real stones as containers

All European spruce, Picea abies, all on real stones from Germany.

My favorite way to "pot" a tree Walter. Very nice.

Forgot the ezo spruce.

These are beautiful Walter!

And I bet they were a hell of a lot cheaper than those Mateusz Grobelny creations.

R

truly beautiful. I have been wanting to get out and collect such stones ever since you first posted such a thing. Of course, I am lacking the basic tree material too. I will get it eventually. Thanks for posting it.

Beautiful trees and displays Walter.
Are they kept on the stones year around or placed there mainly for shows?
D.

Dale,

they sit on the stones the year round.

And for those who think that these stones are cheaper than pots: they are just as or more expensive as very good hand made pots. A good stone can easily cost 400 US$ or 300 euro or more. If you get this quality cheaper I buy 20.

So exactly what do you look for in a good stone Walter? I may have a source....

Oh well, a stone in America does not help me. And then it is very much like 'what exactly do you look for in a suiseki'. If you know the answer to that you know what I am looking for: a suiseki which is large enough, not touched by man, having a hollow to plant a tree' Don't assume that this is easy.

Have those stones got holes drilled in them?

Walter Pall wrote:Forgot the ezo spruce.

This one rocks And I like the usage of stones as pots/slaps. In this example it looks very natural and there is harmony bewteen tree and "pot" - without taking focus away from the tree. Beutiful.

Regards
Morten

Walter Pall wrote:Oh well, a stone in America does not help me. And then it is very much like 'what exactly do you look for in a suiseki'. If you know the answer to that you know what I am looking for: a suiseki which is large enough, not touched by man, having a hollow to plant a tree' Don't assume that this is easy.

So a stone from the U.S. just doesn't match your trees from Europe, or the cost is prohibitive? No assumption made though, just curious.

The cost is prohibitive, of course. And one has to see the stone in person. But it could be intersting for the American market. Thre is only ONE perosn who offers good stones for bonsai in Europe. They are all from the same source. Well, one has to see that there is almost no market too.

In this country, hollow lace rock from out west is used. Featherock, a form of pumice from California, can be carved into pots. And we use slabs made from slate for group plantings.
What has always puzzled me is that what we call Norway spruce, Picea abies, is very popular for bonsai in Europe. In this country it is planted all over and doubtless naturalized, yet to my knowledge is not used for bonsai.

Well Irene, European spruce is by far the most common tree in the northern part of Europe. In Germany and Austria more than 50 % of trees are spruce. In Norway the Scots pine is much more common. Therefore the term 'Norway Spruce' is a misnomer and not even used by the Norwegians as I am told.
But it is very rare to find a good one in nature. And if you find it, the survival chances are quite low. So it is a rare species to have good finished bonsai of in Europe too. I have around 300 or so. This is the most I know of that one person has here. The next thing with spruce is that you have to train them for ten to twenty years before you can show them and then they still need some wire. They hate to be wired and often shed branches. When they are established, however, like the trees that I show here, it is one of the best species and can make spectacular bonsai.

Here an update on the ezo spruce. The wire was taken off and the crown edited slightly. Now it is ready for the BMW exhibit again. In Octobr it will go to Mulhouse, France to "The 30 best bonsai in Europe".

Maybe I'm missing some posts, but I notice that you use primarily evergreen species. Do you have any examples of deciduous compositions that incorporate the same rock/slab pots, or do you find that those types don't work as well?

Oeion,

i don't have any broadleved trees on stones. I think they would fit if they were qutie naturlaistic. The problem is to find such big stones or pots. And then these broadleaved trees cannot stand to dry out on rocks so easily.
Maybe I will use more species as I keep getting more of these novel pots.

How big are those rocks anyway? Those are so beautiful!

nemusstipes,

these rocks ar from 50 cm to 90 cm long.

Walter,
hi.
those beautiful rocks are almost flat. how do you keep the soil from eroding with out the moss?

regards,
jun

Jun,
the trick is that the rocks ar NOT flat. They have a hollow large enough to plant a tree firmly. It is an optical illusion. They are deeper than a regular pot. This is one reason why they ar so difficult to find.

Walter,

thanks.
il start looking for my rocks now. got to try those wonderful creation of yours. if you wont mind?
if i find good pieces il send some to you.

regards,
jun

Whats all this about rocks being hard to find? Why not find an acceptably shaped piece of granite, gneiss, or basalt and carve it out with an angle grinder and diamond wheel? I've done lots of stone carving and it is much easier than ceramic work.

Great ones Walter. I think its much more interesting to watch trees on stones than pots. The pots make them feel more arti'ish, and the rocks make the whole setting just more whole and naturalistic. Just when you can see that it doesnt have much to grow in, and that it feels like it has had a hard time growing like that. I simply love it.
Wish I one day can work out trees like this. My favourite tree is Larch, but I hardly want to work on needle trees, cause I feel they give too little sign of whats wrong and grow so slowly.
Lucky you to get your hands on such material!