BONSAI Focus Magazine: KUSAMURA BONSAI CLUB LIBRARY

LAST UPDATED on OCT 2, 2016 RC

Latest Issues: 2016

Bonsai Focus #138/161 1/2016 Jan/Feb

Top 2015: The best bonsai of 2015; Fuji-san: A satsuki rock planting by Shigeo Isobe;
TECHNIQUE: How to remove old needles on pines; WORKSHOP: Changing the front of a tree;
STYLING: Kimura creates another juniper masterpiece; SHOHIN: Accentuating the character in
an exposed root pine; MASTERCLASS: Pappalardo creates a cascade Sabina juniper; STEP-
BY-STEP: Charms of the Norway Spruce; TECHNIQUE: Peter Warren airlayers to improve a
poorly shaped tree; Artisans Cup sets new standard in presenting bonsai

Bonsai Focus #139/162 2/2016 March/April

Noelanders Trophy XVII; STYLING: Transformation of a giant Juniperus chinensis led by
Chiharu Imai; INTERVIEW: Sandro Segneri; Pots of Thor Holvila from Sweden; WORKSHOP:
Hotsumi Terakawa improves a juniper; Francois Jeker appraises a juniper; TECHNIQUE:
Iemitsu Ooishi on root grafting; MASTERCLASS: Boon Manakitivipart styles a Rocky Mountain
juniper; TECHNIQUE: Sowing the seeds of Beech; SUNDRIES: Reflections at the Artisans Cup

Bonsai Focus #140/163 3/2016 May/June

Taiga Urushibata; Kokufu-ten 2016; INTERVIEW: Erik Wigert’s tropical bonsai nursery in
Florida; Pots by Gregory Delattre; SHOHIN: Moss is a must; WORKSHOP: Tadao Tabata works
with Satsuki bonsai raw material; WORKSHOP: Hiromi Tsukada works on a Satsuki azalea;
MAINTANENCE: Care after a Satsuki azalea blooms; WORKSHOP: Janine Droste styles a
Satsuki ‘Nikko’; Francois Jeker analyses a pistachio tree; MASTERCLASS: Taiga Urishibata
works on a red pine (Pinus densiflora); STYLING: Removing useless deadwood; TECHNIQUE:
Sowing the seeds of an Oak

Bonsai Focus #141/164 4/2016 July/August

Bonsai Mirai: A visit to Ryan Neil's bonsai garden; Bonsai pots of Lubos Skoda from the Czech
Republic; STYLING: Matt Reel (USA) works on a Rocky Mountain juniper; WORKSHOP:
Haruyashi Ishii revamps an Elaeagnus; MASTERCLASS: Masahiko Kimura restyles a juniper;
Francois Jeker analyses a Boxwood; SHOHIN: Various techniques for leaf cutting a Beech;
Bonsai passion of David Segal; STEP-BY-STEP: A Hinoki cypress is styled; World Bonsai
Convention in April 2017

Bonsai Focus #142/165 5/2016 Sept/Oct

TECHNIQUE: Grafting a Trident Maple; STYLING: Serge Clemence styles a Swiss mountain
pine; The jita or wooden slate; Francois Jeker analyses a Cherry (Prunus mahaleb); STYLING:
Walter Pall improves a Limber pine (Pinus flexilis); STEP-BY-STEP: Dominique Bosch styles a
Blaauw juniper; MASTERCLASS: Mauro Stemberger styles a Sabina juniper using a
sandblaster; Golden Concave Award; TECHNIQUE: Acer palmatum on the road to recovery;
Pots by Martin Englert; TECHNIQUE: Creating grove of Trident maples from seed;
MAINTENANCE: Bonsai in Autumn
2015 Issues

