Bill Valavanis' famous Full moon maple in all its glory

I’ve been meaning to knock your socks off (do people still say that?) with these photos of Bill’s Brilliant back yard for a few days now, but wanted to get all the fact straight first. Turns out time isn’t on my side so far this week, so I’ll just put the photos up as I found them on Bill’s fb timeline. If you want more info, feel free to follow the link.
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Here’s a note Bill sent us the other day … “Both Alan (Alan Adair) and I have not adjusted the color in the photos. They are actually that bright! and really glow in the right light. It took both of us 3 hours of moving trees around for the overall garden shot. We call it “painting with bonsai”. I’m up on the ladder and can’t clearly see a tree, so it must be moved. Then we need more yellow here and red over there. It all takes time, but worth it. From Friday to Sunday should actually bring out the peak color in my garden. But there are still about a half dozen maples which will not peak for some time. There are two shishigashira maples which were beginning to peak and should be stunning. After we take the formal garden photos we will bring other individual trees into to be photographed. Then, if we have time and energy will bring some in for tokonoma shots. As you well know, everything takes time which people do not realize. Look at all the time Joe takes to capture the beauty of each tree in the exhibition for the album. He spends hours on each photo to get the exact color correct, after shooting the tree. NOBODY even sees the subtle changes, only Joe sees them. Teaching color reproduction for 35 year trains your eye……”

Here's a couple of those albums Bill mentions (just above) that were shot by Joe Noga, bonsai photographer extraordanaire. Both are available at Stone Lantern

We did get the facts on this one. Here's what Bill wrote... "This a bust of Yugi Yoshimura, a bonsai pioneer in America, and teacher to William N. Valavanis. Next to him, in flower, is the Daisy Chrysanthemum that was once his and is now over 90 years old."

In Bill's own words... I’m up on the ladder and can’t clearly see a tree, so it must be moved...

Potentilla fruticosa before and after from Lakeshore Bonsai. There's a lot more than meets the eye when it comes to styling and caring for Potentilla

Yesterday we featured a couple little Potentilla, so let’s stay on theme. This one was styled by Aaron at Lakeshore Bonsai in Toronto. The following is quoted directly from Lakeshore’s site…
“This Potentilla is as fragile as a stained glass window and parts of it literally crumble away every time I work on it. It has undergone some pretty radical changes since I acquired it in 2011, and certainly does not look like the tree I initially envisioned it would become when I bought it. If I could give one piece of advice to anyone who wants to work with Potentilla – especially a deadwood specimen – I would say keep the trunk as clean and dry as possible. They are extremely susceptible to rot. Brush it, lime sulfur it, treat it with wood hardener, remove dead bark… all that good stuff is essential.
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Before. May 2011

Continued from above…
“The main things I did this year were to remove the last of the rotting parts, soak every piece of deadwood in lime sulfur then wood hardener, and compact the crown. I also completely redesigned the branch structure such that it is much more simple and “bonsai like”. This is contrary to the wayward, random nature in which Potentilla grow. I’m not saying the current image is better than some of the earlier ones. Certainly some incredible deadwood features have been lost.

Next step is to find the right pot, which certainly won’t be easy. I figure this tree still has a couple years of life before it returns to the dust from whence it came.”

After... "The crown still needs a bit of filling out, but that won’t take long."

Would you ever guess that these two little gems are Potentilla? Both are sweet in their own way, and so's the photo; the muted painterly background, the contrasting pot colors and contrasting dead and live wood on both trees. I don't know what the little companion is, but I like it too. I found it on Roman Stresow's timeline. His caption is Just two Potentilla

When I saw the photo above and then read that the trees were Potentilla (aka Cinquefoil), I felt a little tug of excitement. Not only were both little trees unique, but they’re Potentilla, a type tree I have often admired, both in the wild (the Rockies) and in my garden.

