Piece 7: Ryan Neil

Colorado Spruce #1, Ryan Neil. Colorado Spruce. 29"x34". Mirai Private Collection. Photo from Bonsai Mirai's Gallery. https://bonsaimirai.com/bonsai/colorado-spruce-no-1

      Spruces (Picea spp.) aren't common bonsai. Pines and junipers have always been more popular because of their habits, more well behaved and predictable. Spruces require some care for the root systems in cold climates, where their fleshy roots are prone to freeze damage. Neil's bonsai (Picea pungens) was collected in Colorado, up in the Rockies. It's estimated to be anywhere from 500 to 800 years old, though its life as a bonsai started much more recently.

    This is another sabamiki or lightning struck styled tree. This bonsai has a very strongly triangular canopy as a result of recent styling. As it ages, the silhouette will round slightly as the tree fills back in. Spruces can take a while to set branches into place, especially the thicker ones that are being pulled down by wires.

    Note the texture of the deadwood. Repeated exposure to frost and strong UV radiation, caused by near alpine or alpine conditions, creates cracking in uncured wood. Even though this bleaching is likely chemical, the deadwood would look like this up at altitude. It's extremely difficult to create that texture mechanically, so most trees with deadwood like this would have been collected, instead of grown in a nursery.

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