Bonsai Focus #132/155 1/2015 Jan/Feb

Saaka Ten took place in Fiesole near Florence, Italy; Bonsai Euro Top 30 show held in France;
SHOHIN: The beauty of plum blossoms; MAINTENANCE: Creating short needles; STEP-BY-
STEP: The challenges of a juniper that looks almost finished; TECHNIQUE: Air layering
deciduous trees; MASTERCLASS: Shaping a raw Japanese yew; Serious bonsai in China;
STYLING: Marco Giannini embraces the cypress; EXPERT OPINION: Analysis of a rosemary;
MAINTENANCE: A pine with damaged roots regains its health and goes from pale to dark
green; Protecting your bonsai during the winter

Bonsai Focus #133/156 2/2015 March/April

GALLERY: The VII Concurso Luis Vallejo MMBA 2014 Madrid bonsai show; SHOHIN: How to
improve branch ramification in maples; Create a forest planting of Zelkova serrata; STYLING:
David Soto Ruano works on a Scots pine; Accent plants for display with bonsai; TECHNIQUE:
Air layering a tree with inverse tapering; MASTERCLASS: The front vs. the back of a huge pine
by Salvatore Liporace; STYLING: Small yew with lots of curves; MAINTENANCE: Repotting;
EXPERT OPINION: Francois Jeker comments on a larch; SHOHIN: Working with native
material; Watering your bonsai; The perfect bonsai pot

Bonsai Focus #134/157 3/2015 May/June

GALLERY: Noelanders Trophy XVI; TECHNIQUE: Improving your trees through transplanting;
SHOHIN: Morten Albek goes native with a Lonicera nitida, boxleaf honeysuckle; Walt Disney
bonsai; Dreaming of 100 pines; Andres Alvares Iglesias and his Yew; STEP-BY-STEP: Peter
Warren deals with an out of style Satsuki azalea; TECHNIQUE: How to deal with pines
throughout the seasons; How to nurse Satsuki all year round; MASTERCLASS: Strong bends
with lots of raffia, ratchet straps and manpower; STYLING: Michael Hagedorn’s creation using a
vine maple; Suiseki masterpieces; Alchemy of Ceramic pots; Elegant lines of a Scots pine;
Starting bonsai with seeds; Fertilizing; Digging up Satsuki azaleas

Bonsai Focus #135/158 4/2015 July/August

SHOHIN: Morten Albek goes native with a crab apple; TECHNIQUE: Let’s wire; The Tamarix as
a weeping willow; SHOHIN: Transplanting conifers; Using driftwood to make a root stand;
Defoliation and leaf reduction; MASTERCLASS: Ryan Neal transforms a Sabina Juniper;
‘Mitsubishi’ stone; Bonsai pottery of self-taught Sara Rayner; Francois Jeker critiques a
hornbeam; Going wireless on a tree; Styling an Austrian pine; Starting with seeds part 2;
Floridian transforms an old juniper;

Bonsai Focus #136/159 5/2015 Sept/Oct

Bonsai in Ecuador; A naturalistic approach to a hornbeam; Maintenance of Kusamono or accent
plants; Styling a beech; TECHNIQUE: Advanced wiring and branch bending; Growing a
hornbeam from seed; MASTERCLASS: Bjorn Bjorholm works on a bulky yew; STYLING: Peter
Tea brings out the best in the shari of a needle juniper; STYLING: Federico Springolo works on
a Scots pine; Bonsai pots with animal caricatures; Going to show: the art of display at the
Taikan-ten in Kyoto;
Bonsai Focus #137/160 6/2015 Nov/Dec
Bonsai Grooming; STYLING: Making the most of the shari and amazing live veins; SHOHIN:
Problems at the top; TECHNIQUE: Create bonsai by air layering; STEP-BY-STEP: Work on a
scots pine; MASTERCLASS: A huge Japanese Yew; Making rock plantings; MAINTENANCE:
Bud pinching and creating branches on a Beech; TECHNIQUE: Zelkova – creating a finished
tree starting from zero

