Omiya Bonsai Art Museum

This year, like the past 25 years, Kora Dalager and I have been leading exciting tours to the Japanese bonsai world. Attached are a few photos to share with followers to my blog,

S-Cube Uchiku Tei, the bonsai garden of Meiji Morimae in Hanyu, Japan.

In Part 1 of the Autumn 2023 Beauty blog I shared photos of my garden and bonsai as of October 25^th. Part 2 has now been completed. I was waiting for two dozen bonsai which have not yet completed their autumn transformation to colorful foliage. 

On Monday my Senior Crew cleaned and moved most of the bonsai into the overwintering building (garage). It’s kind of full now and we still have many more to add. Each deciduous bonsai had all the leaves removed, then using a leaf blower, the surface was cleaned of leaves and old organic fertilizer balls. Moss growing up the trunks was carefully removed too. All the bonsai were carefully placed so they look good, kind of like a small bonsai display. Many will be moved, again, when the remaining bonsai are brought inside.

There are still a few bonsai not yet ready to photograph. After the bonsai were protected, the “bonsai in waiting” were brought to the front od the garden, for easier watering. Each tree was placed on a turntable and is turned daily for even coloring. It happens sometimes overnight, so they must be carefully watched and photographed at their peak beauty.

There are still a couple of Japanese maples and Dwarf contorted Bradford pears which have not yet completed their color change. There are two of these bonsai, sitting next to each other, one is turning red, the other yellow. As these remaining bonsai change color they will be photographed my one of my assistants, Alan Adair. Then they will be cleaned and he will have to put them away finding space. I’m leaving for Japan in a few hours so it’s up to Alan to carefully position each tree so it looks good, like an indoor exhibit. He knows me well and knows I’ll move most of them around when I return home.

All of the photos in Part 2 of this blog are different to show the wide range of beauty we are enjoying. Perhaps I’ll have a few more to share in a few weeks. Enjoy the beauty of autumn, it doe not last that long before the winter snows arrive…

The annual colorful beauty of my deciduous bonsai came on schedule during the fourth week of October. The brilliant color peaked on October 25th and lasted for a couple of days. However, the show is not over yet. I still have 12 masterpiece Japanese & Trident maples which have changed color… yet.

Enjoy the beauty that my bonsai are displaying this year. More to com!

The Bonsai Society of Upstate New York celebrated their 50^th anniversary by presenting a unique program to the members on Tuesday, October 24, 2023. The meeting was held in Buckland Lodge in Rochester, New York, where most of our members live, although we do have a good number of active members who regularly attend most meetings and support the organization from Buffalo, Syracuse and Ithaca, New York as well as Erie, Pennsylvania.

We wanted to present a special educational program unlike anything else we have had during the past 50 years. Current president Marc Arpag and long-time past presidents Harvey Carapella and Wm. N. Valavanis together presented demonstrations on Developing and Refining Bonsai. Additionally, each formally displayed one of their finest bonsai. The society rented white curtains with pipe and drape to create an appropriate atmosphere for the three exhibits. The skirting was dark red on the bottom and had a dark red valance on top of the eight-foot white curtains to visually lower the vast white space and coordinate with the bottom. Green and purple table coverings were used, with green on each end of the larger displays and purple in the middle for the smaller exhibit, thus providing additional colors and variety tastefully.

Each artist exhibited and demonstrated on one of their favorite species they are well known for. Marc used Eastern White Cedar, Harvey worked on Sargents Juniper and Bill used Japanese Maples to explain the difference between the developmental training and refining techniques. Bonsai were from their personal collections and each artist carefully and lovingly explained and showed key points. All questions were answered and discussed from the attentive members. They all demonstrated next to each other making comments on each other’s trees and work. This was NOT a “club demo” where a tree is quickly shaped to impress the audience. Each artist respects and admires each other’s trees and work well together. We even had “tip jars” next to each artist for our members and guests which were encouraged to insert folding money as the artists worked. This was NOT a competition or judging. It was fun and the society made a few hundred dollars for the treasury. 

Member’s comments after the meeting were well received. “Wow the program was magical and 100% gold.” “All three displays individually were excellent, interesting, creative, tasteful, and were artistically representative of each artist AND together combined to what felt like a perfectly harmonious composition!” “The presentations were seamless, extremely educational, varied in subjects and informative and yet not repetitive at all!” This program was a fantastic way for the artists to pay tribute to the society they  love and support and a wonderful gift to our loyal members. The unique program was enjoyable and educational. It will be difficult to top this program after the next 50 years….

