The Bonsai Blog of Bjorn Bjorholm

Before/After Chuuhin Shimpaku

Bjorn Bjorholm — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 10:48:53 +0000

The following pics are a before/after series of a chuuhin shimpaku juniper I recently styled at the nursery. If you look closely, this bonsai is actually root-over-rock and relatively old. It doesn’t appear that much was done to the tree, other than cleaning and a few adjustments; however, in reality it took nearly 7 hours from beginning to end (including cleaning, de-wiring, re-wiring every branch, and placement). Please enjoy.

Osaka…again

Bjorn Bjorholm — Sun, 23 May 2010 12:29:54 +0000

In Osaka working for Mr. Fujikawa for the next few months. Below are some shots around the nursery of new arrivals. I’ll continue to update information and pictures more frequently. Enjoy!

Setsu-goyo White Pine

Bjorn Bjorholm — Thu, 06 May 2010 03:52:55 +0000

Below is a White Pine ‘Miyajima’ (grafted/aka setsu-goyo) that I recently restyled for a client. The tree had a few flaws (i.e. perfectly straight lower trunk & long, thick branches) that I was able to hide by rotating it a few degrees clockwise in the pot. After a few short hours of wiring, I think it’s much improved. Of course, there’s always room for improvement…how about air-layering the top third of the tree off and making a nice chuuhin bonsai?…guess we’ll save that for another day.

Nashville Pics

Bjorn Bjorholm — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 04:19:56 +0000

Had a great time as the guest artist at the Nashville Spring Bonsai Show this past weekend at Cheekwood Gardens; great turnout and even better trees. The following pics are from a repotting session of a Psifera Juniper in a private collection following the show.

The original front (pic 1) lacked interest and hid the nice aged deadwood and movement of the trunk. So to bring out its interesting features we rotated it about 90 degrees clockwise (as seen in pic 2, still prior to repotting). The tree will be wired in the next few weeks and I’ll post pics of the final results. Thanks to Owen, Chad, and Mike of the Nashville Society for your help. Enjoy!

Nashville

Bjorn Bjorholm — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 15:30:31 +0000

Below are some pics from my recent trip to Nashville, TN. These are all owned and maintained by Mike Blanton. The first two shots are a before/after of a Scots Pine I wired, the third is of a Shimpaku I wired as well (note* the deadwood on the lower left will be carved in the near future). The fourth is of a couple of friends, Rubia and Shannon, potting up a Kiyohime maple, and the last two are of a few more of Mr. Blanton’s trees. Enjoy!

Indy/Cinci

Bjorn Bjorholm — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 15:04:48 +0000

Had a great time up in Indianapolis and Cincinnati this past week. Thanks to all who came to the workshops and demos and to the many new bonsai friends. Below is a before/after series of a nice Japanese White Pine I wired for an individual up in Richmond, Indiana. Enjoy!

Long Time No…Write

Bjorn Bjorholm — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 18:35:25 +0000

Hello!
I would like to apologize to those of you who had previously been viewing my blog on a regular basis. It’s been too long since I last posted and in the future I will make a concerted effort to update this page on a more frequent basis.

Just to catch everyone up to speed:
Over the past several months I have been working to establish myself and my business in the worldwide bonsai community.  Thanks to the help of so many incredible individuals, my tour/teaching schedule has managed to fill up beyond my expectations.
I have also been asked to become a regular contributor to the American Bonsai Society’s magazine. My writings, entitled ‘Notes from Japan,’ will be featured in the quarterly journal and will include topics related to an array of bonsai culture and design aspects.
In addition, I will be returning to Osaka, Japan again this May 2010 to continue my studies at Fujikawa Kouka-en nursery.  Unforeseen circumstances cut my apprenticeship shorter than expected early last summer so I am grateful to be afforded a second opportunity to work with one of the greatest contemporary bonsai masters in the world, Keiichi Fujikawa.

Below are a few of my works since returning from Japan last June. Please enjoy!

For Anyone Interested…

Bjorn Bjorholm — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 10:32:40 +0000

I will be finishing my apprenticeship and returning home to the US at the beginning of July 2009 to begin teaching bonsai. If you or your club/society might be interested in hosting me for a demo, lecture, or workshop, please contact me at bbjorhol@gmail.com. I look forward to hearing from you!

Shohin Bonsai

Bjorn Bjorholm — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 13:27:59 +0000

For those of you who requested, here are a few shohin bonsai from our nursery in Osaka. Enjoy!

March – Repotting

Bjorn Bjorholm — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 14:18:35 +0000

March is our busiest month without question. We have been repotting bonsai non-stop for what feels like an eternity, but it’s been an interesting/rewarding experience nonetheless. We started with the deciduous trees whose buds had already started to swell and we’re now slowly working our way into the needle evergreens. With hundreds of trees needing to be repotted this year, the work would have been too daunting for only Mr. Fujikawa and myself to handle so the entire Fujikawa family pitched in to relieve some pressure. Mr. Fujikawa’s elderly parents do most of the root pruning while my Oyakata handles the more aesthetic part of the job – the actual repotting itself. Of course I do whatever I’m told to which usually means lifting things twice my bodyweight and running chores for everyone. Much of my education here has been visual rather than hammered in verbally so while I’m running around in the current chaos of the nursery, I am continually observing and thereby learning. Physical and mental exhaustion are a regular part of each day here, but I have no complaints.