General Purpose Scissors
General purpose scissors, GP shears or Ashinaga Basami, are used for all sorts of pruning activities (as the name would suggest). Its an essential tool…
Root Pruning Scissors
The root pruning scissors, root pruning shears or Hasami, are used to cut thicker or heavier roots. The broad, sharp blades lets you easily cut through…
Concave Cutter
The concave cutter, or Mataeda Hasami, is used to cut of whole branches of a bonsai tree. The slightly curved cutting area leaves a clean…
Chokkan
Chokkan (Formal Upright) This traditional bonsai style is very common in bonsai. The tree grows in a straight upward line with the crown of the…
Lava rock
As the name would suggest, this type of rock originates from volcanic lava. Lava rock is commonly used for the same reasons as Akadama and…
Nebari
Nebari is the japanese word for the surface roots of a bonsai tree. This is a very important part of growing a bonsai tree. A…
Maple Bonsai by Peter Chan
In this beautiful 12 minute video, we see mister Peter Chan who shows us the great variety of maple bonsai trees. All the beautiful forms…
Tip: Contain your seedlings!
Use multiple smaller containers when you plant a bunch of seeds, instead of one bigger container. This way, you will have more control over watering conditions and positioning of your individual bonsai.
The seeds of spring
March is approaching. That means that spring is getting closer. And spring, for me, is always an exciting time. With spring comes new life, new…