Vance Wood
Lord Mugo
I guess; considering the time of year, it is not surprising that I have turned to the INTERNET bonsai sites, specifically Youtube videos for Mugo Pine information. I am not quite so interested to find out some new stuff other than design information, there is a good deal of that from European sources.
However; I was appalled at how much really bad stuff there is out there about this tree. If people posted stuff of this quality about JBP you would see people climbing out of the wood work in protest. At this point I would suggest anyone interested in Mugo Pine could look look at a lot of this information as suggestions and recommendations of what not to do.
There are three or four videos where you have people doing demonstrations with trees that they don't have a clue as to what it is they are doing, why they are doing it and what they expect to happen a year down the road. They are totally lost but somehow thought, that the Mugo was an easy target for a demo-video and blundered they way in the disasters that followed. The results from those that survived and were exhibited as bonsai (?) would never occupy a place of honor on any bonsai bench. Am I boasting a better skill lever? Absolutely not but I have a different approach that is not afraid of removing a lot of material from these trees most of these other people will not.
It has been my experience that I am just about the only fool in America that has taken the Mugo Pine seriously. Most everybody else cannot get the image of all of these "sheared for the nursery trade" trees out of their minds and only consider the Mugo a novelty tree suitable for beginners to get their hands dirty with. Most do not have a Mugo sitting on their bench good, bad or dead. Their experience has only been in kiling them and recommending the same kind of treatment they have always used to kill them in the past. Instead of coming to a conclusion that they are doing something wrong they blame where they live as the reason they die. I wonder how that happens????? Never the less I guess I have discovered what my next project is going to be.
However; I was appalled at how much really bad stuff there is out there about this tree. If people posted stuff of this quality about JBP you would see people climbing out of the wood work in protest. At this point I would suggest anyone interested in Mugo Pine could look look at a lot of this information as suggestions and recommendations of what not to do.
There are three or four videos where you have people doing demonstrations with trees that they don't have a clue as to what it is they are doing, why they are doing it and what they expect to happen a year down the road. They are totally lost but somehow thought, that the Mugo was an easy target for a demo-video and blundered they way in the disasters that followed. The results from those that survived and were exhibited as bonsai (?) would never occupy a place of honor on any bonsai bench. Am I boasting a better skill lever? Absolutely not but I have a different approach that is not afraid of removing a lot of material from these trees most of these other people will not.
It has been my experience that I am just about the only fool in America that has taken the Mugo Pine seriously. Most everybody else cannot get the image of all of these "sheared for the nursery trade" trees out of their minds and only consider the Mugo a novelty tree suitable for beginners to get their hands dirty with. Most do not have a Mugo sitting on their bench good, bad or dead. Their experience has only been in kiling them and recommending the same kind of treatment they have always used to kill them in the past. Instead of coming to a conclusion that they are doing something wrong they blame where they live as the reason they die. I wonder how that happens????? Never the less I guess I have discovered what my next project is going to be.
Last edited:
I believe that BVF is Brian Van Fleet. All joking aside I would love to see you do videos of your work with Mugos, as your results speak volumes of your knowledge and artistry with this species of pine. The videos could be shot with a low end camera with video capabilities for a reasonable price and would essentially leave a permanent legacy for those who would follow you to learn from. 
