving This Scots pine’s surface roots have grown
It is possible to improve nebari a tree. too much. The tree’s base is covered with
This substrate to encourage rootlets to sprout.
Montpellier
on pines by covering the surface Scots pines and black pines are
maple was roots with at least 5 to 6 centi- the most inclined to put out root-
collected metres of substrate: the persistent lets, even on old roots. Still, you
from a rocky humidity then encourages rootlets need to be patient and to let time
situation, to grow on the thicker roots. This take its course.
with one
rather large
then allows the thick roots to be
stone stuck trimmed on repotting two or more The trunk
between The trunk begins above the
two roots. roots and extends up through the
parts from where the branches
spring. It is the most important
element, which determines the Rootlets are sprouting, to create
bonsai’s form. It should feature: a more attractive nebari.
Since the maple’s base is particularly ugly, Waiting for the results to be revealed.
air-layering is used to improve the nebari.
Bonsai
Basics
in the soil to counterbalance the

impression of falling, and the
ramification and foliage should be
nicely arranged.
The informal upright style
(moyogi) is characterised by a
sinuous trunk with gentler curves
at the base and tighter ones
towards the apex. It should lean in Broadleaf branches set off at an
relation to the ground. If the trunk’s angle of more than 90° to the trunk.
movement is exaggerated, its base
should clearly be leaning.
This flaw is a common one that appears
on the collars of many pines collected For the cascade style (kengai),
from nature: the diameter of the buried it is crucial to pay careful attention
part is smaller than that of the part above to what happens in nature in the
ground. To improve it, albeit slowly, setting you are seeking to evoke,
cultivate it in the shallowest possible pot.
and to reproduce it. The trunk’s
shape, the arrangement of the
- a taper, which can be more ramification and the quantity of
or less pronounced depending on foliage should take into account
the chosen style; the conditions of the situation you
- a three-dimensional appea- are imagining.
rance (towards the right or left, the Conifer branches set off at
back and the front); The ramification an angle of less than 90°.
- natural and varied curves, There is quite a large number of
gentler towards the base and more types of defective branch shapes,
pronounced towards the top; because it is relatively difficult to
- well-arranged ramification at find branches that are naturally
well-proportioned intervals. well positioned, with a suitable
The trunk of a bonsai in the for- form and an appropriate diame-
mal upright style (chokkan) should ter. Let’s have a look at a few of the
be perfectly straight, emerging most common ones.
from a handsome nebari, with a The shaping of branches can
good taper and well-ordered rami- sometimes be corrected. Howe-
fication. ver, their position and sprin-
A bonsai in the slanting style ging point are almost impossible
(shakan) should have a straight to change. It is best to remove The difference is plain to see between
or sinuous trunk that is leaning to branches that cannot be othe- the branches of a Scots pine …
a greater or lesser degree, rooted rwise altered.
It is worth remembering what
classifies as a good start for a
branch:
- for broadleaves, the angle
between its upper side and the
trunk should be greater than 90°.
- for conifers (and especially
pines), this angle should be less
than 90°.
However, the ends of the
branches always need to point
upwards, like in nature, for good
access to sunlight.
Trunks with Correcting defective branch
regular curves shapes can be done by wire trai-
are monotonous, ning or tensioning. Always remem- … and those of a beech.
predictable and
uninteresting.
ber to check that the wire is not
Bonsai
Basics
At the apex of this young pine, several

branches are growing in a fan shape. If
they are not pruned, they will produce an
unattractive swelling as they thicken out.
If it isn’t possible to modify its Any branch that is growing inside

shape, any branch that goes across a curve should always be cut off.
the trunk must be removed.
damaging the bark as the branches Conifers in general – although

grow and increase in diameter. junipers and yews are the excep-
tions because of their characte-
The bark ristics – should have cracked bark
On high-quality bonsai, the bark with coarse scales, to display the
should show the characteristics marks of age. Their bark should be
of the species and be consistent identical on the trunk and on the
all over. branches, which should not look
Broadleaves – or, more accu- younger so as not to ruin the tree’s
rately, most broadleaves – should harmony and coherence.
This mass of branches needs
have smooth bark, with no wounds The coarser the bark, the more to be thinned out. The tight
or scars that are not properly evocative it is. Unfortunately there curves are promising.
closed, to avoid compromising is not much you can do to alter
their integrity. the youthful appearance of bark,
Only Prunus and a handful of other than putting the tree out in
other species can have hollow the open and patiently waiting for
trunks and imposing shari. In these time to do its work.
cases, the hollow trunk becomes
the plant’s most admired charac- Avoiding
teristic. and correcting
All flaws hold bonsai back from
perfection and diminish their qua-
lity: the greater the flaw, the grea-
ter the depreciation in value, both
artistic and financial.
This mugo pine
is being styled
During the preparatory phase
for the first time and the initial styling work, as well This area near the apex is
into a windswept as subsequent interventions, it is problematic. Drawing a picture of
form. One branch the tree before starting to style it
therefore important not to create
at the middle will help in making a decision.
irreversible flaws, to make every
of the trunk is
thicker than the
possible effort to correct those
others and is that already exist, and to make
poorly placed: wounds heal perfectly. its height will have large wounds
should it be A bonsai that has been created that are hard to close, and will
removed or kept? by cutting off thick branches or the never be able to become a good-
upper part of the trunk to reduce quality bonsai.
Sous le patronage
World Bonsai
Friendship Federation
Nippon Bonsai
Sakka Kyookai Europe
Bonsai Club
International
Consulat général
du Japon
Centre de culture
Italia-Asia
Le Rassemblement International du Bonsai et Suiseki 2015 aura lieu du 11 au 20 sep-

tembre. Créé en 1995, il est devenu la manifestation la plus imitée en Europe mais qui Invité spécial
se distingue par la richesse du contenu, la qualité et l’organisation des programmes
présentés. Cette année le Rassemblement International du Bonsai & Suiseki durant BONSAI
le 1er week-end - du 11 au 13 septembre - aura lieu l’exposition-concours Amateurs Shinsaku Yamahata
en Compétition, consacrée aux amateurs, tandis que les expositions-concours Cre-
spi Bonsai Cup, Crespi Shohin Cup et Crespi Pot Cup pour les professionnels et les SUISEKI
collectionneurs, auront lieu le 2ème week-end - du 18 au 20 septembre. L’exposi- Masayuki Nomura
tions-concours Crespi Suiseki Cup aura lieu du 11 au 20 septembre.
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Getting Off
to a Goo
od Start
AIR-LAYERING:
a technique that
can make all the
difference Air-layering is quite a simple procedure. It allows a
tree to be reproduced or an attractive part of it to be
extracted, and good root structure to be obtained.
Air-layering can look

complicated and tricky.
However, there is no
risk for beginners in Air-layering, also known as mar-
cotting, is a method of reproducing plants. It allows new
having a go, because this specimens to be obtained that have identical charac-
technique is a real asset in teristics to the parent plant. For bonsai enthusiasts,
air-layering also allows nebari to be created on a tree
terms of obtaining good- whose roots do not fulfil the normal aesthetic requi-
rements for bonsai.
quality roots.
1 Why air-layer?
Air-layering can allow the most attractive part of a tree
that is showing tendencies of deteriorating or evolving
poorly, to be rescued. By air-layering a bonsai’s apex,
Author: Xavier Dreux you can quickly obtain an advanced shohin. A more
elaborate technique, which requires some forward
planning, involves making the most of a tree in open
ground to create a bonsai with a part of the tree (apex
or branches) that is subsequently shaped over the
course of several years, then air-layered to create a
well-placed root system.
Air-layering thus allows roots to be obtained at a cho-
sen location on a tree. To force the tree to sprout roots,
the downward sap circulation is interrupted mechani-
Species that are cally by a wire or a cut.
easy to air-layer
Acer palmatum, Acer buergerianum,
2 Stripping a ring of bark
Here, we will make a small bonsai in the hokidachi
Carpinus spp., Ilex serrata, Juniperus (broom) style out of the slender trunk of this Zelkova
chinensis, Malus spp., Spirea spp., serrata, starting at the bottom – with the roots.
Ulmus spp., Zelkova spp. To begin, make a horizontal incision all the way around
the branch or trunk at the point where you want the
roots to grow. Next make a second incision, lower down,
Sap flow
There are two types of sap: xylem sap and phloem sap. Xylem sap (water and minerals) flows upwards
through the xylem, and phloem sap (transformed in the leaves through photosynthesis) flows down through
the phloem, beneath the bark. The parts above the air-layer continue to be fed by the rising sap. The des-
cending sap accumulates at the point where the bark has been removed. This build-up of sap forces cells to
differentiate and then to produce roots if the conditions of moisture and shade are right.
bark Phloem Cambium
Xylem Xylem Xylem Xylem
Sapwood Sapwood Girdling
1 Upwards and downwards flow of sap. 2 The descending sap is blocked at the point of the air-layer.
Before starting the layering process, cut down one After marking the desired Peel the bark away. Scrape off the cambium and scratch
side and through the base of a plastic pot, to place position for the layer, cut into away some of the sapwood. Take
it around the trunk; prepare some wire to fasten the the Zelkova serrata’s bark. care not to dig too deep, as this
pot, plus some substrate – in this case, sphagnum. may prevent the sap from rising.
at a distance of at least 1.5 times the trunk’s diame- 4 Filling it with substrate
ter (or less for thicker diameters). Then make a third The air-layer’s substrate needs to retain moisture, wit-
incision, this time vertically through the ring of bark hout being saturated. Sphagnum and vermiculite are
to peel it away. It is important to scrape off all of the ideal for this purpose.
cambium, to prevent healing which might compromise Use a saw to cut the air-layer off, between a few weeks
the layering process. and a few months later, after checking that roots have
It is possible to apply rooting hormones to the upper appeared. To do this, press lightly on the container to
edge of the cut, or to wind a wire tightly around the feel if it is full of roots, or open it up gently to have a look.
trunk.
3 Setting up a container Install a mesh to

protect against
Place a container around the debarked area and fill it birds. The air-layer
with substrate. The container can be a pot, a piece of is now set up. Water
plastic sheeting, etc. it regularly and turn
the bonsai frequently
so that the air-layer
receives sunlight
from all sides.
Fix the pot to the tree with iron wire or training
wire. Fill the pot with damp sphagnum moss.
5 Several air-layers on a single tree