No dimentsions are given, but I imagine this is a Shohin. Especially since Roman Stresow posted it on the Shohin and Mame Bonsai group

Speaking of my garden and Potentilla… a few days ago my friend and I were cutting back perennials when I came across an old Potentilla that’s not doing too well. I mentioned that I’ve long wanted to try a bonsai potentilla and now here’s my chance (but we’ll have to wait until the spring, the fall digging season has past). I won’t say I can’t wait, because I have to, but it’s one more spring project to look forward to and spring is right around the corner (in about seven months!)

The small sweet one with it's even smaller companion. Looks like a handmade pot (I'm not sure about the pot in the photo above).

Contrast! This shot has to go in our Bonsai Bark hall of fame photos (if we had such a thing). The big one is a Japanese beech (Fagus crenata) and the small one is unidentified, though it looks a lot like a Shimpaku juniper. Both belong to Mariusz Folda

Suddenly we’re inundated with fall color bonsai photos. Our colors in northern Vermont peaked three weeks ago and now the rest of the world is catching up. Mariusz Folda, a long time favorite here on Bark is from Bielsko-Biala in southern Poland.

Just the beech, brilliantly lit. Mariusz lists its height as 80cm (31.5 inches)

In Mariusz' tokonoma 

Here's the caption that was posted with this photo... "Congratulations Peter Tea, professional bonsai artist and instructor, Auburn, California, for judged bonsai competition winning Best Conifer and Best in Show (California Juniper) at the Golden State Bonsai Federation (GSBF) Convention 41, October 24-28, 2018, Sacramento, California - "Creativity Taking Flight". Photo by Peter Camarena." I cropped the original photo (see below) to enjoy a closer look

I was beginning to think Peter Tea had gone into hiding and then this popped up. Turns out he was hiding in plain sight. I just lost track for a while and that’s too bad, because Peter’s trees and what he has to say about them, is always worth a moment. Here’s a link to a post we did in 2014 titled “Twenty Eight Questions for Peter Tea“(originally posted at Yenling Bonsai)

Here's the original photo with the companion tree doing its work. And here's the rest of what Peter wrote... "Had a great time at the GSBF Convention! Hung out with old and new friends and bought some Bonsai goodies! Client's and student's trees winning some prizes was the cherry on top!"

A closer look at the deadwood. Including the 'wave'

Peter working on a Black pine at Aichi-en. From Yenling Bonsai

Before and after by Robert Steven. The tree is a Casuarina that originally belonged to Ismail Saleh and now belongs to Robert. Here's part of what Robert wrote about this transformation... "I changed the viewing angle, squeezed the dead part close to the living part then reset the foliage pads. Sooner or later the dead part will rot, then I should redesign the composition again"

Here’s a little history from Robert about this famous tree… “The Legend ! This is one of the oldest Casuarina bonsai in Indonesia which has been going through a long path of transformation and survival, yet still keeps changing due to physical conditions, especially the bark which is rotting out”

It belonged to the late Ismail Saleh, the Father of Indonesia Bonsai, the Founder of ASPAC and ABFF, who gave to me to be taken care before he passed away. Bonsai is truly a never ending art !”  Scroll all the way down for a much earlier shot of this amazing tree. 

After, a closer look

An older photo of the same tree. I don't know if this shot was taken before or after it came to Robert. Nor do I know how many years passed between this shot and the photos above. You can visit Robert's on fb for more 

Bud Fulton sent us this scary photo. He took it at the North Carolina Bonsai Expo in Asheville. We don't know who the tree belongs to, but we do know it's a yew (Taxus) and that it suits our annual Halloween post to a tee. Just got this note from Bill Valavanis... "The Japanese yew belongs to Jim Doyle who also displayed it at the 2018 6th US National Bonsai Exhibition"

At first glance you might just see the tree and the cobwebs and miss the hands. The photo is from Robert Steven’s 2014 International Bonsai Art & Culture Biennale

You can look, but you better not touch. Poison Ivy bonsai by Nick Lenz, who, in addition to be one of our most talented bonsai artists, is also a master of the unusual. This photo appears in Nick’s book, Bonsai from the Wild (out of print)

Another one from Robert Steven’s 2014 International Bonsai Art & Culture Biennale. There’s something about those ‘severed’ arms that’s just a little ominous.  Is this where the  ‘Black Scissors’ idea got started?

