Here's a good shot of what lookes like a Shimpaku juniper or close cousin (Kishu or Itoigawa). This and all the trees shown here are by Mariusz Folda.

It's been a while since we featured Mariusz's work. He's a long time favorite. Take a look and you'll see why we can't go too long without returning to his trees and gardens.

This impressive monster looks like it might be a Japanese white pine. Mariusz and plenty of other bonsai artists don't always identify their trees on FB, but some like this one are fairly obvious.

A little taste of late spring color, This azalea (most likely a Satsuki variety) would be a powerful bonsai with or without its flowers. Nice pot too. Mariusz is also a potter so perhaps this one is his.

I'm pretty sure I've seen this pine before. The clusters look like five needles, so Japanese white pine might be a good guess.

Here a lovely twin trunk deciduous tree with familiar looking leaves. We'll leave it at that (your guess is as good as mine).

Another deciduos tree. This time with compound leaves.

One of many excellent pots by Mariusz from his FB photos.

And a little piece of his garden. Scroll down for a link to more by Mariusz Folda.

Got a few photos today from our friend Dave De Groot. He's the author of Principles of Bonsai Design and much more, including a long stint as the previous curator of the Pacific Bonsai Museum. So you might say he's a big deal in our bonsai world (though I don't think he would say that).

One of the many things I enjoy about Dave De Groot's posting are his commentaries. I think we can learn a lot from accomplished bonsai artists that take the time to explain what their thinking is as they work with their bonsai.

"I had to hurry to get my Japanese maple thinning done before it gets too late. Here are two examples: First is a grafted green leaf maple (in need of cleaning) that is very robust and has a coarse growth habit. Because of that, it has been completely defoliated with the dual aim of encouraging interior budding and shorter internodes on second growth.

"The second example is a coral bark ('Sango Kaku'). This is not as robust, but I still want to encourage interior budding and branch ramification. In this case, only alternate leaves were removed.

"I recommend a bud shears... rather than a standard thinning shears... for leaf thinning. Its slim design allows it to get between and into branches easily, and the short blades help avoid cutting more than the leaf intended."

"One of my bald cypress bonsai was originally topped by beavers, and the resulting re-growth inspired me to design it in a typical deciduous tree form with ascending branches. This is actually a form bald cypress often take in urban landscapes where they are mature and not shaded by neighboring trees.

We are near the northern limit of growth for bald cypress, due to our relatively short growing season and cool summer nights. As a result, I have started thinning new growth very early in the season, before the tree has invested a lot of energy. Unsightly lumps form on branches very quickly where clusters of new shoots emerge, so thinning early is important. Also, thinning later in the season after the tee has invested a lot of energy in new growth seems to set the tree back, and recovery can be quite slow. Photos are the tree last week after thinning, and then closeups of a branch before and after the thinning process."

"My white wisteria is still very much in development - I'm letting it go a bit wild to increase the size of the trunk - but for one week a year, it deserves to be seen (and smelled)."

"My Windblown Chinese elm with Spring foliage."

A European (Larix decidua) from our archives. When the photo was taken, at least four years ago, it belonged to Walter Pall. The pot is by Derek Aspinall.

American Larch (Larix laricina - aka Tamarack) by Larch Master Nick Lenz. In addition to being one of our most accomplished bonsai artists, Nick was a skilled and innovative potter. So you might imagine that the pots was also his handiwork.

Another American larch by Nick Lenz. This time in full fall color. BTW, this tree is massive. Much bigger than it looks in this photo.

The Guardian of Laments is Giacomo Pappalardo's name for this magnificent old European larch (Larix decidua).

European larch by Will Baddeley.

Judging by the fall color on this wild larch, I'd say it's a Larix decidua (European larch). American larch's fall color tends more to bright yellow rather than this rusty orange. Though the color does change some as the fall progresses.

After. This impressive Taxus baccata (English or European yew) was posted by Arsenio Mondo Zen—as were all of today's photos.

Before . Here's the caption (translated from Italian): "How far we've come together with this rate of Gianluca, and so much more to go. From a not very expressive material, with the right techniques and the right time, you can achieve great things. Just believe it."

"At Mondozen Bonsai Club."

Arsenio's Trident maple after defoliation and some pruning.

Before. Time to get to work!

Arsenio and friend.

We've got some Horst Kaltenbrunner beauties for your bonsai enjoyment.  Horst's  caption for this photo reads: European spruce that shows its naturalness.

Andrea Maier wrote that this Horst Kaltenbrunner tree is a Beautiful sylvestris in a antimayer pot. You'll get no argument from me.

Looks like the same Pinus sylvestris (Scots pine) that's above. Only from other side.

Horst identifies this one only as a pine.

Horst's caption: Pinus Mugo, collected in Austria two years ago in our mountains, removed the topsoil. Now in the training bowl in pure substrate powered by Ibuki! We give him some years, it could be a beautiful tree!

Today's feature tree would stop traffic if it could walk down the street. It's hard to know how much of the magnificent deadwood is the result of the forces of nature over time and how much can be credited to well chosen carving tools in skilled human hands, but it's probably safe to say that both played their part.

Couldn’t resist today's two magnificent bonsai. Both express mastery when it comes to carving deadwood and both belong to David Benavente—a long time favorite here on Bark. David doesn’t mentioned the varieties and I won’t bother to guess, I've been burned one too many times

Close up for a better look at the trunk with its remarkable deadwood and its all important living vein.

Another great Benavente tree.

Again with some very impressive deadwood.

This distinctive Goyo-matsu (Japanese white pine) is from the Omiya Bonsai Art Museum. I don’t know if the split trunk was by the hand-of-man or the result of a natural occurrence. Either way, the effect is wonderful. At the risk of stating the obvious, you might notice the similar movement and direction of the each trunk’s twists and turns.

Great base, strong taper and nice balanced open branching. An altogether excellent Japanese white pine, and it’s from a seedling no less! As you may know, most quality Japanese white pine bonsai have been grafted onto Black pine stock. But not this one. It was grown from seed and is, as you can see, quite impressive. It was just wired (in this photo) by Michael Hagedorn (Crataegus Bonsai.) It belongs to a client of Micheal’s.

Isao Omachi has a thing for Shimpaku junipers. Maybe it's because they take so well to carving. And it doesn't hurt that juniper deadwood holds up so well over time.

Alien Life Form? Or maybe just an unusual and intriguing little bonsai. Bill Valavanis took this shot at the 45th Gafu Ten Expo in 2020

An unusual shohin. Photo by Bill Valavanis at the 45th Gafu Ten Expo in 2020.

Talk about exciting color contrasts. I think it's the yellowest of yellow pot against the pure vermillion quince flowers that chinches it. Not to overlook the green moss and leaves too. Bill Valavanis took this shot at the 45th Gafu Ten Expo in 2020.

Here's a remarkably unusual tree for you to wrap your mind around while it wraps itself around a rock. It's a Trident maple (Acer buergerianum) at Ikigai Bonsai Berlin. 

A 'root-swallowing-rock' Trident maple at Ikigai Bonsai Berlin.

This vividly brilliant Bougainvillea with it powerful woven trunk lives at Wigert's Nursery in Florida. 

Sorry no caption this time. But you are welcome to explore the Pacific Bonsai Museum online to see what you can find. Or even better, you can visit in real time and space. 

A great shot from the Pacific Bonsai Museum.