This is one of four bottle brush I dug from a demolition site
in Nov 2001. Some, especially those deeply schooled in the
Japanese Bonsai traditions don't like the exposed "knee"
root on the right. Years ago I almost chopped it off.
Fortunately I did not. I used to be an adherant to the
Japanese Bonsai traditions. However when I see more and
more of the amazing naturalistic bonsai from Taiwan, my
bonsai consciousness widened. I began to appreciate the
different ways of bonsai art. Such exposed roots are common
in Chinese Penjing. In fact they are appreciated. So what is
ugly to some is beauty to another giving meaning to the
Taoist saying that there is beauty in ugliness. That exposed
"knee" root can be rationalised as counter balancing the
leftward inclination of the tree. You get the feeling that
it is holding the tree to the ground. Such exposed roots can
be found in nature. They are the works of wild elements
like strong wind, storm and erosion.
CJ

My smallest tea tree bonsai

This is my smallest tea tree bonsai. As tea tree bonsai are
so rare, this could well be the smallest in the world.
It is over two years old. The challenge is to keep it alive
for as long as possible. Not an easy task. I will try my best.

Bosai Society of West Australia Exhibition 2010

In Oct. the Bonsai Society of West Australia held its' 2010 Exhibition. You can watch a short video clip of the event here:

A Blooming Azalea

I bought this azalea from John Coles Nursery a few years ago. I have lost the tag and is not sure which type of azalea this is. The scares of the major cut I made to the trunk are still visible. Azalea is a slow grower. They also tend to grow side ways. I hope to grow more branches to thicken up the crown. It is now a little bare.

My First Wild Olive Bonsai

This is my first wild olive bonsai. It was given to me in August 2001 by a friend. The first picture is a graphic representation of it. My friend dug this wild olive from a farm in Brunswick, to the South of Perth. For two years nothing happen. My friend thought it was dead and almost threw it away until he was advised to give it a little more time. For some strange reason, the olive started to grow.

I cut off the base and the top three trunks along the dark line. It grew very well and by Sept 2002 which is only 13 months later, the bonsai was shaping up nicely. In 2007, I repotted it into a Japanese pot.