名媛直播

Scimitarboy wrote:

Clicio wrote:

Scimitarboy wrote:

I'm thinking privet - and don't chop that trunk, make a nice deadwood feature out of it perhaps?

Hummm... Deadwood on a Privet will look sort of unnatural, no?

Not really - you should see my hedge! Privet, with deadwood, and completely natural!

That really depends on where you are living. In areas with humid summers like Japan and Brazil dead wood on broadleaf trees rot away quite fast. In areas with dry summers they can be decades old and very beautiful.

名媛直播 inspiration come from nature. The question is if we should take inspiration from our own nature or from Japan nature? The bonsai artists of Japan that has inspired the hobby for centuries do both, but I cannot.

Tropfrog wrote:

Scimitarboy wrote:

Clicio wrote:

Scimitarboy wrote:

I'm thinking privet - and don't chop that trunk, make a nice deadwood feature out of it perhaps?

Hummm... Deadwood on a Privet will look sort of unnatural, no?

Not really - you should see my hedge! Privet, with deadwood, and completely natural!

That really depends on where you are living. In areas with humid summers like Japan and Brazil dead wood on broadleaf trees rot away quite fast. In areas with dry summers they can be decades old and very beautiful.

名媛直播 inspiration come from nature. The question is if we should take inspiration from our own nature or from Japan nature? The bonsai artists of Japan that has inspired the hobby for centuries do both, but I cannot.

We've veered somewhat away from the original topic, but fortunately into a very interesting (albeit contentious) area!
The principles of bonsai for me personally are nature, then art, then following the "rules" (for want of a better word) towards the most aesthetically pleasing bonsai. As a result many of my own bonsai do not fit into "the norm" and certainly wouldn't be winning any beauty prizes anytime soon! I realise that my taste is out of step with the majority - the endless pursuit of the "thick trunk and huge nebari" which sometimes creates what looks like a stump with some twigs on to me leaves me scratching my head, but to each his own, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. However - I cannot criticise them for not being "natural", as we all obviously know, trees come in all shapes and sizes, even within the same species, and I will (very) occasionally see a tree like that in nature. I am lucky enough to live within walking distance of many, many trees, in different settings - privately owned woodland with public footpaths running through them, forestry commission land (both commercial and nature reserve), even farmland with footpaths running past stately examples of the original "status symbol" tree, the Cedar of Lebanon, a personal favourite of mine, although sometimes a complete bugger to work on in their old age... Probably less than 5% of these trees would be regarded as "acceptable" if shrunk down to bonsai scale, but to me they are ALL beautiful in their striving for life. (Probably the reason that I originally became a tree surgeon for 27 years). The old apple tree in my garden blew over in the storms some years ago, and now rests at a rather jaunty 45° angle - my partner wants me to cut it down, but to me it is inspiring - subsequent leaves and branch growth have adapted to its new inclination, exposed roots underground for decades are sprouting suckers and potential branches. My own bonsai incorporate interesting "flaws" that I have seen either while out walking the dog or from trees that I have worked on in the past - I'd love to have a go at re-creating that apple tree in miniature but I don't dare - according to my partner I "have enough trees already"!