Monday, January 5, 2026

Philosophy of Bonsai with Ryan Neil - Ep 53

I. Episode Summary & Links

Today’s episode is a special one! Your hosts Ryan Huston and Kevin Faris sat down with Ryan Neil of Bonsai Mirai, just outside Portland, Oregon. We dive into bonsai, life, apprenticeships, family, purpose through the art — and so much more. Enjoy and Bonsai on!

YouTube version is here!

The podcast version of Episode 53 is here!⁠

Guest Info:

Ryan Neil is already known by many in the bonsai world for his accomplishments, including serving a 6-year apprenticeship in Japan under the world-famous artist Masahiko Kimura. He then went on to found his garden and educational operation Bonsai Mirai which for years has done both in-person and live-streamed advanced bonsai education. He is one of the first and biggest players in the bonsai educational subscription content/community scene which has now evolved into an app most recently.

Sponsor Info:

This episode is sponsored by Chris Meade of the Columbus Bonsai Society and by our co-host via the Kevin Faris moving sale of bonsai pottery, tools, and trees. View these items at In Vivo Bonsai of Columbus, Ohio, USA in-person, or online (shipping available) at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠invivobonsai.etsy.com⁠⁠⁠⁠, or go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.InVivoBonsai.com⁠ and navigate to the consignment ⁠pottery⁠ and ⁠tree⁠ pages.

Mailbag submissions/Community:

Support the Pod:

Anytime you listen, subscribe, rate us, or share us with friends you help keep us motivated to keep making episodes for you all! If you want to take it to the next level, you can also help keep the podcast going by donating to us or by sponsoring an episode (contact us directly for that). All donations go back into the podcast such as for our web hosting, recording gear expenses, etc.

See the relevant images and links from this episode below.

Friday, March 1, 2024

Listener Bonsai Brainstorm - More metal pots, spring prep, and more! Ep27

⁠I. Episode Summary & Links

In today's episode, Kevin, Kelly, and Ryan met up to share recent listener questions and submitted tree pictures. There was vigorous discussion online about Benjamin Keating's work potting bonsai into metal sculptures which we talked with Ben about in the last episode. Many listeners wondered about the viability of these trees long-term, so we posed the question to Ben and relayed his response to go deeper into that subject. Many listeners also submitted questions surrounding spring topics such as how to identify good bonsai styles or techniques when working with a new species and how to dig wild bonsai aka "yamadori". Lastly, Kevin and Ryan shared some pots and trees to discuss style options and considerations when for matching trees to pots as the repotting season gets underway around the northern hemisphere.

The video version is available here (follow along to see the images as we discuss):

The podcast version is available here.

⁠

Sponsor Info:

Tori Solis of Blue Nose Trading is a multi-talented artist specializing in bonsai pottery, other ceramics, and jewelry. Her beautiful work, tips for techniques, and her new Bonsai Pot-cast series can be found at the links below.

⁠https://linktr.ee/BlueNoseTrading

Support the Pod:

Anytime you listen, subscribe, rate us, or share us with friends you help keep us motivated to keep making episodes for you all! If you want to take it to the next level, you can also help keep the podcast going by donating to us through Spotify or by sponsoring an episode (contact us directly for that). All donations go back into the podcast such as for our web hosting, recording gear expenses, etc. Even $1/month would be a great help!

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/bonsaitimepodcast/support⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

See the relevant images and links from this episode below.