Essay: More on Bonsai
and Perfectly Shaped Trees

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scrub oak near Austin, Texas

Collected on a Photo Safari:
Trees and Bonsai of Symmetrical Shape

I am a bit old-fashioned when it comes to art and decorating. I prefer matching sets, pairs of chairs, and symmetrically shaped trees. During my photo safari and on-line explorations in search of the perfect tree, I tended to photograph trees of an idealized shape. Check out these photos and the modified images of photos. Why modifications? Sometimes, It is only the artistry of the tree, the shape that I want--something to use for a clipart. continued

About the Photos

Feel free to download a clipart or a photo on this page by me, just use a linkback to this page, which is included in the copyright link: © Valerie Coskrey, 2006. This permission does not apply to photos from Bonsai Boy or other photographers.

Images referenced as Fotolia, Bonsai Boy, or other name are not mine.The Fotolia images are available for sale as low as $1.00. Just follow the link. Please note that the Fotolia images have been resized to fit this page. At Fotolia you will get the original, much larger image. Purchasing from Fotolia.com includes, in many cases, permission to modify a photo, which is how I got the background for the previous Bonsai 3 Mini-Store. Photos from Bonsai Boy of New York that are not associated with a label and a price are bordered in blue and link back to the product page of the photo.

Symmetry, continued

Notice the beautiful, perfect shape of the two sets of trees above. These trees have a bilateral symmetry. Slice the trunk in half lengthwise and both halves of the tree will be just alike. This is a classical artistry. This shape can be achieved in a bonsai, although some would say that many of the more interesting shapes are assymetrical.

Dwarf Golden Sawara Cypress-31"x28"x31" (chamaecyparis pisifera aurea compacta nana)

Trees and Bonsai Collected for Shape
Compare the natural trees to the bonsai. (More are on the other bonsai pages; links at top or bottom of this page.)
Japanese Maple variegated (acer palmatum 'variegata') - $ 175.00 From: Bonsai Boy of New York
	© Mark Rasmussen - FOTOLIA
Images for Study and Fun
	Trees from Arizona and Nevada
Do you recognize this tree?
Texas trees of interesting shape are often assymetrical. This tree can be used as a bullet. Buy this and similar images in a Template Design Set. Get this Free Sample.
To grow these shapes requires pruning and wiring of the bonsai. Read tips for growing bonsai .
Hawaiian Umbrella Tree-Large Spiraled Trunk (Arboricola Schefflera) - $ 49.95 From: Bonsai Boy of New York
Graceful Shapes: A Nevada Flower & More Trees of Texas Buy the Winter Trees of Texas Template Design Set to get the Trees of Texas image.
Crape Myrtle - medium (lagerstroemia indica)
^Flowering Bonsai © Nicholas Rjabow - FOTOLIA   >Azalias in the Woods © diademimages - FOTOLIA

My Bonsai Mini-Store

Please Read.

Single Point Root Rake
- $ 16.95

Concave Branch Cutter
- $ 23.95
This razor sharp tool is designed for cutting branches flush to the trunk. The resulting wound can then heal over quickly with very little scarring. Will keep a sharp edge indefinitely when properly used and cared for. The Concave Cutter is the single most important tool for bonsai use and for which there is no substitute. The 8" version is considered the basic size. 8" overall. Similar in appearance to above. Made in China. Shipped via UPS ground - $7.95. Click here for ....Entire Tool Set. Sale! $96.03 - Shipping for entire set is 10.95.

Copper Watering Can - 1 Pint - $ 59.95
From: Bonsai Boy of New York

Rectangle Pot Tan Color Etched Design
14" x 10.5" x 4.5"
- $ 49.95
From: Bonsai Boy of New York

Dawn Redwood
(metasequoia glyptostrobides)
- $ 250.00
Really the most exciting of the redwoods is the Dawn Redwood, a native of Manchuria China. Thought to be extinct, but rediscovered in the 1940's. The Dawn Redwood is a true redwood. Like all redwoods, they are a living fossil, an isolated "relic" species from a long time ago when there were vast forests of them. Seeds were introduced in the U.S. in 1948, and has been increasinly popular as an ornamental tree. The foliage is more lacey than our native redwood but what is very different about the Dawn Redwood is that it is deciduous. In the fall the light green sprays turn yellow, then bronze, and fall off. Only the Larches do that. Keep outdoors. 9 tree forest group - each tree 5-14 years old. 21"x21"x24". Potted in a 16" unglazed ceramic brown oval container as shown. Suitable 16"x12" humidity tray is recommended. To purchase add $12.95. Shipped via UPS ground - $69.95.

Willow Leaf Ficus - Forest (ficus nerifolia/salicafolia) -
$ 3900.00
Also known as Mexicana Ficus. Elongated, light green leaves have a striking resemblance to the popular Weeping Willow tree. This tree does particularly well indoors. 11 tree group each 18" - 32" tall, 10-26 years old. Potted on a slab 52"x24". Crated and trucked - $300.00.

Ligustrum-Medium (ligustrum lucidum) - $ 49.95 Native to China and Eastern Asia and now grown ornamentally in the United States. The berries are employed as a "yin" tonic in traditional Chinese medicine for a wide range of conditions, including premature aging, ringing in the ears and chronic toxicity. White flowers are attractive during late spring and early summer. Does well indoors. 7 years old 7" - 9" tall Suitable 6" x 8" humidity tray is recommended. To purchase add $3.50. Shipped UPS 2-3 days - $11.95.

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Disclosure: I am an affiliate of many merchants. Even so, the opinions expressed are my own, and I do not speak for the merchant. Being an affiliate, however, does mean that the possibility of compensation does exist. --Valerie

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Essay and unlabled photos ©   Valerie Coskrey, 2007-2009. All rights reserved.
This page first posted 10/27/09 and revised 11/22/09.