2014 Issues

Bonsai Focus #126/149 1/2014 Jan/Feb

Avoiding Straight Lines with Peter Warren; Creating bonsai inspired from rock climbing; Working
the body of the tree with Peter Warren; Seven Years: Creating a European yew (Taxus baccuta)
shohin from raw nursery material; Shortening long needles on an Aleppo pine; Nishiki-ten
exhibition in Barcelona; Master Class: Kimura goes for the max; An impressive yew treated with
respect; Pots: Cutting edge shapes and styles; The beauty of pines in the wild; Peter Tea
catches up with his trident maple project after returning from Japan

Bonsai Focus #127/150 2/2014 March/April

Iconic olive winner of The XV Noelanders Trophy; Root Improvement on Pines; Niemeyer
Bonsai Show in Asturia, Spain; Styling a Yamadori Larch; Don’t Overwork your Tree; Master
Class with Enrico Savini: Grafting Itoigawa junipers; Drastic Root Work on a Zelkova; Peter
Warren styles a common Picea: Understanding the nature of a tree; Interview with Makoto
Azuma

Bonsai Focus #128/151 3/2014 May/June

Take advantage of the flaws; Transformation of a Mugo pine with Enzo Ferrari; Hiromi Tsukada
restyles a Satsuki azalea; Evan Miller reminisces about Peter Adams; How to improve a small
maple by drastic pruning; Mauro Stemberger’s Yamadori pine; Bonsai and other arts; Sneak
preview of the Kokufu-Ten; Repotting a pine without fear; Scots pine is easy material; Repotting
a precious azalea Satsuki ‘hakurin’; 51st Suiseki Meihin-Ten Exhibition held at Meiji Jingu

Bonsai Focus #129/152 4/2014 July/Aug

Treasures of the Kokufu; Development of a huge beech; Mame pots; Emphasize the trunk:
Francois Jeker analyses Hugo Eijsackers’ Syzigium; Talking with Chinese Bonsai Master Chen
Zhi Jiu; TECHNIQUE: Deciduous trees: Creating the basic structure by Koichiro Toyoda
includes bud grafting; MASTERCLASS: Bjorn Bjorholm redesigns a mugo pine; STYLING:
Mediterranean trees such as Myrtus with Rocco Cicciarello; TECHNIQUE: Practical tips for
dealing with wounds on deciduous trees; Step by Step: Improving a mid-size Cotoneaster with
Martin Bonvie; Back to Fukushima; STYLING: Masashi Hirao works on a huge native Hinoki
cypress;

Bonsai Focus #130/153 5/2014 Sept/Oct

GALLERY: Euonymus, Acer buergerianum, Eleagnus, and others; STYLING: an Itoigawa
juniper; SUISEKI: Suiban vs. Daiza; Visiting bonsai gardens in Czech Republic; SHOHIN:
Pruning before the dormant season explained for trident maple and Euonymous;
MASTERCLASS: Kimura transforms a rare Itoigawa juniper; Interview with bonsai4me founder
Harry Harrington; WORKSHOP: Inspired by rock (five needle pine saikei created along with a
mountain maple saikei); TECHNIQUE: How to deal with wounds that don’t heal quickly; CASE
HISTORY: Update on Sabina Juniper styled by Ryan Neil; Bonsai in Split, Croatia; Australian
native trees as bonsai
Bonsai Focus #131/154 6/2014 Nov/Dec
GALLERY: Incredible Yew; Workshop: Giacomo Pappalardo makes a forest on a Galician rock;
Expert Opinion: Analysis of a Scots pine; Masterpiece stones from the rivers of Japan; Pros and
cons of bonsai rules; Peter Warren explains which branch to cut on deciduous trees;
MASTERCLASS: Marco Invernizzi works on a hinoki cypress; Back to Fukushima: A visit to the
bonsai gardens of the Bonkura Kai Bonsai Club; STYLING: Using a jack to transform a white
pine; Shohin: Creating bonsai with air layering and approach grafting; TECHNIQUE: Using the
correct size wire; Making the right branch cuts; STYLING: Teunis Jan Klein partners a multi-
trunked fir with a rock; TECHNIQUE: Fruitful bonsai including Ilex serrata, Malus sieboldii
‘Kaido’ (decorative crab apple) and Fortunella hindsii ‘Kinzu’.

