bonsai tools

Bonsai is an ancient Japanese art form where natural tree forms are created in miniature, in a tray-like container, for the purpose of contemplation. It surely must be of the most popular of the Japanese arts in South Africa today with many bonsai clubs gathering around the country.

Ever wondered how exactly to use a root hook or what a sickle is for? In this blog post I discuss some of the most commonly used repotting tools for bonsai.

A few weeks ago I defoliated this maple and it was featured in a blog post on this site along with some other Chinese maples. It has now recovered and so we are able to defoliate once again and work on the tree some more.

This Chinese elm was purchased from a nursery, where it was originally imported from China. It was grown very quickly and displayed many faults. However the basic trunkline and structure was pleasing and over the course of 8 or so years it was remade. It was recently worked on by Francois Jeker, who gave it an extra nudge in the right direction. Read in this blog post about the process used to get it to what you see today.