It is possible to set up several air-layers on the same
tree: either on different branches, or one above ano-
ther. There is just one rule that needs to be adhered to:
the presence of foliage directly connected to the part
Put the pot in place, around Close the container that is being air-layered. These leaves will make phloem
the debarked area. securely with sticky tape. sap flow down towards the air-layer.
Treegazing
On a
plateau
Bonsai are trees … on a plateau.
The French word plateau
signifies many things: plate,
plateau, platter, tray, shelf, stage
… and the author takes hold
of this notion to explore the
meanings of bonsai stands and
of the plants they present.
Author: Gilbert Labrid
The bell tower of nature’s cathedral offers us

the very best on a plate – or plateau!
T lhere are spaces which are reserved for specific
rites that become familiar over time. We have
become accustomed to lifting a glass to propose a
toast; we mount a stage to put ourselves on show; we
arrange food on dishes to present at a meal, we place
flowers in a vase or, more prosaically, we move away
from the group to munch on a meal in front of the
television. Each of these particular situations uses
what the French would call a plateau (whose mea-
nings include ‘tray’, ‘stage’, ‘platter’, ‘shelf’ and ‘plate’
as well as ‘plateau’): an instrument that allows distinc-
tion through separation from the mass. It allows all
the elements occupying it to be elegantly presented.
For offerings
Plateaux are used in all sorts of situations, from
the most sacred to the most mundane. When a
plate is given edges of whatever height, forming a
slight hollow, it appears as a dish or cup that allows
more unsettled liquid contents to be collected.
Today, just as in antiquity, victors celebrate their
supremacy by lifting up a trophy or cup – a synonym Whatever
of sporting or intellectual triumph. Precious offerings the size of an
are placed on a platter, as gifts or as an act of sha- overhanging
outcrop,
ring that seals an agreement between two people. the whole
An item placed on a platter possesses a particu- universe can
lar value, because the object that is isolated must be unfold from it.
Several landscapes mingle together in an orderly fashion
on this bridge across to the invisible shore of dreams.
“You’ll soon envy the eternal holiday-maker | Who dreams

as he rides his pedalo on the waves | Who spends his death Verticality in the tree, horizontality in the rock: the outlines are delineated.
on holiday …”: Georges Brassens (translated extract from the
song Supplique pour être enterré sur la plage de Sète).
superior to the whole. When John the Baptist’s head our appetites on tiny spaces and content ourselves
was offered to Salome on a platter, it represented with the contours of a tray, dish or other sort of small-
an appropriation of his spirit. scale plateau. The emotion we feel in so doing is no
This sort of stylised conch form holds a whole less abundant; and, in a curious inversion of scale,
other cosmos within it – a universe that is ordered we do not feel larger – quite the contrary!
and governed by laws and principles that are intelli- Wehavesoughttofindinspirationinthesevisions
gible to humankind. It is not very surprising to see this of microcosms, to try to attain the perfection that
small space being appropriated to pass on the very fascinates us. Placing trees on a plateau – a dish, tray
bestofthingsinasimplemanner.TheFrenchexpres- or shelf – whether or not accompanied by stones
sion “sur un plateau”, equivalent to the English “on a and grasses, is a temptation to which our forebears
plate”, refers to the ease with which we can access succumbed. For this, they needed to understand
the best things, sometimes with no effort at all, such the laws that govern the survival of these miniature
as a gift bestowed by an unapproachable authority. universes. Neither too much, nor too little; finding a
balanced medium; never forcing; acting at the right The last diehards
Trees on a plateau … moment … such is the way. It’s difficult. But at the bring beauty to
This sort of situation can be found in the various same time, it’s perfectly natural … this sloping ledge
which is dwindling
landscapes and undulations that the Universe has
away into nothing.
allowed to emerge on the surface of our planet: a
microcosm reflecting a higher order.
It’s often by chance, while out on a stroll, that the
observant eye will spot the typical sorts of situations
that we find emotionally moving. Depending on our
particular interests, our eyes will pick out the details
that intrigue us, as if our mind were already selecting
the content of our aesthetic and spiritual sustenance.
Because nature is a cathedral open to the sky that
asks only for an opening, even just a narrow one,
through which to slip an invitation to the feast. We can
embrace vast landscapes and feel minuscule in the
face of such immensity. Equally, we can concentrate
This Elaeagnus pungens
was grown in open ground
Shohin: and will be styled as a
Small Bonsais bonsai, because there
is almost certainly an
interesting trunk behind
the foliage. Height: 21 cm.
1 Total defoliation is needed in order

to determine the tree’s eventual shaping.
A future bonsai
The Japanese master Tomohiro Masumi
begins the task.
hidden in a mass of foliage

This Elaeagnus pungens may
seem a bit unkempt as it emerges Author: BonsaïTranslations
Demonstration: Tomohiro Masumi, Koju-en
from nine years of cultivation to be
prepared for its future as a bonsai.
Defoliation and pruning are on the
agenda to define this shohin’s form. In nature there exist some
trees with mighty trunks that we find deeply
moving. Such trunks, with their complex curves
and their deadwood forged by the elements,
become embedded in our consciousness.
And so we look for miniature versions of
2 Defoliation is always done from top to 3 After uncovering the top of the tree, 4 He will choose which top
bottom. Masumi immediately notices that the tree has to keep after exposing the
two apexes, which is undesirable. whole of the tree’s form.
5 Tomohiro Masumi continues to 6 The base of the trunk is still not 7 The tree’s form is exposed bit by bit.
defoliate, in search of the tachiagari. sufficiently visible.
What is the tachiagari

When unveiling a tree’s form, you need to ask yourself this
question: where is the front? A tree’s front is chosen by
studying the tachiagari, which is the area from the base of
them, either from bonsai dealers or in nature. the tree to the first branch. The tachiagari should be the tree’s
But it is unusual to find a perfect trunk. focal point. Since the base of the tree is the most important
The Japanese shohin expert Tomohiro Masumi part, it needs to be exposed, without branches or ugly scars.
found this Elaeagnus pungens at a wholesaler’s This area also needs to have eye-catching features, which
who cultivates bonsai in open ground. What may be found in its shapes, its bark or its deadwood.
is hidden beneath its lush green canopy?
At first glance, this tree doesn’t seem particularly
interesting. The branches are too long, the foliage
is far too dense and we can’t even see the trunk.
Also, the tree is larger than standard shohin. But
the canopy may be concealing a handsome trunk.
Total defoliation
Tomohiro Masumi needs to carry out a The tree’s front depends on the
total restructuring of the tree. To do so, tachiagari. This tree, which is well
known in Japan, serves as an
he needs to examine it underneath the
example. The nebari is indicated in
canopy, and to defoliate so that the lines of red. The tachiagari, in white, extends
the trunk and branches are visible. from the base to the first branch.
Shohin:
Small Bonsais
This superimposed image of photos of

the tree after defoliation and in its final
state is very informative. Note that the top
of the tree is lower, a single branch has
The future rear of the tree. been chosen to extend the trunk and the
branches have been cut much shorter.
This will be the front of the tree.
Choosing the front

After defoliation, the tree can be examined.
Several questions beg to be asked at this point.
Is the start of each of the first four branches
visible? Are the slender branches too long?
What about the trunk? Can the shape of
the tachiagari be distinguished? Where
is the front of the tree? What about the
height and thickness of the trunk?
There is still a lot of work to be done here.
Take a moment to visualise the tree in its
final state, and compare your image with
the result that Tomohiro Masumi obtains. The top is brought down to the There are now two apexes. One needs to go.
first group of branches.
Choosing the branches
Tomohiro Masumi begins trimming the tree
from the top. He chooses a new apex from the
two possible ones, and orientates the trunk
towards it. The trunk needs to be tapered –
that is, very wide at the base and decreasing
in thickness towards the top. Since this tree’s
trunk will grow thicker, the thickening needs to
be kept as close to the centre as possible.
Next begins the selection of the branches. Which Masumi cuts
ones should be removed? Although there are off one of the
some general rules in bonsai, each situation is two apexes:
different. The apex branch that Masumi cuts the decision
is made.
off was pointing towards the front: in general,
branches that point directly at the viewer should
be eliminated. This branch was also thicker than
the second apex branch, and another rule is to
remove thick branches and leave delicate ones:
It is important to know how to cut properly.
As a general rule, if making cuts along the trunk,

Masumi examines the red area to select the branches that are to be kept. cut at the base of the branch so that the cut
Their position and size are important, as the largest ones need to be removed. doesn’t make a bump after healing over.
When cutting back a very fragile branch, it is better to leave part of its length Since this bud is fragile, the cut is made half a
so that it does not dry out. Here, the branch is being cut just beyond a bud. centimetre higher up, to avoid drying it out.
The branches are continuously

cut back and their bases are
extensions of the trunk. The
trunk and all the branches
need to maintain a triangular
thickness as they grow; this
is tapering – one of the great
secrets of Japanese bonsai.
The branches that are part of the future
bonsai’s design are cut back. Note that
Masumi makes the cuts above the buds.
The branches in the design
Masumi continues by removing the branches
this helps to keep the energy at the centre of from the base that do not form part of the tree’s
the tree and produce a more powerful trunk. design, and by cutting back others. In Japan,
Another basic rule for the removal of branches bonsai producers choose the positions of the
is that there should never be more than two main branches very early on in the creative
branches starting from the same point. process, to work on their tapering.
Shohin:
Small Bonsais
An example
Let’s apply all these theories to an example.
In Japan, masters often say that a person
who is not afraid of cutting off branches
obtains better results than one who
tries to preserve them at any cost.
1 This main branch is split into three: there is one 2 Two of the branches are crossing: in bonsai, 3 So, the thicker branch
branch too many. We could cut here to leave only two this is to be avoided. Which one should be removed? is cut off.
branches to the fork. But there is another problem here. When in doubt, it is always a good rule to cut off
the thicker branch.
4 It is always the thicker branch that 5 The task is not yet complete: overly thick branches 6 To finish the task correctly, the angle
is removed, because the aim is to need to be trimmed. Note the colour: in broadleaves, of the cuts needs to be worked on, because
achieve a taper: a thick base that new branches often have different colouring to the perpendicular cuts produce ugly scars. Cutting
gradually becomes finer towards the others. In Elaeagnus pungens, they are tan-coloured. at an angle is also an important secret to
outer edges. obtaining a more natural extension to the branch.
In this example, Beware of bumps