Late Summer Beauty At International Bonsai Arboretum

This Saturday, September 23, 2023 will officially begin the Autumn season in the northern hemisphere. The weather is beautiful, sunny and warm. As I was strolling though my garden several views look good so am sharing them with you.

Winter is coming, time to get overwintering white poly to cover four houses. I felt luck to find the right sizes, but not happy about the double price increase, over $750!

More photos as my garden colors up, hopefully.

THE exhibition has come and gone, and it’s taken me personally one week to recover. Well over 1,000 paying visitors from Australia, Italy, England, Mexico, Colombia traveled to Rochester, New York to see and study over 300 bonsai from throughout the United States and Canada.The vendors and staff added over 100 people.

People enjoyed the exhibition, and many needed to wait about an hour to get in because of fire code capacity regulations. Diane even needed to stop selling tickets so we would not overpopulate the 50,000 sq ft venue which consists of two indoor soccer fields.

Over 109 different species and cultivars were on display for viewers to enjoy. There were 122 individual shohin bonsai for those who appreciate small bonsai. Some said this year’s exhibition was the finest and largest in the United States…ever!

Throughout the two day exhibition, professional bonsai artists donated their time to conduct tours and critiques of the bonsai. They included David Easterbrook, Boon, Suthin, Sean Smith, Bjorn Bjorholm and Kora Dalager.

Additionally, our three foreign judges, Koji Hiramatsu (Japan), Gerald Rainville (Canada) and Corin Tomlinson (England) selected the best and most beautiful bonsai to receive over $7,000 in cash awards. Each judge and Sean Smith presented demonstrations to a packed house. All 300 chairs were occupied.

Over 45 vendors from the United States, Canada and Colombia brought their finest ware for sale. Two vendors sold out on the first day and returned home early.

All this time, in a hidden room was Joe Noga carefully capturing the beauty of each bonsai for the upcoming Commemorative Album. The photos are superb, sharp and took considerable time to light each tree. Joe spent four days photographing and actually finished up so he could enjoy the exhibition on Sunday afternoon.

This was a tremendous amount of work and energy my crew and friends donated so others could appreciate the bonsai beauty. This year was special for me, personally, as it marked the 100^th bonsai exhibition, symposium, colloquium and convention I have organized with the help with my friends, of course.

Be on the watch for the 2025 9^th US National Bonsai Exhibition in Rochester, New York on September 13-14, 2025. And please order your tickets early, before making your hotel and travel plans so you will not be disappointed.

Have you ever considered to visit the Japan bonsai community and to experience Japanese culture?

Here is your opportunity to experience the Taikan Bonsai Exhibition, visit private bonsai collections, and Kyoto gardens. A visit to Tokoname to purchase bonsai containers is also available too!

In November Kora Dalager and I will be leading another one of our popular value-priced trips to Japan. Only a small number of members will be accepted for this tour so we will have ample time to fully appreciate the beauty and culture of Japan. Because of the timing of the Taikan Bonsai Exhibition we will celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday in Kyoto.

Omiya Bonsai Village, the mecca of bonsai, will be experienced, where you will see the top bonsai gardens where many of the famous masterpiece bonsai have been created and are maintained. You will have the opportunity to meet the top bonsai artists and see their trees, both outdoors and in small indoor displays. The Omiya Bonsai Art Museum, near the village will be on the tour where formal instructive displays, in English, can be seen as well as formal bonsai alcove displays. You can then stroll through a large outdoor garden with masterpieces displayed throughout. Directly across the street we will experience a delicious traditional Japanese luncheon.

Bonsai artist Masahiko Kimura will be visited and here you can see many of the top evergreen bonsai in his small, intimate garden. He always has time for us and answers your questions as well.

A visit to Seiji Morimai’s nearby S-Cube bonsai garden is always a highlight because of friendly hospitality while seeing thousands of bonsai and suiseki. He also accepts credit cards as well…. Bonsai containers, at great prices as well as display tables and art are always popular with our groups.

Kiunio Kobayashi’s Shunka-en Bonsai Art Museum in Tokyo is a visit you will not forget. Here ten indoor formal bonsai displays will feature some of the finest, and most expensive bonsai in Japan. Outdoors a small koi pond is surrounded with other masterpieces. Having run out of room, another area has been constructed on top of the building holding antique containers and more suiseki. Truly a breathtaking experience!