Do you see the little arms sticking up out of the soil?  The photo is from Nail Sari’s facebook photo album titled Chinese Bonsai Ever… No variety or owner is given

 Too disturbing? Or okay for Halloween? Another one from  Robert Steven’s 2014 International Bonsai Art & Culture Biennale

An almost complete view of the haunted tree at the top of the post

Miniature Bonsai. Not only is this NEW Bonsai Book beautiful, but it fills a hole (a miniature hole). Unlike so many books in its price range, this one does not rehash the same tired beginner's book cliches. Every page is fresh, and even if you're an experienced old hand you'll learn something useful and be surprise at the delightful little trees. If you're not an experienced old hand, you'll enter a world of enjoyment and inspiration and you'll also be surprised at the delightful little trees.

It’s not that often that we get two new Bonsai books the same day, though you might make the argument that Miniature Japanese Gardens is not a bonsai book (you’d only be half wrong). If I had to pick one for someone who knows a little bit about bonsai, I’d choose Miniature Bonsai. If on the other hand, I had to pick one for someone who knows very little about bonsai but likes to grow plants, I’d pick Miniature Japanese Gardens (or you could pick both…)

And if I wanted to treat someone who really knows bonsai (yourself for example), I’d scroll down and take a close look at Gnarly Branches, Ancient Trees

Miniature Japanese Gardens. This is the only book you'll find in both our bonsai and Japanese garden sections. In many ways, it's a lot like Miniature Bonsai. Same publisher (Tuttle) and same fresh new approach with vivid photos and clear text. A treat for yourself or anyone who likes to grow bonsai and other plants indoors. List price 19.99. Introductory Special Only 16.95

GNARLY BRANCHES, ANCIENT TREES
not new, but still among the very best

Moving up a few notches to the Picasso of Bonsai…
We know some of you are planning ahead, and if you are and you’re looking for something for the bonsai lover who has everything, check out their bookshelf and if you don’t see Gnarly Branches, Ancient Trees, there must be a big hole where it should be (this can also apply to your own bookshelf).  

Here's what Bill Valavanis has to say about Harvey Carapella's backyard bonsai garden... "Enjoy the colorful bonsai garden of Harvey Carapella. His outstanding private bonsai collection is a joy to appreciate, especially at this time of year. I'm quite proud of my friend's bonsai talent and accomplishments. WOW!" From Bill's timeline

It’s a small world…. It turns out that our Bonsai Star for the Day, Harvey Carapella is an old friend of a good friend of mine here in Vermont. It’s not a bonsai connection, just one of those serendipity type things.  When we discover these kinds of connections, my question always is… how often do we miss them?

Bill's other shot of our Bonsai Star for the day's backyard

Harvey demoing what looks a lot like a Northern white cedar (Thuja occidentalis) at Bill's place. I lifted the photo from Bill's blog

Three before and after bonsai styled by Juan Andrade. The trees are from top to bottom: Shimpaku juniper, Japanese black pine and a Needle juniper trunk with Shimpaku juniper foliage grafted on

Continuing with our current before and after series…
Juan Andrade served as a long term apprentice at Bonsai Aichien nursery in Japan. We’ve been following Juan’s progress for years (here’s a Bark post from 2012 that features a tree of his). Juan posts regularly on facebook, which is where we found these photos.

This pine has a bunjin feel, but I think the foliage is too lush to qualify as bunjin. No matter what you call it, it's a good bonsai wit a lot of character. 
In case you are wondering what Bunjin is, there's a good discussion here.

It's not in a pot yet, but if you look at the before photo above, you can see that it has come a long ways in the right direction

All pines and junipers today,, so thought you might like to see these...

This unusual beauty definitely qualifies as bunjin