Masumi cuts back It is common in broadleaves for a bump to
the bump at the
base of the branch. form when several cuts have been made
successively in the same place. Aesthetically
speaking, this is not a good thing.
looking closely, it is
possible to see that
there are in fact three
branches springing from
this point. The largest one
is therefore removed.
Protecting the cuts
Masumi goes over the cuts a bit. He then
protects them with cut paste, which will prevent
them from drying out and encourage internal
healing, just as a wound dressing does for us.
After ensuring that the angles of the cuts Masumi makes slightly deeper cuts in some places, so as not to cause
are consistent, he applies cut paste. bumps to form in future. Note the angle of the cut, on the far left.
The initial work on this

Elaeagnus pungens
is complete. Front
view. Height: 18 cm.
Rear view.
In future
In Japan, a tree like this one is considered as raw
material. Professionals buy these types of trees
from wholesalers and continue to work on them.
Patience is needed. After seven years’ cultivation
in open ground, the tree is placed in a pot for
two years. Then, a procedure such as the one
described above is necessary to restructure it.
In the coming years, the canopy will be
created and the thin branches that are
now visible will be constantly cut back and
replaced when they become too thick. The
number of slender branches will increase, and
thickening of the branches and trunk will be
concentrated around the centre of the tree.
It is a task that requires precision and care.
Find Tomohiro Masumi at www.kyoto.
zaq.jp/kojuen/0index.html
Shohin:
Small Bonsais
Chestnut trees are rare
among bonsai, because
their large leaves take a long
time to be reduced in size.
Yves Ingels has, however,
successfully managed to
make them into mame.
In 2015. Height: 18 cm.
The same
chestnut tree in
2006, after two
years’ work.
Mame chestnuts:
yes, it is possible!
Chestnut trees are rare as bonsai, and even more
so as mame. The reason? Reducing the size of Buds are appearing.
the leaves is a process that requires patience ...

and about ten years of time.
Text: Yves Ingels

Photos: Florence Deleu For several years, my mind
kept turning to the idea of making chestnut
trees, Aesculus hippocastanum, into mame.
I am now able to say that, although these trees
have very large leaves, the idea is neither absurd,
nor impossible – as many bonsai hobbyists
would tell me – and I have finally managed it!
2011. This mame is the result of an March 2015: a few years later, the trunk May 2015: after springtime repotting, the leaves
air-layered apex, cut off in 2007. and branches have got much thicker. are coming out. Height (excluding pot): 10 cm.
• Air-layering
The great advantage of chestnut trees is the
ease with which they can be air-layered, which is
particularly interesting for making small trees. It is
perfectly possible to air-layer ends of branches or
apexes that are already well structured, and this
obviously saves a considerable amount of time.
On the other hand, cutting branches off results
in large scars. To avoid this, the cuts need to be
well hollowed out. Chestnuts heal very quickly,
especially on branches with a lot of leaves.
Air-layering is an easy procedure, though of
course only on the condition that you check the
moisture of the substrate around the air-layer
carefully. The new roots develop in a single
season, and the air-layer can be cut off in the Grown from seed in 1999, this six-year- In 2015, after nine years of
following spring. I always work the same way: old mame is only just starting out. repeated pruning, defoliation
cutting and peeling off a ring of bark down to and bud selection, the
the wood, with the cut going no further than the mame is emerging. Height
(excluding pot): 13 cm.
diameter of the training wire, which I pull tight.
• Sowing from seed

Starting off with a stump or a seed
to make a bonsai can also yield good
results, but more slowly, of course.
Common chestnuts germinate very easily.
Plant the seeds as soon as they have been
harvested, in a bed of leaf mould laid on 1/3 One cut to this bonsai, and the tree has
sand, 1/3 compost and 1/3 akadama. Then half put out new shoots all around the cut.
cover them with the leaves. Ultimately, this is
simply a matter of replicating what happens and branches grow for a season without
in nature after the leaves have fallen. trimming, then cutting them back in winter …
Chestnuts have an impressive ability to bud. It
• Creating a bonsai doesn’t much matter where you prune them:
To create a chestnut mame, first of all you they still produce buds all around the area.
need a tree to which the classic principles of Of course, this technique should be used on
bonsai have been applied: letting the trunk a vigorous and healthy specimen.
Shohin:
Small Bonsais
1 A normal-sized horse
chestnut (Aesculus
hippocastamus) leaf.
Exhibiting
2 A leaf of a mame that has his mame
undergone ten years’ work. Yves Ingels’s mame will be
3 A leaf from the same on display at the convention
of the Fédération Française
mame after 11 years’ work.
It has fewer leaflets. de Bonsaï (French Bonsai
Federation) in Villeneuve
d’Ascq, near Lille in
northern France, on 25
and 26 June 2016.
One of them will be featured
on the convention’s poster.
1
2 3
© José Boignard
A good seven or eight years are needed before The number of leaflets can reduce
a chestnut bonsai’s leaves become visibly smaller. along with the size of the leaves.
Repeated pruning generates

• Reducing leaf size Reducing leaf size is a long-winded process little folds, underneath which
Obtaining small leaves is possible through that needs to be pursued with determination. latent buds appear.
regular effort over a period of several years:
• defoliate the tree when the leaves • Substrate and fertiliser
are fully open, which can only be done Chestnuts prefer deep soil, since they
on vigorous, healthy specimens; develop strong roots. For the substrate,
• remove apical buds at the end of winter. The I make a mixture of 60% akadama, 20%
leaves will be smaller when the buds break; multi-purpose compost and 20% pumice,
• select latent buds. which avoids the trees drying out too quickly.
The results start to be visible after seven or The akadama on the surface gives a visual
eight years – so you need to be patient. indication when it changes colour as it dries.
If the substrate is fast-draining, beware of hot or
• Stimulating latent buds windy days, because chestnuts, with their foliage,
On a specimen that has been being transformed need a lot of water. If placed in semi-shade in
into a bonsai for about ten years, and which July and August, they will look better in autumn.
is in good health, latent buds form above the As for nutrition: liquid fertiliser in the spring,
little folds that appear with repeated pruning. and an alternation of liquid and solid fertiliser Pruning above a fold
These buds can become the mame’s future from September to when the leaves fall. stimulates the latent
buds to come out
branches. They are small, at 1 centimetre or less, of their slumber.
and can remain dormant for several years. They • Horse-chestnut leaf miners
therefore need to be stimulated into waking up. Horse-chestnut leaf miners (Cameraria ohridella,
Pruning at the end of winter just above the of the Gracillariidae family) are chestnut
little folds can revive them. If it’s the lateral parasites: they are microlepidoptera (tiny moths
buds further down that start to stir, note measuring between 3 and 5 millimetres).
that these would only produce moderately To alleviate the problems posed by these
small leaves, so they need to be disbudded parasites, whose larvae burrow into the leaves
(removed) in order to force the smallest and form a ‘mine’, press the affected leaf firmly
ones to grow. I’ve managed to obtain leaves between two fingers at the area where the mine
from these tiny buds that sometimes have is (reddish-brown stains) to squash it. Repeat the
three leaflets instead of five or seven. procedure every time a stain appears. In autumn,
Sometimes these buds cannot be revived, fallen leaves should be gathered and burnt.
because they are too old or dry. A systemic treatment can also be tried.
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Shohin:
Small Bonsais
Pinching
back pines
for increased
density
Pines are pinched back to
harmonise their energy and
make their foliage denser.
Various approaches are
possible.
Authors: Cinthya Arenas and Eric Mousqué

Regular pinching of pines allows buds to develop further back, to make the
foliage denser, as illustrated by this Japanese white pine – Pinus pentaphylla.
Pinching back a pine

involves cutting off part or all of the year’s growth.
It encourages buds to develop further back and
thus allows the pads to become denser. This pine’s
Pinching can be carried out in the spring, when pads are nice
the candles have grown, but before the needles and thick.
have emerged. This allows the tree’s strength to
be regulated, by pinching out a different length of
each shoot, depending on how vigorous it is.
The thickest candles are often found at the top or
at the ends of branches. For example, the thickest
candles should be cut back to a quarter of their
original length, while the thinner ones barely need
to be touched. This makes it possible to obtain
candles of consistent length. It is a gentle method.
You can also remove the candle completely, still A lot of this pine’s new shoots are sticking The new candles are different lengths.
at the same stage of development – the candle out and, if there is no intervention,
having come out, but not the needles. This will continue to grow longer.
This year’s shoots vary in length. This large, protruding candle needs to be cut off.
There are two small candles This large and overly vigorous The two candles that have been retained will
at the base of the large one. candle needs to be cut off. develop, but remaining smaller than the first one.
will cause a large number of buds to appear at

the point of the cut. You will then need to make
choices between the buds, only retaining two of Reducing shoots
them. Mekiri, which is practised in It is worth noting that terminal
early July or in September, is a buds secrete a hormone which
Reducing shoots specific method of pinching. It is then transported by the
Let’s now have a look at a new technique of is more extreme, and can only phloem sap. This hormone
pinching and shoot selection that is carried out be applied to vigorous trees, inhibits the development of
in late June, particularly on black pines – Pinus because it involves removing latent buds situated further
thunbergii, for example. the year’s growth in its entirety down the branch. By cutting
Black pines are strong trees that can quickly put at a time when the needles off the terminal buds, the
out long shoots and spread out considerably. It is have already come out. This hormone is no longer secreted
therefore necessary to intervene, to reduce the encourages the development and the latent buds will
length of these shoots. of new buds further down. thus be able to develop.
Black pines tend to produce a huge mass of
candles in the same place, which causes an
unattractively clumpy look. In this case, pinch out
the thickest candles and only leave two in place.
At this time of year, the candles have grown Pinching increases the number of candles, which
considerably and the needles have started to makes the pads denser. Cutting off the big candles
come out. You can therefore see which candles allows the tree’s energy to be regulated and
will be bigger than the others. encourages interior buds to develop..
Spotlight
on Broadleaves
This “kaho” satsuki is