A bullet train ride will bring you nearby views of famed Mt. Fuji on our way to Kyoto. November is the peak season for enjoying the red colorful Japanese maple leaves. They are featured in all the historical and famous gardens we will tour. Additionally we will visit Mr. Morimai’s new bonsai garden display in a 800 year old temple complex.

 Of course, one of the main highlights of this special tour includes visits to the Taikan Bonsai Exhibition, one of the largest in Japan with nearly 300 bonsai formally displayed with scrolls, accessories and suiseki. The sales area is one of the largest in Japan.

 Following the Kyoto visit we will travel to the Nagoya area for a special visit to a temple complex in the middle of a bamboo grove. After seeing a superb private bonsai collection we will have a traditional vegetarian lunch with a bamboo theme.

Finally we will make a stop to Tokoname, an ancient pottery town. Although most famous for toilet bowls, they are now well known for high quality bonsai containers. You will meet some of the top bonsai potters and also have the opportunity to watch them hand build bonsai containers in their factories. All the containers are offered at special discounted prices for our tour.

 Join Kora Dalager and me for a special tour to experience Japanese culture and bonsai. Please contact Kora at dalagerkora@gmail.com for additional information. She can arrange special visits if you like.

A tour flyer is available

I look forward to exploring the Japanese bonsai world and celebrating Thanksgiving in Kyoto.

Which is the most important element when selecting a bonsai container? Size, shape, color or quality. Although varying according to the tree, I generally rank the elements by size, shape, color and quality. Personal taste is also a deciding factor based on your bonsai study through the decades, understanding of the art and level of bonsai you appreciate.

       Yesterday we transplanted an unusual Satsuki cultivar, Senbazuru, which has GREEN flowers, once placed in the shade. It’s been in full sun until today. It continuously flowers from May to September. The current color shown here is not the final color. A photo taken in late July clearly illustrates the true color. 

Senbazuru Satsuki Azalea, late July. No Photoshop tricks or filters, true coloring!

Which container is best? Which container did I use?

       I first posted this question on my Facebook post and received over 35 responses. When writing my thoughts on container selection, I wrote too much for my Facebook post, so am explaining here, where I am not limited space. ALL four of these containers are suitable for this bonsai.

A-  Chinese production quality. Workmanship not up to my standards for this container. But when the azalea whip arrived from Japan eight years ago I quickly wanted to pot it and get it established and healthy. I thought the green flowers would contrast with the bright orange-red glaze, which it did. However, the container was cheap and now the bonsai deserved a better container. Quality was the most important factor in this instance.

B- US, Red Tail Pottery, handmade by Mike Hennigan. I purchased this fine-quality container from Mike last week because of the unusual, contemporary design and superb workmanship. The cream color is quite subtle, and I wanted to present a quiet refined image. Normally, if possible, I try to use contrasting colors, like orange-red with green flowers. But I liked the unique design and thought the size was a bit too small. However, after wiring a few branches, the tree appeared larger than before shaping. So, not considering the new size I initially potted it in pot B. After studying the photo, the tree looked a bit too large in the cream glazed container. So I repotted it after studying photos. Photos present elements as they actually are; they do not hide anything. So after studying the photos further the bonsai it was transplanted. Again. So in this case the size was the deciding factor.

C- Japan, Yamaaki, aged with patina. I liked the color contrast with the green flowers and the depth because Azaleas tend to grow better in cold climates in deeper containers, plus they like water and don’t like drying out. The size was about right, but the strong formal appearance was a bit too much for this informal bonsai for my taste. The quality and patina were great, but here the match was better in the other shapes. So the container design was most important factor.

D- Japan, handmade by Gyozan. He is currently considered one of the finest potters in Japan because of his large size containers, craftmanship, clay body use, design and recently unusual glaze colors. He has customed made two containers for me specifically for a couple of bonsai. I really like, appreciate and admire his artistry and would use more of his containers, if I could afford them. I purchased this container from him several years ago when he first began to use glaze. Initially, I felt this container was a bit to large for my proportional taste and used the American container by Mike Hennigan. However, after a bit of wiring and a few guy wires the bonsai had more mass, and appeared too small for the tree after careful study. The quality was superb, perhaps a bit too good for this young developing bonsai. So the final selection was the Japanese container by Gyozan, based on the elements explained here.                          

First potting, Friday

Second and final container selection, Saturday

Now, should Mike Hennigan make a larger container of the same design, perhaps in a blue-green glaze my bonsai might be again transplanted, should I still own the tree….