Older Issues:

Bonsai Focus # 86 (aka Bonsai Today #109 2007 issue 3)

Syzgium buxifolium * Takaeo Kawabe workshop * step by step Mugo pine
The 81st Edition of the Kokufu Ten * Hotsumi Terakawa styles a juniper
Yamadori from the Swiss Alps * demonstration with Jurgen Zaar * tree guide
Kunio Kobayashi’s tokonoma * seasonal care

Bonsai Focus # 87 4/2007 July – August (aka Bonsai Today # 110)

Masterclass with Kenichi Abe; Interview with Peter Warren

Bonsai Focus # 88 5/2007 September – October

Nobuichi Urushibata on grafting techniques; Salvatore Liporace styles a cork oak; Expert
opinion on Juniperus with Peter Adams; Native growing area of the Japanese white pine, Pinus
parviflora; Hornbeam (Carpinus coreanum) as bonsai on a rock; Pearl of all gardens: A visit to
the Adachi Museum on Honshu Island, Japan; How to analyse bonsai by Francois Jeker;
Restyling an Italian cupressus; Growing pines from seed; Seasonal care for summer’s end;
Hemlock as bonsai; A display in the tokonoma of Kunio Kobayashi; Bonsai in Paradise with
Simon Temblett of North Wales; Collecting a pine from the wild; Bottlebrush (Callistemon
speciosus) as bonsai material

Bonsai Focus # 89 6/2007 November – December

(aka Bonsai Today #112)
Hiromi Tsukada’s approach to Satsuki; Kevin Willson creates a semi-cascade Scots pine;
Francois Jeker takes a very close analytical view of the white pine cascade of Kunio Kobayashi;
Len Gilbert creates a Larch forest on a slab; Visiting the famous Hideo Suzuki School; Working
on deciduous trees in autumn and winter; Seasonal care for the winter; How to handle problem
material: Serge Clemence’s skillful approach to impossible material; Step by Step with Pistacia;
Japanese Cherry (prunus) bonsai; Studying bonsai in Japan;UK’s new bonsai collection at the
Royal Horticultural Society’s garden in Wisley

Bonsai Focus # 113 1 – 2008 January/February

Marco Invernizzi re-styles an Itoigawa juniper; the amazing bonsai of Bali
Bonsai Focus # 115 3/2008 May – June
Minoru Akiyama plants a small Juniper on a rock; Branch grafting with Urushibata; Expert
opinion on juniper; Seasonal care for the summer; Australian Tea Tree; Photo gallery: Azalea
bonsai; Bonsai artist Thierry Font; The weeping banyan tree; Moving mature branches; Mario
Komsta restyles a hornbeam, Carpinus coreana; Refining an older elm with Graham Potter;
Dealing with an old and neglected azalea in very poor health; Introducing Martin Sturm from
Germany; Rosemary bonsai; Japanese red pine tokonoma display; Spotlight on bonsai pots;
Bring out the best in Beech; Appreciating Suiseki; Create a tree by root grafting

Bonsai Focus # 116 4/2008 July – August

Hotsumi Terakawa on Syzigium buxifolium; Masterclass with Salvatore Liporace; Expert opinion
on juniper; Tasks for the growing season; Step by step with the Firethorn; An interview with
Bonsai Master Walter Pall; Barberry (Berberis thunbergii) as bonsai; The Premna known as the
“stinking lady” is the rising star of tropical bonsai; Giacomo Pappalardo of Sicily styles a sabina
juniper; Chiharu Imai transforms a root over rock juniper; Case history of refining a privet;
Syzygium buxifolium as bonsai material; How to analyse bonsai; Mugo pine; Summer Suiseki;
Special pots from Japan; The creative process with Peter Warren; The air of a Japanese Zen
garden; Hawthorn as bonsai