towards the end of
flowering. At this point
it is possible to give
it some maintenance
and styling treatment.
After flowering,
it’s time to start work
Azaleas take a rest from growing
immediately after they have flowered.
This is the ideal moment to prepare them
for the next flowering, but also to tidy up Although there are similarities in
growing cycles between all types of bonsai, azaleas
the branches, and to repot them. take somewhat different routes. June is a busy
month: as soon as they have finished flowering,
it is time to set to work, because they will take a
Author: Jérôme Hay short pause from growing. We therefore have a few
weeks to carry out maintenance and styling tasks.
While flowering is the ultimate aim for satisfac-
tion with a satsuki, as soon as it occurs it is already
2 The satsuki’s flowers and
fruits have all been removed.
1 The flowers are cut off at the base of the leafstalk as soon as
they start to wither, thus removing fertilised fruit at the same time.
5 The second stage is carried

out with fine scissors.
Continue the cutting back,
removing slender dead
branches and those that cross
over or clash with each other.
3 After tidying the plant and its flowers, the foliage

needs to be trimmed. To save time, this can be done
roughly at first with a long pair of scissors.
6 Try to simplify the

branches, rather than
4 The shapes are re-established by cutting off seeking to retain foliage
everything that sticks out and thus rediscovering at any cost. The plant
the bonsai’s original form. will react strongly to
this procedure. In the
end, it will have lost
70% of its foliage mass.
time to start thinking about the next time around. Preparing for growth
This begins with tidying the plant, removing the last During flowering, don’t water over the flowers,
flowers and cutting back seed pods. as they are fragile and will collapse and rot, taking
Looking at the azalea’s life cycle, we see a new all the other flowers with them. Every day during
growth period starting from late February. It puts flowering, remove the withered flowers to allow
out a bit of foliage, turns green again and swells others to open out properly. Flowering lasts for two
out its flowerbuds, which burst into bloom in May– to three weeks, but it is crucial to cut off the blooms
June. before they wither completely, to avoid
Spotlight
on Broadleaves
It is worth taking advantage of this stage to

clean the trunk, shifting the moss and lichen.
The plant is cleaned by hosing down to

remove the dead leaves, twigs and pruning
leftovers that are stuck in the branches.
The azalea looks as though it
has been stripped bare, but this
is no cause for concern: it still
exhausting the plant, because fertilised has plenty of resources. It will
flowers will produce little pods that will go on to need three weeks at most to
produce seeds when they are mature. The energy adorn itself with new leaves.
used for this process will be wasted. By deadhea-
ding blooms just after flowering, the plant is stee-
red towards the following stage: growth.
Fertilising at a very early stage

Concerning fertiliser, here again it is neces-
sary to adapt to the azalea’s life cycle. From late
February, nearly a month earlier than other bon-
sai, start to add a very gentle fertiliser with a low
nitrogen content. For example, you can use pellets
of Hanagokoro 4-5-1, halving the doses to simply
regain the green colour of the foliage and make it
take off again. This can continue for three months,
until the flowering.
As soon as flowering begins, the remaining pel-
lets should be removed, to slow down the plant’s
activity and allow the flowers to bloom. As soon as
the flowers start to fall, more fertiliser should be
applied, but this time of a stronger type.
If you are repotting, this should only be done
after a fortnight, to avoid burning roots that have
just been cut. Here, the fertiliser should have a
higher nitrogen content – 5.5–6–7 – so that the sat-
suki grows more leaves. Starting in August, the last
batch of fertiliser for the season is applied, this time
2 Not many roots
are cut off. The
main point is to
make a disc that is
4 cm thick and has
a diameter
1 Having removed the plant from its pot, the soil is equivalent to that of
scratched away and the roots are untangled. The root the new pot minus
system is very fine and fairly long. The aim is to remove a few centimetres.
as much of the old substrate as possible.
rich in phosphorus and potassium for the reserves

and the construction of flowerbuds. The same
fertiliser can be used as the time before, adding a
special flowering liquid of the 4–0–8.5 type.
Repotting after flowering

Here again, azaleas are the exception: they 3 The root system is cleaned with
should be repotted after flowering, in the summer water from a hosepipe, paying
period, because this is the end of their cycle and so particular attention to the upper side
is the right moment for it. The growth cycle ends of the nebari …
in a period of rest known as dormancy.
As with all plants, satsuki have periods of growth,
flowering, fruiting and rest, which are often – though
not always – dictated by climatic seasons. Their 4 … and to the
entire growth cycle spreads over two years. Some underneath of the
species of tree share this particularity, because risk causing excessive stress to the plant, which can root ball.
they cannot complete their life cycle in six months begin a new cycle by growing – that is, by putting
of activity: they spread across two growth cycles, out new foliage.
i.e. two years. At the same time, there are pressing
priorities: the fruiting period being at the end of Three reasons to repot
the cycle, azaleas become dormant immediately Several reasons explain the need to repot, and
after it. There is always a resting phase in any cycle. all of them are fundamental.
What appears to be the dormant period brought • As the plant grows, slowly but surely it occu-
on by the winter season is in fact only a semi-dor- pies the space available in the pot. In the end, it will
mancy halfway through the cycle. The flowerbuds have used the entire space, which poses various
have been well formed since September. Any work problems. It limits the air–water exchange, which
carried out just before or after this stage would fall means that the plant is more difficult to water in
within an active period and therefore entail stress summer, the water is stagnant in winter, and an
that may damage the plant. Since in this case there anaerobic situation is produced that can lead to
is no need for fruiting, it is possible to bring forward fungal diseases and exhaustion. If the pot offers
the period at the end of the cycle. The work will not no further possibilities for the roots to explore,
Spotlight
on Broadleaves
5 Tangled roots are trimmed, and the
cutting back continues. If it takes a long
time, spray on some water at regular
intervals to prevent the rootlets from
drying out. The damp cloth will help to
protect the satsuki for the time it takes
to prepare the substrate.
6 In the pre-prepared pot, a layer of coarse-grained

kanuma (10 to 20 mm diameter) is placed, followed
by one of medium-grained kanuma (6 to 10 mm), to
form a shallow mound.
7 The satsuki is placed in the pot,

which might look a bit big, but you need
to imagine the plant with its foliage, to
avoid having too small a pot when the
plant is ready to be displayed with its
leaves and flowers.
8 The plant is summarily secured in the first instance.
9 The pot is filled with 4-to-6-mm-grained 10 The satsuki is definitively fixed

kanuma, using a stick to fill in the gaps. Some in the desired position using taut
roots have their positions adjusted, and rebellious wires.
ones are wedged in place using toothpicks.
the plant will weaken. The balance between air the water inside the particles makes them split
and soil is broken. Visual flaws in bonsai are often and inexorably reduces them to dust. As for organic
a consequence of what is going on at root level. elements, they are digested by micro-organisms
• The lifespan of the substrate: all elements and become smaller and smaller. Residue from
change, erode, disintegrate and decompose. This organic fertilisers, which are also solid, ages the
applies to all substrates, whether of mineral or substrate, which loses its qualities of retention
organic origin. In an onslaught of cold weather, and drainage.
11 The pot is filled to the brim with finer kanuma, 12 It is piled up a bit and
2 to 4 mm in diameter. finished off with a 1-cm layer
of shredded sphagnum.
• Last but not least, there is the chemical aspect 13 It is watered immediately
of the substrate. Just as its physical aspect evolves through a rose fitting, in
over time, so do its chemical qualities. For satsuki, spurts to avoid dislodging
it is normal to use an acidic soil. While the pH of the kanuma, which remains
a light substrate.
kanuma is 5.5, it can shift towards neutral if the water
used to water the plant has a higher pH. And then
there is residue from treatments, chemical fertilisers
that saturate the substrate after a few years.
All of these reasons mean that it is more than
reasonable to repot satsuki every two years to help
them to thrive as much as possible.
Water close at hand

Above all, this type of work needs an amount
of preparation. While repotting can be done
“just like that” in February–March, in the case
concerned here, in June, it is closer to summer
than to winter. The temperatures and sunlight
are very aggressive towards roots that are
laid bare. Therefore, the pot needs to be
prepared even before starting work on the
root system. A damp cloth is needed to cover
the roots, as is a sprayer full of water. Both items
will be useful as the work progresses.
When the root system is lifted, it can prove to
be compact. On azaleas that are somewhat
stunted or chlorotic, it is noticeable that the
root ball comes apart easily, indicating a poor
rate of root development or, worse, an attack
of fungus on the root system. There are many
possible causes for this state, but it is often a sign The satsuki is at last ready
for the impending new
of a substrate’s weakening chemical quality, such season. Height: 45 cm.
as an over-high pH or insufficient levels of fertili-
ser, or of the physical aspect of a poorly drained
substrate.
Sunshine and watering

Satsuki should be displayed in the sun
to encourage new buds to appear, but
must also be watered regularly, on both
pot and plant. The moisture softens the
surface tissue and eases the emergence
of new buds.
Spotlight
on Broadleaves
This field-grown azalea has been

repotted and is ready for initial
shaping to begin. Clean the part
Preparing a above ground to remove moss,

lichen and dead leaves. The plant
tissue will react by creating buds on
the areas that are exposed to light.
satsuki potensai
After about four decades of cultivation in
open ground, and having recently been
repotted, this satsuki is ready to be styled. The task of turning satsuki –
This is a matter of bringing out the silhouette Japanese azaleas – into bonsai has always
demanded a lot of patience. Here we will focus
and main lines of the future bonsai. on the work that is required when the plant has first
been placed in a pot, which marks the beginning
of its styling into a true bonsai. This azalea, of the
Author: Jérôme Hay Gyoten variety, was cultivated in open ground for
nearly 40 years. It has undergone its first repotting
(see Esprit Bonsai International 76) and the initial
shaping work can now start.
Also possible after flowering
Although the best period for this sort of work is between the
middle of winter and early spring, another window of opportunity
occurs after flowering; but, depending on the temperatures
in late spring, the operation can then be more risky.
Flowering is a problem, because the energy it uses is needed to
structure and shape the plant. Aborting the flowering requires
patience, and cutting off all the extremities to remove flowerbuds
can be a very unrewarding task, but it is useful. Even if it pains
you to do it, because the flowers are one of the satsuki’s greatest
assets, it is only a matter of time: the flowers will return to crown
the completion of your work. All things come to those who wait.
A Where will the front be?
B This satsuki has spent C The movement on this side

