How to create a Chinese Elm (Zelkova Schneideriana) forest grove Bonsai, Penjing style!

[@AsiaPacificGarden]

Style that subscribe button into a Penjing!

[@damonjones1291]

The finished Group is a Masterpiece🏆 Everything... The Pot.. Placement.. The Rocks & Moss🏅 All of the Movement.. & Pure, 🌲Nature🌳 Great session! Thank you

[@AsiaPacificGarden]

Thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed the video!

[@grantingvarson5002]

Some real patience shown. Many years of waiting for each and every tree to age and accumulate character. Wish I had the space to maintain such a catalogue of high value stock like this. Thank you for the demo! Retirement will be a nice time doing bonsai work like this.

[@susanbossert6833]

Beautiful! And that pot is amazing.

[@AsiaPacificGarden]

One of a kind container designed by Robert. Only a handful of these containers exists!

[@AD-hs2bq]

Beautiful!

[@lydiacao1241]

Really like the finishing look❤ Looks like a oil painting

[@AsiaPacificGarden]

Thank you! Robert is really proud of this piece!

[@harrietb2141]

BEAUTIFUL❤

[@brianjanku4549]

Fantastic trees. I plan on buying some pots soon from you!

[@AsiaPacificGarden]

We have a great selection of pots right now. We received close to 1000 pots a month or so back!

[@luisAlberto-u4d]

Really and artistically beautiful

[@AsiaPacificGarden]

Thank you so much!

[@harrietb2141]

It’s a beautif pot😍

[@timothypennington3964]

I would like to see some of his older more mature trees the level of refinement would be awesome to see. Has any of his trees been in any exhibitions?

[@AsiaPacificGarden]

We posted one video of our older trees, the air root ficus. We have many more and will post them on our channel in the future. Robert has displayed his trees in the Portland Lan-Su Chinese Garden for their Penjing exhibition. He has also worked alongside David De Groot doing an on-stage demo at the 2019 Bonsai Clubs International Convention in China.

[@dotta4763]

Very nice composition I have to say I preferred it without the rocks at the base of the trunk tho. In nature trees would rather grow in soil over stones if there’s an option. The seeds falling on the soil will grow faster and take over those on rocks. It makes the composition look very much artificial

[@AsiaPacificGarden]

Thanks for sharing! We have some pieces that are done in the way you suggested. This is why we love bonsai. Every artist has their own appreciation and one isn't necessarily better than the other. While it's true that in nature trees will prefer to grow in soil, they will also do whatever it takes to grow. There are plenty of places here in the PNW and in the deep forests of China where trees will grow over rock structures and crevices. Especially in the Hall Of Moss trail in the Olympic National Park in the PNW.

[@brucedeacon28]

👍👌🙂

[@brianjanku4549]

I havnt had any issues with my zelcovas growing here. I have some 20 year trees in federal way growing in the earth.

[@AsiaPacificGarden]

The Zelkova Robert used in the video are the Zelkova Schneideriana species. There are several different sub species of Zelkovas. If yours is planted in the ground in the PNW, it may be a Zelkova Serrata.

[@remy2281]

"Promo sm" 🤩

[@timothypennington3964]

That pot looks like a boat it’s pointy on one end and flat on the other and how can you establish symmetry when your pot looks like that and he’s just telling you and telling you those roots are healthy but a close look will tell you that soil is soaked with water.and if I’m not mistakin he just filled that black planter pot with old soil and put it right back in there.and how are those trees suppose to establish any stability not being wired in there Sad to say but almost everything that comes out his mouth is bad misguided info.

[@AsiaPacificGarden]

@timothypennington3964 Establishing symmetry in a bonsai is ONE of many different art styles and that's a beautiful art style. As stated in the video, this penjing piece is created to mimic how these trees grow in their natural forest. Robert achieves balance with proportions, similar to the rule of thirds found in the Fibonacci sequence. The roots are definitely healthy. These trees live in a greenhouse with high humidity year round. The zelkova schneideriana, the trees used in this video, are from tropical rainforests found in southeast China; the soil will most definitely have moisture. We don't recommend repotting or doing this work when the soil is dry. It can be harmful to the tree. These trees 100% have stability without the need for wires. Wires are only needed when the tree requires it to be stabilized. In some of our other videos where the trees are massive and top heavy, we use wires because the tree calls for it. In the words of bonsai expert David De Groot, our friend and author of 'Principles of Bonsai Design', he shares "rules as applied to art are not requirements, and they are not legislation. They are neither commandments nor prohibitions. Rules in art are descriptions of common practice." He further delves into this by saying "...our aesthetic sense, which determines what we consider to be beautiful, is largely subjective." Robert has 40+ years of experience with both bonsai and penjing. The information in this video is just ONE of many ways you can take to approach this design. This particular penjing may not speak to everyone or be appealing to everyone, and that's perfectly okay. Keep in mind, seeing it on a screen has a completely different feel than seeing it in person. Each culture finds beauty differently. The styles of bonsai and penjing found in China, Japan, Vietnam, Korea, Phillipines, Indonesia, Taiwan, and so many other countries are VASTLY different from each other. When you factor in the changes you see in other continents, the beauty standards also changes. It doesn't mean one is right and the others are wrong. We do these videos to encourage more people to take their first step into the world of bonsai and to create a space where different art styles can learn from each other. We appreciate your comment and critique and hope other artists can share their perspective as well.