texas

Here is another Carpinus Caroliniana I collected in December 2020. It has a rather straight trunk, but has a massive (comparitively) opposing root flare. Will be a nice, straight, shohin+ haha. Wish I got pictures of the roots when I potted it. Upon Collection: Leafed out in February and here...

I collected this nice little hornbeam on December 29, 2020 from my woods, had pretty good surface roots and a really nice radial nebari. Washed the roots and placed it in an 11 inch pond basket. The cuts I made on the major roots are too far away from the trunk in hindsight, which will set me...

Just ordered some Acer campestre seeds from F. W. Schumacher so I can start stratifying them pretty soon and sow them next spring. I figured it would be a great species to start from seed because they can tolerate my hot humid climate, and they bulk up and develop very fast, similar to how...

Dug up a tall hornbeam in November of last year, and air layering the top section that had a bit of movement. Plan to post progression photos over the years, have it in a very shady spot 'till it cools down. Think it'll make a nice shohin when I chop down to one of those lower branches, or...

I went out scouting for Ashe juniper earlier this week and to my surprise I ran across a stand of oneseed junipers! This is in Taylor county, Texas. East of where I though their range extended. The foliage and bark was different and every berry I examined only has one seed. Give me your opinion...

I’ve read that oaks tend to shoot it long tap roots with very few lateral roots near the base. Luckily for me the Buckley oaks, Blackjack oaks and the two live oaks I have collected have had quite a bit of feeder roots. This one has lots of potential. It’ll take years to get it into a bonsai...

Hey guys. Just wanted to document my first attempt at collecting escarpment live oak. Collection site is southwest of Abilene Texas. The tree was growing in old growth oak and juniper forest. Quercus buckleyi is the predominant oak but there are a few live oak in the area. I think it shows nice...

Just wanted to post another tree I recently collected. This is an Ashe juniper that was growing on a southern embankment.

I think I have found two threads that’s discuss the Afghan pine in regards to using it as a bonsai subject. The info is mixed so I guess working this tree is going to be more trial and error than anything. If anyone has anymore recent info on them I’d appreciate it. Some have said it is a one...

So I’ve been doing some collecting this year and I have found some nice Ashe junipers that I have my eye on. I have gotten a few out and can hopefully get a couple more into pots before the collecting season is over. Here are a couple I plan to eventually collect. Let me know which ones you...

I know there are a few nice escarpment live oaks in the bonsai world and I hope I can bring another nice tree into the mix. This tree is growing in a rough arid landscape with lots of juniper and red oak. These struggles have resulted in the live oaks in this area having smaller leaves...

Potential yamadori subjects. I’m after twisted trunks and I am wondering if you all think either of these trees would qualify as twisted trunks.

I’m not usually one for the smaller bonsai but when I saw this small tree while out scouting I had to have it! There’s lots of small juniper out where I collected this but very few with the great deadwood and character that this one has. Combine that with the movement it possesses and I think we...

I have the privilege of going on a collecting trip with The Bonsai Smiths this weekend and I have a few Ashe juniper to choose from. I’m posting images of a couple that I really think I want to try to collect if they are collectible. Choose your favs and help me decide which ones to go for!

So I took a trip down to the Austin area this weekend and came across what I consider a nice oak prebonsai. Given the fact that it’s been in a pot a few years after collection and was showing good growth I decided to give it a go because I’ve been on the hunt for a nice live oak to work on. It’s...

I collected this oak this weekend and was able to get some nice feeder roots out with it. I left the trunks long with the intention of maybe cutting them back shorter in the next couple of days. I’ve already shortened them to where I have the trunks blocked out in the edited picture but I’m...

I have an awesome opportunity to collect whatever I want according to the land owners...this doesn’t mean I will just try and pull everything out of the ground. I want to do it right and give the trees the best chance of survival possible so I’m looking for advice and possible hands on help to...

So I was able to get permission to potentially collect trees from a pretty large piece of property near Abilene. I scouted the land for about 30 min today and was able to find some nice trees in that short time. I understand that Ashe juniper can be fussy trees during collection so I want to do...

I was lucky enough to purchase this pretty cool oak prebonsai at a Dallas nursery and just had to take it home with me because I think it has potential to become something awesome in the future. From what I’ve read collecting oak is something that’s not necesarilly easy to do and it was awesome...

This weekend I was able to collect a nice size Cedar Elm that has a nice radial root spread and primary branching. I think I may reduce one of the two larger upper branches a bit more but I think I’ll take my time and think on it for a bit. I went straight to a bonsai pot because I didn’t want a...

Went out looking for material to collect this weekend and was able to bring this beauty home. It already has a nice branch structure and I was able to get a good deal of feeder roots with it which is apparently rare in oak trees. I thank I am going to take one of the larger branches off but...

Just collected this tree that I believe to be a Gum Bumelia (Sideroxylon languinosum). It has a nice hollow and great bark as well as what appears to be a infestation of some kind of boring insect. Will try to get that under control and see how the tree develops if it makes it. Haven’t seen it...

I recently came across a strand of only multi trucked elms that had me puzzled on their form for a bit. Upon further inspection I realized that they had all been trunk chopped close to the ground and it seems like all but a couple kept on chugging without batting an eye. Anyway this guy caught...

I am pretty green to the art of bonsai although I have been interested in it for years. This summer I decided to jump right in and get some trees. One of those trees is a japanese maple. I live in Dallas and understand that it may be difficult here with the warm weather. I saw a japanese maple...

I'm looking bonsai hunters in Houston or South Houston Texas. To share experiences, training, yamadori (collecting trees), etc.