from the blog

A Deeper Dive Into Decandling

A Deeper Dive Into Decandling

June 5, 2026

It’s Japanese Black Pine decandling time again. Or it might be, depending on where you are. It is where I am, the Pacific Northwest, where we’re finishing up decandling this week. The decandling date will differ according to where you live, which is determined by latitude. Here in Portland, Oregon we cut end of May […]

Guest Post: Sergio Cuan

Guest Post: Sergio Cuan

May 29, 2026

This week, I’m delighted to turn over the blog to Sergio Cuan. Sergio is one of my favorite bonsai artists. He also did all the sick illustrations in Bonsai Heresy. Since working on that project together, many have asked what Sergio’s background was, and I barely knew myself, saying, “Well, I think he worked for […]

How To Clean Up Tsukumo Cypress

How To Clean Up Tsukumo Cypress

May 22, 2026

A couple weeks back I did a post about cleaning up Junipers. In short, with a Juniper you cut any over-long shoots, pull off dangling shoots below the horizontal, and then pull off old shoots in the interior. But we shouldn’t pinch the living tips that remain. Tsukumo Cypress is a good comparison tree. It […]

🤞Sign up for the blog!

We don’t spam! Read more in our privacy policy

Join the club!

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.