The Omiya Bonsai Art Museum and Village

[Clicio]

Hi folks.
I am back from Japan, where I had the opportunity to buy some nice tools at the Kaneshin factory and to visit some bonsai nurseries.
Top place was the Omiya Bonsai Art Museum in Saitama, near Tokyo.
I will post some pictures below with some of the trees, but...
First things first: as this is not my first trip to Japan nor my first bonsai show over there, this time I have paid more attention to the details, so...
1-) ALL trees (not only the ones inside, on exhibition) had moss on them.
2-) ALL trees had tea bags with Biogold on their soil.
3-) Trees on exhibition (pictures forbidden unfortunately...) stay inside the Museum for one week, then back outside; so the trees inside are always different from the previous week.
4-) NO glazed colorful pots.
5-) No stumps with some foliage on top.

Below the pictures in a sequence.
All pictures are by myself, only exception is the second one showing the tokonoma, as it is forbidden to take photographs inside the museum and I grabbed it from their website.


.View from the balcony

.
Tokonoma inside the museum (the best trees are on exhibition, but... NO pictures allowed)

.
.
.

.
.Yours truly...


This tree is HUGE.
.

.
.
.
Any comments welcome.
There are many bonsai nurseries around, that's why the region is called "Omiya Bonsai Village"

 

[jriddell88]

Fantastic , I’ve got to make my way over there soon!

 

[Bonsai Nut]

There are many bonsai nurseries around, that's why the region is called "Omiya Bonsai Village"

Thank you for the photos! Please share more!

Omiya Bonsai Village was founded in 1925 after a great earthquake destroyed most of the bonsai nurseries in/around Tokyo. It was a community founded by bonsai growers and planned around bonsai - one of the requirements to live there was that you had to own at least ten bonsai. Here is an interesting link to some of the history:

Omiya Bonsai Village

 

[Clicio]

Fantastic , I’ve got to make my way over there soon!

Please do! It's really beautiful!

 

[Clicio]

Omiya Bonsai Village was actually founded in 1925...
Omiya Bonsai Village

Thanks for the link! It is a fantastic place for bonsai lovers.

 

[discusmike]

Thanks for sharing!!

 

[M. Frary]

4-) NO glazed colorful pots.

The only way to fly! They are traditionally to represent the earth. I only have 3 glazed pots. I have 1 with a tree in it. The rest are all unglazed. Unfancy. Plain.
Sounds like you had a great time.

 

[rockm]

Thanks for posting the photos!

Don't know much about the museum or how it displays bonsai, but they seem to take a more traditional approach. Moss on trees on display (all those trees are on display inside or out) isn't unusual. Also, the vast majority of trees I can see in the photos are conifers, which typically are potted in unglazed containers. The deciduous trees that are present look to be species that can be used with unglazed pots (Korean hornbeam and Chinese quince) There appear to be some Japanese maples in the background of some photos with rather colorful green glazes.

 

[Clicio]

Don't know much about the museum or how it displays bonsai, but they seem to take a more traditional approach.

I agree, they are very traditional. But it's always good to see the fundamentals again and again...

Moss on trees on display (all those trees are on display inside or out) isn't unusual.

Yes, we know that.
Not wishing to start an endless discussion about moss/no moss, but at the back of the museum there is an area where the nurseries sell trees, pots and tools. Most of the trees, specially the oldest ones, had moss. It was easy to see this was not recently applied, but old moss.

... There appear to be some Japanese maples in the background of some photos with rather colorful green glazes.

Yes, you may be right.
This picture below shows some maples (unglazed pots again), but one of the trees on the background is inside a blue pot.
Thanks for the comments, @rockm !

 

[LanceMac10]

The expression on your face is enough for me. Love when folks get pumped!!!!!

 

[MichaelS]

Some great trees . The Juniper in the second pic is a good example of beautiful natural shaping imo. There is no need to have slick green helmets on junipers. The two white pines in the third pic...outstanding. And how's the bark on the big one!
The hinoki on the other hand,
Thanks for sharing

 

[Vin]

This picture below shows some maples (unglazed pots again), but one of the trees on the background is inside a blue pot.

I can't quite tell but is that a Melted Nebari on the one you're pointing to? If so, I thought that was more of a Western thing.

 

[Clicio]

I can't quite tell but is that a Melted Nebari on the one you're pointing to?

Melted Nebari? I didn't know it was called this name.
It looks like, and...
How do they do it?

.

 

[Vin]

Melted Nebari? I didn't know it was called this name.
It looks like, and...
How do they do it?

There's probably some other name for it but that's what I've always heard it called. I do not have one but from my understanding you prune downward growing roots to promote lateral growth. They are kept in very shallow pots and sometimes grown on tiles. Then of course you need a lot of time; and I mean a lot of time.. BTW, you provided some outstanding images for us to enjoy. Thank you!

 

[M. Frary]

Any word of Godzilla going around Japan?

 

[Vin]

Any word of Godzilla going around Japan?

Word is he's due to return any day now. He and his bud Mothra are going to wreak havoc on North Korea if they don't get their shit together. Could just be a far fetched rumor though.

 

[rockm]

There's probably some other name for it but that's what I've always heard it called. I do not have one but from my understanding you prune downward growing roots to promote lateral growth. They are kept in very shallow pots and sometimes grown on tiles. Then of course you need a lot of time; and I mean a lot of time.. BTW, you provided some outstanding images for us to enjoy. Thank you!

Those 'melted roots' are very much a Japanese "thing," not western.

 

[M. Frary]

Word is he's due to return any day now. He and his bud Mothra are going to wreak havoc on North Korea if they don't get their shit together. Could just be a far fetched rumor though.

It would be a great place to show up.
Last week when the president was there.
Kill two birds with one stomp.. 2 coo coo birds.

 

[Vin]

Those 'melted roots' are very much a Japanese "thing," not western.

Thanks! That's good to know. I'm always learning.

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

Those 'melted roots' are very much a Japanese "thing," not western.

Partly because that JM has likely been in a pot for longer than bonsai has been practiced in the West!