Bonsai Focus # 118 6/2008 November – December

Hotsumi Terakawa challenges a Buxus; Michael Hagedorn works on a juniper

Bonsai Focus # 119 1/2009 Jan/Feb

Salvatore Liporace creates a giant spruce; Hotsumi Terakawa: Workshop with garden material;

Bonsai Focus # 120 2/2009 March/April

Masterclass: Mario Komsta re-styles an old yamadori juniper by changing its angle; Just bend it:
Techniques to change a tree almost beyond recognition; Pedro Morales styles a giant Aztec
juniper; Rosemary bonsai; Chiharu Imai restyles an old juniper; A superb azalea in a tokonoma
by Peter Warren; Hotsumi Terakawa creates a bonsai from a yew Part 2; the beauty of Suiseki
part 3; Fundamentals of Soil part 1; a Chinese juniper

Bonsai Focus # 121 3/2009 May/June (2 copies)

Lorenzo Agnoletti works on a Tuscan pine; Marco Invernissi encounters junipers in the wild;

Bonsai Focus # 122 4/2009 July/August (2 copies)

Masahiko Kimura works on a long term pine project; Balinese bonsai master Gede Merta

Bonsai Focus # 123 5/2009 Sept/Oct

Giacomo Pappalardo: Revisiting Mephisto; Boon Manakitivipart works on a Dakota juniper;

Bonsai Focus # 125 1/2010 Jan/Feb

Michael Hagedorn Styling: Just like Jazz; Andrea Zambelli restyles a Phoenician juniper;

Bonsai Focus # 126 2/2010 March/April

The famous Kokufu-Ten exhibition; Literati display; Following the path of the American Bonsai
Masters; Respect for an old juniper; South African talent Werner Kotze styles a juniper;
Masahiko Kimura bends the thick trunk of a yew; Mycorrizha fungus: A partner for life; Timber
twisting: Manipulation of form through the management of nutrient flow; Improving the nebari
and transplanting an old black pine; Turbo styling a Scots pine with Peter Adams; Revisiting the
trees that Nobuichi Urushibata grafted in autumn 2007; Step by step with Hemlock
Bonsai Focus # 127 3/2010 May/June
Noelanders Trophy XI winners; Ivo Santos’ Myrtle bonsai; A visit to the famous Suzhou gardens
and their bonsai; Jos Lindelauf re-styles a yew; Sinji Suzuki re-works his debut tree; Seaside
landscape: a modern version of Chinese penjing; Inaugural suiseki exhibition of the Shin Nihon
Aiseki Kai; Hiromi Tsukada designs a satsuki bonsai; How to analyze bonsai by Francois Jeker

Bonsai Focus # 128 4/2010 July/August

The sudden reversal of a juniper: Minoru Akiyama, winner of the 34th Prime Minister’s Award at
the Sakkafu-ten Exhibition, restyles a juniper; Maple from the field (Acer campestre); The formal
display; Francois Jeker creates a spruce yamadori after many years of preparation; Artistic
beauty of pots; A gardener’s legacy: developing new branches on old trunks; The beauty
of suiseki part 7; How to analyse bonsai by Francois Jeker; How to grow local black pine
from seed; Candle cutting black pines; Creating a Scots pine bonsai

Bonsai Focus # 129 5/2010 Sept/Oct

The Phoenician juniper; Wiring essentials; the almond tree as bonsai; the well known juniper,
named ‘Kariyushi’; a Scots pine styling takes an unexpected route; Giacomo Pappalardo works
on a “born for stardom” yamadori; Find inspiration from bizarre rock forms in East Germany;
Suiseki: the Temple stones of Tokyo; choosing the correct bonsai stand for display with Shinji
Suzuki; the artistic spirit of the greatest Japanese potter Tsukinowa Shousen