40 years in open ground. isn’t interesting.
This may seem obvious, but you should not

choose a tree for its branches, because in this kind
of specimen, regular pruning has meant there are
D Side D will be the front:
a lot of them. You need instead to look beneath the nebari is interesting, and
the mass of growth, to study the trunk’s shape, the movement of the apex
movement and taper, and the beauty of the nebari. back begins again, removing the ugly areas and curves back towards the
This structural work can be carried out from starting to uncover the trunk on the chosen front or viewer, even if the angle is
midwinter to early spring, with protection needed fronts, to reveal its forms. The branches are made only rough for the time
being. Height: 70 cm; nebari:
for the tree afterwards. shorter, and the process of selection continues, 46 cm perimeter.
so as finally to determine the definitive front. Take
Analysing the foliage masses care to respect the rhythm between the branches,
The first task is to spot the most interesting and likewise for their size and thickness. Beco-
aspects of the foliage masses – without taking any ming familiar with the golden ratio is an exercise in
definitive decisions. mental gymnastics that allows you to avoid making
This is a stage for creating options, selecting mistakes and to give the tree a natural aesthetic.
the good branches and cutting off those that are The four sides of the tree need to be determi-
unnecessary, incoherent or dead. Major cutting ned, like the four points of the compass.
Spotlight
on Broadleaves
The trunk’s movement is revealed by An old, dead branch forms a stump.

moving the nebari’s small branches aside.
A clashing branch has grown back towards the trunk and become fused with it. Halfway up, part of the trunk has few branches.
The apex is a bit too

long and divided.
Conversely, the upper part of the

tree is thick with branches.
How to prune
To prune branches, I use spring-
loaded scissors with large
C This branch, on the left-hand side, will be the blades, which let me cut back
first branch. everything from small branches
to thicker sections. As soon as
A Small branches are cut back. the branches are thicker than
5 millimetres, I use straight or
concave cutters. The straight
ones allow me to cut, and the
concave ones to go over the cut
so that it has less visual impact.
Satsuki wood is very hard and
brittle. Cutters should never
be used for sections above
D Branches that compete with it are removed. 1 centimetre in diameter; instead,
a saw is preferable. I cut these
branches in two stages: the first
is a rough cut, 1 centimetre from
the trunk; then I go over it, either
with a cutter or with a saw.
Azaleas are resilient, regardless
of where you cut. They are quick
to take off again, as long as the
pruning is done in the spring.
E On the other side, all the significant branches

that have grown in the hollow of the trunk are
removed.
F The second branch is selected – above the

hollow of the trunk. Since the distance between
B The nebari and the base of the trunk are cleared. the first and second branches is 18 cm, the
others are chosen by dividing this length. G The second branch is thinned out.
Stripping the tree After doing the groundwork on the branches,

Throughout my work on this tree, I constantly I linger on the most promising and suitable options.
adjust the angle of the front. This evolves from The branches sticking out of the apex, those that
the beginning, ending up fixed a little further to have overly obtuse or twisted angles, and those that
the right. are growing at too much of a downward angle, on
This satsuki’s branches have regularly been the nebari or underneath the main branches, are to
cut to make the trunk thicken up and minimise be removed. There’s no need to worry about strip-
over-large scars. For this reason, there are lots of ping the tree bare, because in the end that’s what
branches, small and long: this is perfect for making it will be: bare. All of the extra branches near the
a selection. Even so, given the large number of principal ones are to be eliminated to make way for
them, it is hard to make decisions. the selected ones and allow these to develop.
Spotlight
on Broadleaves
The silhouette takes shape

Halfway through pruning, the bonsai’s silhouette
starts to materialise, with the structure becoming
clearer and the different sides being confirmed.
To avoid mistakes, consider, in this order: nebari;
taper; movement; and the springing points of the
branches. Other elements can serve as a guide:
scars, details, elements to highlight or hide.
1 On the third branch, previous pruning has provoked offshoots
at 90°. Decisions need to be made.
4 Unnecessary stumps are cut off. They

could be made into deadwood, as azaleas
2 One of the offshoots is chosen, and will 3 The fourth branch is cut back to improve
lend themselves to this; but whether alive or
subsequently be wire-trained. its ramification. dead, branches need to be well positioned.
5 The upper part is very bushy, 6 These two branches are repetitive, 7 Once the branch has been taken off,
and the right choices are more obvious. so the thicker one is removed. the apex looks lighter.
The pruning work

is done. The plant is
cleaned one last time
using a hose, to remove
the sawdust, woodchips,
twigs and leaves.
8 The apex is busy. The thick or obsolete 9 The work on the apex
branches are removed, while trying to retain the is complete.
tree’s movement.
Later on: wire training

When the work is complete, the chosen front is
definitive and fits perfectly.
It is true that I could sometimes have used
wire training, but I prefer to leave the plant to
start growing again, and since this work was done
in April, I will do the wiring work after flowering, in
When the plant has dried, Yu-Gosai paste
mid-June. The plant will nonetheless be protected
is applied to all of the wounds for healing.
The thickest of the branches that were from overly violent weather until it has got back
cut off measured 1.5 cm in diameter. on track.
Spotlight
on Conifers
This Scots pine,

collected in 2005,
will not be worked
An awkward first
on for the first time
until 2009. Four
more years will
then be needed
before a second
branch – or not
styling exercise.
Shown here in 2009,
before modification.
Height: 65 cm.
Eric Mousqué, a professional based in

Arbas, south-western France, shows off the
elegance of a Scots pine on which he has This Scots pine,
which was collected in 2005, grew on a
chosen to keep a long first branch – often a rock at about 1,000 metres of altitude.
controversial decision among hobbyists. It lived in a natural cavity in the rock
that supported it. The fact that it had
no taproot made collecting it easier.
Authors: Cinthya Arenas It was therefore straightforward to
and Eric Mousqué plant it directly in a bonsai pot.
Spotlight
on Conifers
In 2012, three years after its initial styling,

the tree is still regaining strength.
In 2015, the Scots pine is sufficiently vigorous to be styled more definitively.
The choice of this as the front is also justified by the large first branch.
Left side. Right side. Rear view.
A four-year wait
The conditions that this pine In 2009, I embarked on a first shaping years later, in 2011. I planted it in a fairly
lived in were relatively difficult, and exercise in the nursery. It is important small pot, but its roots allowed this.
many of its neighbouring trees had to emphasise that the initial styling I did not work on it again until 2015,
died standing. However, the dryness of Scots pines needs to be done so that it could regain its strength.
of the summer and the harsh cold of quickly, as soon as the roots have
the winter allowed it to have some become re-established. Scots pines A long first branch
interesting characteristics for making it tend to let branches that have trouble The nebari is more noticeable on the
into a handsome bonsai. It was removed accessing light die. They may therefore side opposite the trunk’s lean, which
from the rock with the utmost care, lose branches that would have been gives the tree a character that can be
retaining its original roots and root ball. very important for future styling. If found in nature. The tree is leaning to
It needed four months for its roots to you wait much too long, the tree will one side and is mechanically held in
take. In the initial period, I tried to provide reach the stage where it focuses place by its roots, which counteract
it with as much atmospheric humidity entirely on its top part, and you will this lean. Consequently, it splays out
as possible, to limit the evaporation find yourself with a tree that has far quite a lot on two sides, while on the
of water during the time it took for the less potential than it did originally. other two the nebari is much less
roots to re-establish themselves. Then, Once the first styling exercise had been interesting. This gives an indication
bit by bit, I introduced it to the normal carried out and the main branches of the choices to be made regarding
conditions for a Scots pine: sunshine … had been selected, I repotted it two the eventual front of the tree.
Work begins by wiring the first branch. This branch coming back underneath the trunk is unnecessary.
It is cut off. The wiring of the first branch is complete.
As well as leaning sharply to one side, When looking at old Japanese trees, it
the trunk has a slightly sinuous form with is noticeable that the first branches are A rightward dynamic
some more pronounced, eye-catching often very low, even if they sometimes I began by selecting the branches and
curves towards the top of the tree. spring from quite a high point on the cutting off the ones that clashed with
The bark has a network of fine trunk. Personally, I’ve always been in or were hidden behind others. When
cracks, which is typical of Scots favour of keeping this kind of branch in doubt, I prefer to keep branches,
pines in mountain environments. when the tree’s aesthetics allow it. apply training wire to them and then
The first branch is very long and springs There were two possible viewpoints see whether I want to keep them or
from a point that is slightly towards to bring the best out of the nebari and not during the styling process.
the front of the trunk. Then there is the trunk’s movements: the ones that I always start with the first branch,
a mass of branches which are quite would become the front and the back. wiring the branches one after another
well positioned. One of this tree’s The rear view would not have allowed the up to the top of the tree. I use copper
strong points is that the foliage is quite long first branch to be kept, because it wire, which allows me to be more
close to the trunk. After ten years’ springs from a point that is completely to precise, especially when there is a
cultivation, there are plenty of buds and the back. This means that it would clash large number of small branches.
the candles and needles are short. with the tree. The other branches are well The apex needed to be brought
placed, but the tree would then have been upwards. This is a light-spirited
Choosing the front rather ordinary. The front view allows the tree, so it should not be made
The main issue of the project was first branch to be used. Even though it too compact. I therefore raised
whether to keep the large, downward- springs from a spot that is slightly forward the end part, after wiring it.
pointing branch or not. This question on the trunk, it is still in harmony with the I styled the tree by emphasising the
of whether or not to keep long first tree. The diameter of the branch is in good rightward thrust of the its dynamic.
branches is always a controversial proportion to that of the trunk. In addition, In this sense, the long first branch
one among bonsai hobbyists. Is other branches can mask the branch’s is backed up by a much smaller
there only one right answer? length and accentuate the cascade effect. branch opposing it on the left.
Spotlight
on Conifers
2 Two branches
are wired with the
same copper wire.
Two twists are made
on one of the
branches to fix the
wire, and the wiring
continues on the
second …
1 Putting a copper wire in place to train a
secondary branch.
3 … then I go
back to finish
wiring the first
one, holding the
branch between
my thumb and
index finger.
4 The wiring is finished by making a loop towards the top.
Raising the apex

