2014

Pinus thunbergii is a pine native to coastal areas of Japan. It can reach the height of 40 m, but rarely achieves this size outside of its natural range. The needles are in fascicles of two with a white sheath at the base, 7–12 cm long; female cones are 4–7 cm in length, scaled, with small points on the tips of the scales, taking two years to mature. Male cones are 1–2 cm long borne in clumps of 12-20 on the tips of the spring growth. Bark is gray on young trees and small branches, changing to black and plated on larger branches and the trunk; becoming quite thick on older trunks Because of its resistance to pollution and salt, it is a popular horticultural tree. In Japan it is widely used as a garden tree both trained as Niwaki and untrained growing as an overstory tree. The trunks and branches are trained from a young age to be elegant and interesting to view. It is one of the classic bonsai subjects, requiring great patience over many years to train properly.

The Buttonwood is a small tree with gray/brown fissured bark and has light green leathery leaves with wavy margins. The flowers are small and greenish to purplish in color. The fruit is red-brown, globular, button-like cones ½" in diameter. Some of the greatest bonsai in the world are those collected specimens which reflect a struggle for survival against the overwhelming odds of the ravages of nature. Conocarpus Erectus, is unique in its struggle in that it has had to survive not only frost, floods, violent winds, and storm tides but also human beings.