don't you consider that all the trees are sold within a week is strange/incredible ? whatever the price, whatever the specie, whatever the style ? unless there is a real lack of supply in the US, i consider that it is very unusual/incredible. Even in auctions, there are products that don"t find any buyer.
I think he DOESN'T give every one an early pick because he wants fair opportunity for folks, from students to subscribers--who can be both by the way and live in the area, or at least within traveling distance. He got alot of shit for an earlier sale that inadvertently allowed some buyers in while not allowing others. It was a glitch, but people were up in arms about unfair early access. Favoring one student over another about who buys a tree is not really all that cool...
What's with all the Europeans with the "negative waves" about what's going on here? It seems most American bonsaiists "Get it" and Euros are left falling back on stereotypes of buyers and sellers here. Interesting.
Nope. Not surprising AT ALL, if you understand what is being sold and the American market for such species. This sale isn't all that unique. It's just high profile. I posted before about the high-end market for bonsai, particularly collected developed U.S. native species, particularly native conifers. The demand for such trees, from low end to high end, has always been high. The quality of the material being collected in the high deserts in Western states is exceptional and unavailable elsewhere--including Europe. That's why folks like Walter Pall have been spending $$ on it and importing it. There is no shortage of such material on the U.S. market. Most collectors of any ability who sell collected trees, even including southern and eastern species can't keep what they collect for long. You have to be extremely quick post-collection season on most all sites that sell trees, or it's gone. I know Zach Smith, who sells in the $100-$500 range BC and other southern species has trees on his website for only a few days or less and its gone. Ponderosa, RMJ, spruce and others are readily available in most price ranges. Take a look at Golden Arrow Bonsain South Dakota. That kind of material at the low end has whetted the appetite at the high end. Once you have learned how to manage the species, it opens the door to truly spectacular specimens.
I'm Dutch bro! I'm a cheapskate and I eat fries with mayonaise. I fit all the stereotypes.I think he DOESN'T give every one an early pick because he wants fair opportunity for folks, from students to subscribers--who can be both by the way and live in the area, or at least within traveling distance. He got alot of shit for an earlier sale that inadvertently allowed some buyers in while not allowing others. It was a glitch, but people were up in arms about unfair early access. Favoring one student over another about who buys a tree is not really all that cool...
Also, here's a hand grenade...
still more enjoyable than talking about 'my new stick in a pot'Seemed like a minute for sure. One would assume people knew what was available in some manner? The oaks took some time...40 minutes?
Top seller? An hour? You have to think they get contacted a lot about available material and they might share photos of said trees.
325 posts? Yikess.....
still more enjoyable than talking about 'my new stick in a pot'
This is an outstanding composition
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Completely different with iPhones, as they will eventually be re-stocked. A tree, you either get it, you don't. As explained before a lot of the trees sold have been in one stream or another. Ryan was mentioning trees that were going to be on the sale a few weeks before the sale date.
i understand all you said but this sentence seem strange to me .. do you mean than the US is the only country to get awesome yamadori ? or do you mean that, for example, you can't find California juniper in Europe ? I will agree with you that there are no Californa juniper in Europe, obviously lol
I mean that the number of trees in the U.S. that will make awesome bonsai are exponentially more plentiful than in Europe. I mean there is more potential for world class material here. The sheer amount of material available here is staggering as is the vast territory it is found in.
Cant argue with that, but how much of it is actually being used, being collected or being utilized? i mean out of 70 species of oak only a select few are ever used for bonsai. over here we only use 2-3 oak species for bonsai, but there are many more variants out there. in regards to conifers, its usually the same names that ring out. of course it would be great to see more american hornbeam...among others of course. more the merrier
A lot of the forests in Western Europe are also man-made and relatively young. If I look around me, quite a few forests were replanted after WW1 and the rest are older managed forestry (regular spaced trees, single species forests with some volunteers here and there). I can find better raw material in old gardens (or in old abandoned factories) than in the forests around me.
That's the thing, isn't it? North America has only scratched the surface of what can be used.
www.theartisanscup.com
Once when visiting Mirai asked Ryan if this or that for sale. He said "everything is for sale". However word is he wants customers that can keep and respect lives of valuable and old trees. Last comment as remembered he said to me in person.
thanks for this detailed answer.
No. don't have to have mountains to get decent yamadori, but for the stuff being sold for high end, it helps. The Rocky Mountains are only one of those areas in the mainland U.S. There are others, from South Dakota, to New Mexico, to Southern California, as well as the Niagara Escarpment and the Appalachians in the east. Florida, Louisiana, the Gulf Coast present other collection opportunities for other species. FWIW, I don't have access to alpine collection sites here in the Eastern U.S. I collect in areas such as you describe, old abandon home sites, railroad sidings, access roads, industrial plazas, etc.