The short needles allowed me to work to create more visual breaks and make
on the voids in detail. This is the result the length of the pads less uniform.
of the right cultivation conditions. The Having completed this shaping
top needs to be made denser, which process, I will leave the tree to rest
will be very easy to do at a later stage. again. As we all know, patience when
For the time being, I prefer not to cut it working on trees is the lot of any
back too much, to avoid weakening the bonsai enthusiast. This Scots pine will
tree. I will prune some branches when only be repotted in a year’s time, in a
the buds further back have grown, so as taller and slightly wider flared pot.
Only the top of the pine now remains to be wired.
The branches are put in place; they now need
to be fine-tuned right to the tips.
The apex is wired and significantly
raised. This is the time for
carrying out real styling work.
Left side.
The styling of the tree is

complete. The ends of
the branches are pointing
upwards. The tree is
placed on a stand in a
tokonoma. Height: 65 cm.
Right side.
Rear view.
Re-imagining
a Tree
A mugo pine clinging

to a mountainside
This mugo pine by Paul Putseys appears to be clinging to a cliff. Pot by Dan Barton.
Re-imagining a tree
This section sets out to analyse the choices made by the artist
through trying out other options – to demonstrate the significance
of the choices made, and quite simply to learn how to admire…
Paul Putseys’s mugo pine is

highly evocative of cliffside living
conditions. Its shaping is classic
and well balanced.
1 The apex now looks like a branch.
Author: François Jeker
Option 1 :
B onsai beginners often find
themselves stuck when it comes
to shaping the foliage of a cascade
without the apex
Without the apex, the tree looks
tree. Paul Putseys, one of the Belgian headless: many beginners make
professional Jean-Paul Polmans’s the error of giving the apex a flat
many talented students, has created shape, as if it were a branch.
a perfect cascade from a yamadori
collected in the French Alps. It serves Option 2 :
as an excellent real-life example for lower foliage in
any hobbyist who is encountering alignment
difficulties with a cascade. As for a classic tree with its
What is more, this tree has the trunk beneath the foliage, if
level of maturity that comes the first branches on the right
from 15 years’ careful work. and left are in alignment, the
pine loses all its dynamism.
Paul’s choices 2 With the lower foliage in alignment, the
Paul Putseys has set out to Option 3 : downward movement has disappeared.
conjure up a pine clinging to a a small first branch
cliff, which carries the scars of its On a classic tree, the first branch is
challenging living conditions. the strongest and thickest, and is
He demonstrates that a cascade’s often composed of several tiered
foliage must be styled just like foliage masses. It sometimes looks
a normal tree’s, with its first like a small tree in its own right.
branch, its balancing branch Paul has produced a powerful first
and its apex. It is simply a case of branch comprising three cloud
trying to forget that the trunk is forms, on the left, as an extension
positioned above the greenery. of the trunk’s movement.
By isolating the foliage, it is

easy to imagine a classic tree 3 With a small first branch, the mugo pine’s
with the trunk underneath sense of strength has vanished.
rather than above.
Spotlight
on Broadleaves
© Milan Klika & Vladislava Kuřátková

Vladislava Kuřátková and Milan
Klika, both Czech, are passionate
Milan Klika &

about suiseki – scholar’s rocks
– which inspire them in the
creation of their bonsai pots.
Vladislava Kuřátková
Working hand in hand Author: Anne Royer
Photos: Michèle Corbihan,
unless stated otherwise
The Czech artists Milan Klika (61) and Milan Klika and Vla-
dislava Kuřátková have been living and
Vladislava Kuřátková (59) live and work in working together for nearly forty years.
Prague. Specialising in bonsai pots, they At 61 and 59 years old respectively, these
two Czech artists produce pots only for
find particular inspiration in the Japanese bonsai, and dedicate their entire lives to
ceramics and painting – their favourite
art of suiseki. disciplines. “Our professional and private
lives are entirely connected, you can’t
separate them. Artists just keep working,
creating, even if they aren’t touching
clay or canvas. We live in a creative way.”
The surface of these
pots, which are
almost completely
covered in an opaque
grey-blue glaze,
is reminiscent of
This elegant pot, produced using a stones. Dimensions:
mould, will accommodate an accent 51 × 40 × 17 cm and
plant. Diameter: 15 cm. Height: 8 cm. 58 × 45 × 13 cm.
This pot’s very opaque, cold grey-blue glaze reinforces its

resemblance to stones. Diameter: 34 cm. Height: 12 cm.
Sculptural pot in hand-modelled

stoneware coloured with iron
oxides, inspired by the art of suiseki.
Diameter: 34 cm. Height: 12 cm.
Almost the entire range of glazes that are being used

by Milan and Vladislava at the moment. “Looking for
new colours is our favourite pastime,” they say.
Because although the pots are made in

their studio, the creative process “takes
place everywhere, wherever we are and
whatever new experience we are enjoying,
e.g. meeting friends, visiting galleries or
museums, going to the country, and of
course at the bonsai exhibitions where we
are invited to sell our bonsai pots”.
pots for bonsai,” explains Milan. “We Making small pots by hand
Meeting as students were getting continuously more and more Today, the Czech couple use various clays
Partners in life as well as in their work, Milan involved. Our creative thinking and ima- and techniques to produce their pots.
and Vladislava met in the late 1970s at the gination were dominated mainly by trees “The characteristics of the bonsai plant
Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design and stones.” He had previously worked together with the pot to be made must
in Prague. At that time they were studying in various ceramics studios, notably in a be regarded as an inseparable whole; it
painting applied to architecture, such as Gypsy village in the south of the country. is primordial. … If a harmonious symbio-
frescoes, mosaics and graffiti. This was “The picturesque village was full of small sis of a tree and its pot is to be achieved,
before they had begun to focus their work workshops making folk ceramics. Thus I the chosen clay and glaze must contain
on pottery and other ceramic materials. gained a lot of practical experience.” The elements of similar characteristics,” they
In the 1980s, the couple joined the bon- pair, who are passionate about bonsai and emphasise. The various textures therefore
sai club in Prague. “We gradually became suiseki, the Japanese art of meditating on offer a wide range of options. Very grog-
familiar with the complexity of making stones, started producing pots in 1984. gy clays are best suited to conifers
Spotlight
on Broadleaves

“I find great pleasure in creating my own piece of art, In the basement of her Prague home, Vladislava
from the very initial stage, until the very last part, the makes small pots by hand in large numbers.
final stage – a pot with a bonsai planted in it.”
or to trees “with coarse bark and a “Vlady”, as her life partner and friends call reserved for painting, which both artists
heavy trunk”. Smoother clays, on the other her, tends to make smaller or medium- continue to practise. The rooms are over-
hand, are best for “pots for light, elegant- sized pots, often moulding them by hand. flowing with artistic works and objects:
looking bonsai with smooth, light trunks”. “I prefer the creative aspect of the model- bonsai, driftwood, tree bark, shells, stones,
“The same applies for colours: pots’ ling process,” she says. Milan, meanwhile, Japanese woodcuts, all sorts of boxes …
colours correspond to different trunks of occupies himself with larger pieces, and “Our house as a whole is saturated with
spruces, pines, junipers or yews,” they add. with drying and firing the pots. “If two creative power and atmosphere,” they say
The clay is chosen according to its people co-work, it is much more fruitful in unison.
aesthetic qualities and the pot’s design, and effective than working individually. The two collectors’ greatest passion is
but also for its durability or frost-resis- Working together also multiplies the quan- suiseki – “scholar’s rocks” whose shapes
tance. “Czech clay is more lively, creative, tity of good ideas.” can evoke a landscape, an animal, an
artistic,” explains Milan. “However, when object or a plant. As members of the
exposed to heat, some larger pots cannot A whole floor for painting Czech association of suiseki collectors,
keep their precise shape, and you have to The two electric kilns in their pottery Milan and Vladislava travel the globe in
keep a close eye on it when it is drying out. studio, which is set up in the basement search of the best examples, which they
German kinds of clay are more stable.” of their Prague home, were installed by then display in exhibitions organised in
Milan himself. Pots are wrapped up, then the Czech Republic.
left to dry, which takes several weeks for
Milan and
Vladislava call
the largest ones, before being fired in Suiseki colours
these sorts of pots two stages: a first firing at 850°C, then These natural sculptures have a profound
“stones”. This a second at 1240°C with the glaze. “As influence on the potters’ work, most
one would suit painters, we prefer electric kilns. Their notably in the creation of pots intended
an accent plant atmosphere inside enables a larger, for accent plants, with a shell-shaped
with colourful fruit.
richer scale of glaze colours,” says form, or those for cascade or semi-cas-
Flat base: 18 cm.
Height: 6.5 cm. Milan. It is also difficult to use a traditional cade bonsai. The pair also “dramatically
wood-fired kiln in a city such as evoke the atmosphere of mountain cliffs,
Prague, for obvious safety slopes and rocks”. The various textures,
reasons. the crevasses and fissures in the rocks
The top floor in their and the thousand shades of suiseki thus
large family home is become an inexhaustible source of ins-
Lovers of art and history, the two Czech potters
also immerse themselves in painting.
piration: “Our idea is to manage to transfer this

velvet-smooth spectrum of colours into the glaze
on the bonsai pots.” Hand-modelled pot in grey-ochre stoneware with
While nature remains “the supreme source of added iron oxide. Dimensions: 25 × 19 × 7 cm.
inspiration” for both of them, a solid academic
grounding in art history allows them to view the
world around them with both a professional and
a creative eye. “Everything can be observed with
an artist’s eye, in a creative way. You can train your
eye and brain to sense the abstract conception of
the beauty of shapes and their proportions. As an
expert, you can’t just see a romantic picture of a
countryside; you must be able to analyse
it and express the reason why it is so
beautiful,” explains Milan.
To nurture their creativity, the couple
borrow from both European and Far
Eastern painters as well as from poets,
sculptors and Japanese or Chinese cera-
micists. Driven by insatiable curiosity, the
inseparable pair pace the corridors of gal-
leries and museums, researching the archi-
tecture and pottery of primitive civilisations. “We
understand art as one whole. You can’t prefer just A small pot inspired
by driftwood. Divided
one thing. Everything containing some power of into two parts, it can
genuine creativity is worth appreciating.” accommodate a
complex composition.
Feeling free ancient material. Our ancestors used to work with Dimensions: 19 × 7 cm.
The Czech duo thus take their place within the age- it thousands of years before us.” Just as enthu-
old history of artists the world over. “When working siastic now as they were at the outset, these two
with clay, I feel as though I am part of a natural pro- potters never tire of working with clay, testing new
cess,” Milan describes. “I create from the authentic, materials, and waiting eagerly in front of the kiln to
discover their work at the end of a firing. “And that
is very important to us. To be free. To hold
the results of our work in our hands, both
figuratively and literally. To be entirely res-
ponsible for it,” concludes Milan. After forty
years of hard work, their delight is still intact
and their passion has not faded in the least.
The lower part of this stoneware pot has been