Bonsai Focus # 130 6/2010 Nov/Dec

Autumn colors; the new bonsai museum in Omiya Japan; Analysis by Master Kunip Kobayashi
on selecting the perfect bonsai stand for your tree; A Chinese juniper is restyled; Mario Komsta
refines an overgrown yew by bending the top and sandblasting the deadwood; Yasuki Esaka of
the Taiju-en shows how to create an extraordinary rock planting; step by step with a pyracantha;
Wiring essentials part 2

Bonsai Focus # 140 4/2012 July/August

Shohin bonsai in the UK with Peter Warren; Pots as sculptures created by Erik Krizovensky;
Developing field grown bonsai stock with Peter Warren; Ryan Neil restyles a juniper; Styling a
yew rooted on rocks with Andres Alvarez Iglesias; Cultivating a Prunus mume (includes the
Chinese plum and Japanese apricot); carving deadwood on a Brazilian rain tree; carving and
styling a Japanese yew (Taxus cuspidata)

Bonsai Focus #141/118 5/2012 Sept/Oct

Takashi Iura working on a native pine; Michael Hagedorn's Special Rock Creation; The XVI UBI
congress and the 27th Acrobonsai showcased top quality bonsai and demonstrators

Bonsai Focus #142/119 6/2012 Nov/Dec

Masahiko Kimora Wire like a Master; Minoru Akiyama Eye for detail;

Bonsai Focus #143/120 1/2013 Jan/Feb

Rock planting by Nobutaka Sakuma; Hotsumi Terakawa creates a masterpiece with a huge
yamadori Yew; The Sakka Ten show in Peniscola, Spain; Peter Adams analyses a Sabina
juniper; Creating a forest planting from simple material; How to maintain deciduous trees: part 2
covers flowering cherry, camellia, wisteria, prunus mume, winter hazel, crape myrtle, Kadsura
japonica, and Berchemia racemosa, princess persimmon, Ilex serrata, and dwarf crabapple;
Cultivating and styling boxwood; Bjorn Bjorholm works on a raft style white pine; Michael Tran
works on a mugo pine; Wire like Kimura part 2;
Bonsai Focus #144/121 2/2013 March/April
Mauro Stemberger uses fire to style a mugo pine; The charm of thinned trunked bonsai; Rare
pots by famous ceramist Kouzan, or Kouou, his artistic name; 14th Annual Noelanders Trophy;
Peter Adams analyzes a black pine; The Alcobendas bonsai show in Madrid; Experts on
transplanting a bonsai; After the tsunami in Japan; Kimura transforms a red pine with wire; The
wild olive of Croatia

Bonsai Focus #145/122 3/2013 May/June

Masahiko Kimora on Satsuki; Ryan Neil styles a Sabina juniper; 32nd Annual Taikan-Ten Bonsai
Exhibition; Peter Adams critiques a hornbeam; Prepping for summer temperatures; How to
develop branches on a Satsuki azalea; Portland bonsai village; Improving a Yew; Bonsai from a
field grown maple (Acer palmatum); A small white pine;

Bonsai Focus #146/123 4/2013 July/August

Masahiko Kimora refreshes a 2000 year old juniper named ‘Hiryu’ ; Split & Bend: Valentin Brose
works on a Sabina juniper; Peter Adams critiques a mountain pine (pinus mugo); Post flower
pruning for Azaleas; Branch development on deciduous trees: How to prune long branches;
Bonsai in a design environment; Native hornbeam of Croatia; Create new bonsai by air layering;
Creating literati style bonsai

Bonsai Focus #147/124 5/2013 Sept/Oct

Bonsai Focus #148/125 6/2013 Nov/Dec

THE END