Bonsai tree

An old Black pine at Aichi-en bonsai nursery, after Peter Tea worked on it for three days.

Bonsai apprentice

Peter Tea is an American bonsai artist who recently became an apprentice at Aichi-en in Japan. Aichi-en, which is known for primarily for Black pine bonsai, is owned and operated by Mr. Junichiro Tanaka. One thing that makes Peter’s apprenticeship particularly interesting, is his on-going chronicle (blog) of his experience at Aichi-en. Peter is not the first to write about his apprenticeship (see Michael Hagedorn’s excellent book: Post-Dated – The Schooling of an Irreverent Bonsai Monk), but so far, what he is doing is the most thorough (as far as I can tell, anyway), with regular posts that are rich in content, including remarkable photos. This post shows a few of Peter’s photos. For more, all you have to do is click here.

What does Oyakata mean?

Peter calls Mr. Tanaka ‘Oyakata‘, but that’s another story.

Another pine that Peter worked on. This one is a Japanese white pine.

Peter offers a little tip on cleaning up White pine needles.

A once-rangy Shimpaku that Peter shaped up for auction.

Aichi-en from above.

Peter Tea.

Source: Bonsai Bark