covered in a glaze containing manganese
oxide. Dimensions: 38 × 29 × 8 cm.
Besides
Bonsai
The Pleione genus of dwarf orchids

is worth investigating for kusamono.
Surrender to
Pleione X Britannia ‘Doreen’ signals the
beginning of spring, with its beautiful
colours and impressive flowers.
Pleione’s charms
Author: Xavier Dreux
Pleione is a genus of
dwarf orchids that
D
espite being small and in For kusamono, I recommend Pleione
some cases easy to cultivate, X Britannia ‘Doreen’, a hybrid between
bloom from March Pleione orchids never fail to Pleione formosana and P. Tongariro,
impress. These dwarf orchids which is typical of the genus.
onwards. They can are perfectly suited to kusamono pots. On a more general level, all Pleione for-
be cultivated as Originating in Asia, Pleione plants are mosana varieties are suitable for cultiva-
pseudobulbs and therefore belong to ting as kusamono.
kusamono, or to delight the orchid family. There are two types
in their own right. of Pleione: terrestrial and epiphytic. Repotting in February
The vast majority of varieties bloom Pleione orchids start to stir in Februa-
in the spring, although some flower in the ry. They begin by putting out their main
autumn. They bear a single large flow- shoot, which fills out, lengthens, and takes
er which varies from crimson to yell- on an attractive green colour. Springtime
ow to white, depending on the spec- is looming, and it is time to repot this
ies. The size of the flowers and bulbs simple but stunning orchid.
also differs widely from one variety to While the shoot is growing, the roots
another. are not there yet, but kusamono lovers
Various
varieties
Varieties of Pleione:
Easy: P. formosana and its hybrids
Temperamental: P. limprichtii
Difficult: P. forrestii (yellow flower),
P. humilis, P. hookeriana.
Pleione orchids can be found in
Roots start to develop at the
garden centres in the spring (in the
base of the main shoot.
bulbs section) or at plant fairs.
need to prepare for their arrival. Repot-

ting can be carried out every year. During
this process, the bulbs need to be reorga-
nised, put back in place and given some Pleione limprichtii bulbs are very small and
new substrate. If you put several pseu- late-developing. Pot by Sami Amdouni.
dobulbs in the same pot, they need to
be positioned close together, with their It is possible to add charcoal as a preven-
shoots pointing outwards. tative measure.
The first stage of repotting consists The second step is to fill the pot with
of gently separating the bulbs from the substrate and arrange the bulbs on the
substrate. It is possible to trim the roots surface of the soil. The bulbs should
at this point. The roots will have dried only be a maximum of two-thirds cove-
out and are renewed by the plant every red, rather than entirely so. The substrate
year, in the spring. However, once the new should then be sprayed, but not wate-
roots have come, great care needs to be red. Watering needs to be done progressi-
Flowers growing. The substrate is covered
taken of them: they are fragile and will not vely. The development of the new growth with moss, both for aesthetic reasons and
grow back if they are broken. The plant needs to be tracked, and the quantity of to maintain a good level of moisture.
may even wither in such cases. Old roots water increased gradually, in line with
should be cut back to about 1 centimetre this growth. When the shoot develops it
from the bulb. The bulbs also need to be means that the roots are also developing. At the end of autumn, the leaves dry
cleaned, by removing the remains of shri- This is the difficult phase! out and there should be no more wate-
velled old bulbs and of leaves etc. All that remains is to wait and to enjoy ring: the plant becomes dormant.
watching the first flower emerge in March. Pleione orchids are greedy. Throughout
Blooming in March Pleione orchids bloom before developing the growing season, the plants should be
The substrate mixture is composed of their foliage. fed well with an organic fertiliser in gra-
akadama, composted bark and shredded Each bulb will develop a single leaf nular or liquid form. Watering should be
sphagnum moss. This mixture allows the which can be quite large in comparison to copious. These plants prefer a semi-
substrate to be well aired and to retain the bulb that houses it: in this case, it is no shaded but well-lit position which does
moisture without causing the bulb to rot. longer suitable for use as an accent plant. not get too hot in summer.
During the winter, the bulbs need to be
Dormancy kept dry and free from frost. It is best to
Leaf growth needs to be encouraged, put the pot in a garage or other frost-pro-
so that the bulb can store up as much tected place, and forget about it until the
energy as possible. These reserves end of January. It is also possible to take
will allow it to bloom successfully with the bulbs out, clean them by removing the
multiple flowers. The main bulb will form roots and the remains of the leaves, then
new bulblets that will take over the fol- store them in a cool place with a constant
lowing year. temperature (refrigerator, cellar).
At least three years are needed for a bulblet

(left) to become a flowering bulb (right).
The bulbs are placed close together

in the pot and two-thirds covered with substrate.
Ikebana
Ohara
Six days of exhibition in two sessions, 400 ikebana masters,

six months to obtain the plant matter: the Ohara School’s exhibition
in Japan requires a great deal of preparation.
Preparing for
an exhibition Author: Marcel Vrignaud
In 2015, our School celebrated the 120th anni- No fewer than four hundred masters from all over
versary of its foundation with a large and prestigious Japan followed one after another at the two sessions,
exhibition that called all the talents and technical from 26 to 28 February and from 1 to 3 March. Tens
methods available throughout Japan into play. of thousands of paying visitors also made the journey
Entitled “Birth and Rebirth”, the exhibition sought to be there.
to convey the things that made the School famous, An event of this kind requires major and well-coordi-
starting with the creation of moribana. This is not nated organisation because, let’s not forget, it involves
to forget the new fashions and inclinations that the exhibiting perishable works in an enclosed space. This
new Iemoto, Hiroki Ohara, who has just turned 26, is is one of the reasons why each session only lasts for
adopting and will adopt in future. three consecutive days, with multiple replacements of
plant components every day.
400 exhibiting masters The organisation starts several months in advance,
Traditionally, for decades, the School chose the to reserve positions for compositions and define the
entire eighth floor of the Takashimaya-Ginza depart- exhibition’s main strategy, such as the categories of
ment store to display its creations, large and small. arrangement that will be displayed: spaces for rimpa,
bunjin, landscapes, hana-mai, hana-isho, etc.
Then, all the structures in which the arrangements
are to be presented need to be constructed from
scratch, according to the staging. This means calling
upon various types of professionals: interior architects,
cabinetmakers, painters, textile and tatami specialists,
lighting engineers, engravers, etc.
Six months for the flowers

The organising committee next has to define the
size, number and nature of containers, which will be
spread out across the entire available area. All of the
vases are lent by the School and made available to
the exhibitors, together with large wooden structures.
The following stage is the most important: defining
the combination of plants that is most suited to each
composition, taking account of the season. Many of
the plants that are used are forced in greenhouses so
that they are fully developed and in flower for the pre-
cise dates of the exhibition (maple, forsythia, Japanese
For the school’s 120th anniversary, 400 ikebana masters participated cherry, iris, peony …).
in a major exhibition that took place in two stages in Tokyo.
The staging is precise
and is organised well
before the big day. All that
remains to be done now
is to admire the exhibits!
Everything is decided
by the organising
committee: the
positioning of the
arrangements, the flowers
and the containers.
Marcel Vrignaud was invited to represent

France with this arrangement.
Once the list of plants has been established, it is sent

to the party responsible for providing all of the flow-
ers and branches for the exhibition. This heavy task
falls to the Tokyo florist Hanamo, who must contact
all the flower producers, both in Japan and across the
world (Holland, South Africa, China, South America,
Taiwan …)
Hanamo’s CEO told me that he needs at least six
months working with his team to gather the hundreds
of plants that are asked of him.
Representing France The exhibitors prepare

Next comes the active phase of the exhibition. On their arrangements the
the eve of the day when it is set up, the leading partic- day before the exhibition
ipants go to the florist’s to select their plant material. is opened to the public.
The chosen items are then carefully wrapped up and
transported to the exhibition venue. The day before
the show opens to the public, a small team first creates
great mountains of plants, followed by all the other
exhibitors who find their vases and raw material at
specified positions.
Each of them will have previously received a pho-
tograph of the vase and a list of the plants chosen for
them by the committee. They must all pay a fee to For the two sessions, the School’s international divi-
reserve their place and cover the cost of the plant mate- sion and the Iemoto chose ten masters who practise
rial. This fee is very high, and access is restricted to outside Japan, each of whom was offered a free place.
those who have a large number of students or are well I had the pleasure of representing France. Taking part
known. For this reason, it is common for several mas- in an exhibition of this quality, or visiting it, is a unique
ters to group together and work on a shared project. experience for a Westerner.
Ikebana
Senshin-Ikenobo
Following on from traditional

compositions, the annual exhibition
of the Senshin-Ikenobo school in Toulouse
presented modern variations.
Modern
simplicity
Author: Marette Renaudin
Photos: Bénédicte de Saint-Martin
Although the first part of the March ex-

hibition at the school in Toulouse presented traditio-
nal, natural-looking rikka styles, it was the 17th-cen-
tury seika styles that generated completely modern
styles such as shin-seika, free styles and shin-ka-tai.
Here, the emphasis is on lines that are made harmo-
nious through the use of understated plant matter in
much simpler compositions. Transcending the sea-
sons, these arrangements hold just as much promise
of real refreshment for the summer.
Shin-seika
in a bronze
vase. Nandina,
rose and
cordyline.
Arrangement
by Sylvie
Soroste.
Seika with peach tree branch in a bronze sunabachi

vase. In the background, two mirroring seika in bamboo
vases: golden cypress, small chrysanthemums, Liatrix.
Arrangement by Marette Renaudin and Cylène Bleyer.
Shin-ka-tai:
Asplenium leaf,
orchid and
Schefflera leaves.
Arrangement by
Aline Joucla.
Shin-ka-tai: Spiraea,
anemone and hypericum in a
porcelain vase. Arrangement
by Cylène Bleyer and
Clémentine Cauet-Bleyer
Free style: horsetail,

