Penjing a little beauty

[Grant Bowie]

Have a look at this little chinese elm grown and owned by a 78 year old chinese guy.

Grant

 

[grouper52]

Really quite nice!

My favorite books in recent years, the only ones I actually ever look at anymore, are a few obscure volumes full of Penjing from Mainland China that I've been lucky enough to find. The best are entirely, or almost entirely, in Chinese. No words are necessary, and I can look at them for hours. They never cease to move and inspire me.

Thanks for posting that.

 

[Grant Bowie]

The man is quite old and very traditional chinese although he has been in Australia 40 years.

His trees were great and better than a lot of trees I was seeing in books.

I am going back next May to photograph them in good controlled conditions with a translator and helpers.

Grant

 

[JudyB]

More please!
I'd love to see more of these wonderful treasures.

 

[Bonsai Nut]

Very cool tree. I would keep an eye on that soil. Doesn't appear to have been changed recently and I see a lot of mineral deposits in the moss.

 

[Grant Bowie]

Very cool tree. I would keep an eye on that soil. Doesn't appear to have been changed recently and I see a lot of mineral deposits in the moss.

He says he repots about every three years and does not over fertilize.

Melbourne had a weather event that is now known as Black Saturday. They had hot winds blowing in from the desert part of Australia and had temps up to 48 degrees c.(118 F)

The trees seem to have survived.

Grant

 

[Grant Bowie]

Here are a few more, both Chinese elms.

In fact most of his established Penjing are elms. he is experimenting with English elm and Hawthorn

 

[jferrier]

Really quite nice!

My favorite books in recent years, the only ones I actually ever look at anymore, are a few obscure volumes full of Penjing from Mainland China that I've been lucky enough to find. The best are entirely, or almost entirely, in Chinese. No words are necessary, and I can look at them for hours. They never cease to move and inspire me.

Thanks for posting that.

My in-laws are Chinese. Why don't you ship all those books to me and I'll send you back the cliff notes!!!!!

 

[tmmason10]

I like those second two pictures very much, but wish they were bigger.

 

[Grant Bowie]

I am not in the office for about a week but I will post larger photos when I get back.

grant

 

[Joedes3]

Thanks for the pictures. I really like the penjing settings. Can anyone recommend any books or web sites? Thanks Joe

 

[jk_lewis]

Start here: http://www.manlungpenjing.org/

The book is worth having.

 

[Joedes3]

Thanks for the link. It is fantastic. and just shows me how much I don't know.

 

[Grant Bowie]

Hi all,

Here are some photos at the maximum size allowable. 3 more to come.

Grant

 

[Grant Bowie]

Most of the trees are Chinese elm except for the flowering plum

 

[Kaztan]

Why are you calling this tree a Penjing? this word surely describes a tray scenery or a tree with a rocky outcrop. Penjing is not a tree size.

 

[Si Nguyen]

I love these bonsai! Thanks for posting the pics Grant! There are few people who do bonsai quietly in their own world for years, like this Chinese gentleman in Australia. It is nice to find them once in a while. That's the essence of bonsai I think, that oneness between man and tree (not between man, tree, and a thousand bonsai bloggers). On a personal level, it doesn't matter what the tree looks like, as long as it pleases the man. He has no need to show it to anybody so he does not have conform to any society's standards. But his bonsai are all good, in a Chinese way. Very authentic! Thanks again for showing us his work. I especially like that cascade!
Si

 

[Joedes3]

Great response! I once had a group planting that I loved. I brought it to a local bonsai club and was told that it didn't comply with the rules for group(forest) plantings.

Another member told me that it looked great and that as long as I was happy with it not to worry. I did not plan to show it. The group was something that I liked because it reminded me of an area of a forest that I walked through as a kid.

I now feel, if YOU like it, go ahead and enjoy.

Joe

 

[Si Nguyen]

Hi Joe, what most inexperienced bonsai people don't know is that a "bad" bonsai design often does not have to be redesigned, especially if it's a new planting. Take good care of it for 30 years, let it grow out, clip back, fill in some negative spaces with branches, develop some age and patina, and it will be beautiful. That's what this Chinese gentleman did. Now if you don't have 30 years, or if you must have an instant bonsai, then by all means, rip it out and do it over again. There's nothing wrong with that either. The trick is to know when your design is good enough and don't have any fatal flaws that would get worse over time. But to a typical Chinese bonsai artist, there is even no such thing as a fatal flaw to a tree, because they like all the weird lines, the weirder the better. Some time it works some time it doesn't. It's a lot harder that it looks.

 

[Joedes3]

Hello SI

I love reading your posts. You offer tremendous insight to this hobby. I do this for personal enjoyment and try to follow the RULES but I now feel that I have to like what I'm doing first.

I love the hobby because it teaches patience and gives me an opportunity to imagine. The masters of this hobby are true artists and I will most likely never come close to their accomplishments. Neither I will ever be able to paint a Picaso etc. but when I look at my grandchidrens' paintings, I get a good feeling.

Yes, there are rules, but sometimes people go over the top. Bottom line, enjoy yourself in the journey of bonsai. It isn't the destination, it's the journey.

Thanks again for your insight and posts.