Bupleurum and agapanthus.
Arrangement by Delphine Simon.
Shin-ka tai: green Cornus,

Shin-ka-tai: branches of
Leucadendron, Heuchera
Japanese maple, euphorbia,
leaves. Arrangement by
Syngonium leaves. Arrangement
Bénédicte de Saint-Martin.
by Dodie Pressnitzer.
Shin-ka-tai:
Prunus triloba,
Maranta leaf and
white rose in an
Etling opalescent
crystal vase.
Arrangement by
Ghislaine Boutot.
Shin-ka-tai: freesia, iris leaves,
Schefflera leaf. Arrangement
by Dominique Bossoutrot..
Club and
Enthusiasts
The members of the

Bonsaï Club Gersois
work in a spirit of cheer
and good humour. The
club certainly offers the
means for its members
to hone their skills and
knowledge in comfort.
The twenty-or-so members of the Bonsaï Club Gersois are quite pampered: the president
has had a studio set up at his home to accommodate workshops and meetings.
Text: Cinthya Arenas
Photos: Bonsai Club Gersois
BONSAÏ CLUB GERSOIS
In line with other clubs

Making members’
in southwestern France, the one
in the Gers possesses a southern
warmth and conviviality that is fit-
ting for the area. In 2000, a group of
lives easier
around ten bonsai enthusiasts, who
were meeting in a building dedicated the neighbouring clubs. Pierre Bedes dio built at his home, complete with
for the use of local societies in the explains that in the same year, after shower and toilets, so that members
small town of Fleurance, decided to “the club in Layrac was wound up, could not only meet up and work on
create the Bonsaï Club Gersois. One its president, Michel Baud, asked his their trees, but also have access to
of them was Pierre Bedes, who has members to join ours, following the reading matter that could encou-
been the club’s president since the exhibition in Fleurance”. rage them to develop. “In the stu-
beginning. In 2002, the club orga- After that, he adds, everything dio, we have a library with about
nised its first exhibition, inviting all happened very quickly: “The pres- 2,000 books and four French or
ident of the tourist board in Donzac foreign magazines. Work is carried
invited us to exhibit in their functions out in one part, and theory in ano-
room the following year. This initiative ther. It’s the club’s headquarters.”
was very welcome, as Donzac’s town Tools, substrate: nothing is left
council was offering us a superb wanting in this haven of peace dedi-
space with a lot of advantages that I cated to the art of bonsai. Everything
didn’t have any more in Fleurance.” is put in place so that, from May to
This was the starting point for the September, members can make pro-
regional exhibitions that gradually gress. The club’s president adds that
started to accommodate new clubs. “a calendar is sent out at the begin-
ning of the year, which takes account
Well-equipped premises of the tasks that need to be carried
Pierre Bedes wants above all out and the cycles of the moon.”
A number of prominent individuals attended the to make life easier for the club’s
2015 Southern Region exhibition organised by the club, members. At first, the town council Substrate tests
in Donzac. From left to right: Claude Dominici; Hélène
of Fleurance lent them a room, but The club’s members started pro-
Terrenne (Donzac Tourist Board); Pierre Bedes; Mrs
and Mr Frédéric Reynes (Honorary Consul to Japan in then the president decided to have gressing step by step, and constant-
Toulouse); and Jean-Paul Terrenne (Mayor of Donzac). a functional 150-square-metre stu- ly challenge themselves in order to
This pear tree by Pierre Bedes is one of three Jean-Marie Couderc won the 2015 St Lucie cherry by Claude Maupomé.
trees from the club selected to take part in the Southern Region new talent contest.
2016 convention of the Fédération Française
de Bonsaï (French Bonsai Federation – FFB).
improve. “The substrates used by St Lucie cherries

Practical information
Bonsaï Club Gersois
members in the year 2000 were “Respecting nature and taking it
Chemin de Perrin
compost, garden soil and gravel, as a model” for its most admirable
32500 Fleurance, FRANCE
mixed together or on their own, qualities seems to be the motto of
Meetings on Saturday afternoons, from September to May.
which gave mediocre results. One the president of the Bonsaï Club
President: Pierre Bedes
of the members, who was working Gersois and of its members.
Email: Pierre.bedes@wanadoo.fr
for a small-scale producer of orga- This club is also about the plea-
nic fertiliser, invited us to visit the sure of working on trees, and espe-
test greenhouses. William Texier, cially on St Lucie cherries, which are
the manager, showed us that the “the club’s hobbyhorse, everyone Albert Ursembach’s
ingredients we were using were not has at least four or five” according forest of Siberian
the best ones for obtaining good to the president, but also on oaks larches was
exhibited at the FFB’s
results. Some of the club’s members and Scots pines. Native trees, in rea-
2014 convention,
then replaced their substrates with lity, because many members enjoy in Nantes.
pumice mixed with pine bark, and working on “yamadori, collected or
added fertiliser. The following year, bought with a respect for nature”.
these people saw that their plants They work on them under the gui-
were growing a lot better: the result dance of three instructors; Claude
showed us a new approach.” Maupomé and Alain Clave cover
For Pierre Bedes, the guiding “cultivation, maintenance and wire
force of the club is above all “a very training”, while with Pierre Bedes,
good atmosphere and good com- who is also qualified as a Level 2
munication between all the mem- coach for the Fédération Française
bers”. There are 17 members in total, de Bonsaï (French Bonsai Federa-
a third of whom are women, and five tion – FFB), the club’s members ding the new talent competition.
of whom have formed the core of work on theory and practice with The judging panel selected eight
the club since the beginning.” “classes on substrates, fertilisation trees that will take part in the FFB’s
and treating disease in pines”. annual convention in 2016, in Ville-
neuve d’Ascq, near Lille.
A regional exhibition Pierre Bedes is keen to offer
In 2015, the FFB’s Southern warm thanks to all the participants
Region exhibition, covering the Midi- for what turned out to be a great
Pyrénées and the Languedoc-Rous- success: “Seventy-four trees were
sillon, took place in Donzac and was put on public display: a line-up of 22
organised by the Gers club. Much to St Lucie cherries, but also a mixture
everyone’s delight, nine clubs were of different flowering trees, conifers,
A Berberis in attendance. broadleaves … We had the good for-
mame by Claude The Bonsaï Club Gersois’s orga- tune of welcoming the Honorary
Maupomé. nising team included Pierre Bedes, Consul of Japan, who came special-
as delegate of the Southern Region, ly from Toulouse for the occasion.”
who was responsible for setting up See you soon for their next
the ongoing aspects, notably inclu- exhibition.
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September
2015
Featured in
the next issue
A shohin exhibition
at Baiju-en
An azalea festival
in Germany
Ecuador: Bonsai in
the land of llamas
Getting Off to a Good
Start: Fertilisers
Bonsai Basics: When to
intervene on bonsai
The Spirit of Bonsai
Treegazing in town
Spotlight on Broadleaves
Spotlight on Conifers: a
pine in Italy
Ficus in all its phases
Tips for bending conifers
Shohin: autumn tasks on a
Japanese maple
Re-imagining a Tree
Task of the Month:
Quick autumn repotting
Bonsai in La Rochelle
Kokedama
Igor Carino:
an inspired potter
Ikebana
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The magazine for bonsai enthusiast s August/Sept. - 20 15

4 News and resources Techniques in Detail Editorial

Christian Przybylski (Germany)

FÉDÉRATION FRANÇAISE DE BONSAÏ

The annual convention of the Fédération Française de

Everyone who attended the

Outstanding tree: hornbeam

Outstanding tree: common

Francisco Ferreira worked on this

Guilhem Maillot won the 2015

a shadbush and a pear tree. This profusion

Outstanding tree: azalea by Didier Weiss.

There are large numbers of penjing collectors in

China Zun, the National Exhibition

Two professionals, German Arellano First all-round winner: Pinus thunbergii,

Second all-round winner:

Rocks on the table The marks awarded by

Juniperus chinensis var. sargentii,

Members of the Black Scissors signalling their affiliation to the movement.

an ensemble with the stones themselves and

Originally from Tennessee, Bjorn

E.B.I. – What will be your style?

E.B.I. – How would you contribute to the evo-

Bjorn worked on a lot of white pines in Japan.

Zuisho and white pine in a beautiful clasped-to-rock composition.

The tree must

a lot of stuff right now. I think twenty, thirty, forty

E.B.I. – How do you consider the world of bonsai

E.B.I. – What do you have to say to beginners?

3 In July, the needles are hard and almost mature.

6 Cut back the twigs that are too long,

Summer pruning is pruning is not

Esp rit Bon sai

zine for bonsa

Le m ag az ine sp éc ial isé

Tailored to the interests of his readers

Abonnement / Subscription ESPRIT BONSAÏ Version française English version

LR PRESSE - BP 30104 - 56401 AURAY Cedex - FRANCE / www.esprit-bonsai.com en.esprit-bonsai.com

flaws 1 Prepare young

Author: Bruno Mazza

The nebari • Air-layering 4 In spring the

A variant of approach grafting

As for conifers, pines do not years later, and a better base to be

in the soil to counterbalance the

At the apex of this young pine, several

If it isn’t possible to modify its Any branch that is growing inside

damaging the bark as the branches Conifers in general – although

Le Rassemblement International du Bonsai et Suiseki 2015 aura lieu du 11 au 20 sep-

Air-layering can look

Xylem Xylem Xylem Xylem

Sapwood Sapwood Girdling

3 Setting up a container Install a mesh to

5 Several air-layers on a single tree

The bell tower of nature’s cathedral offers us

“You’ll soon envy the eternal holiday-maker | Who dreams

1 Total defoliation is needed in order

hidden in a mass of foliage

What is the tachiagari

This superimposed image of photos of