Hiroshi Sakaguchi

August 12, 2024

Hiroshi Sakaguchi

By George Haas

The Bonsai Garden at Lake Merritt (BGLM) main entrance gate was designed and built by Hiroshi Sakaguchi of Occidental, California. Hiroshi is a skilled joinery wood craftsman and “…practices what men in his family have been doing for more than 600 years, the ancient Japanese craft of joinery woodworking, which uses no visible glue, nails or screws.”

Hiroshi is a daiku, an architectural carpenter. He started his own business, Ki Arts (1985), producing fine Japanese furniture and large structures, such as traditional tearooms, bridges and entrance gates. Hiroshi was hired to design and construct the main entrance gate to BGLM in 1999.

Hiroshi described that in Japanese style architecture, the entrance gate is a serious undertaking that symbolizes “the boundary between two worlds.” For the BGLM, that meant someone is crossing over from a public park to a very special and “unique world of bonsai.”

When in 1999, Hiroshi first saw the construction site at BGLM, the perimeter fence was almost complete. He felt the perimeter fence was built too much to American specifications. He would design the main gate based on Japanese culture. It would be modest and not to distract from the high cultural art of bonsai. Bonsai was practiced by high Samurai nobility in Japan from which it gets the reputation of being “a high cultural art form.”

Hiroshi chose to construct a sukiya-style gate. The style was intended not upstage the bonsai. “I am not the star; the bonsai are the stars.” A sukiya-style gate was more simplified and natural in appearance. “… I thought the simple post and beam structure would be a good contrast to the complex twist and turns of bonsai.”

The roof overhangs the gate and is kirizuma-style (ridge or gable). It’s the oldest and simplest of Japanese gates. The roof is considered the most complicated construction portion for the gate. There are two roof sides that connect to the ridge. There is a downward angle to protect the entrance doors from the rain. “I hand carved the two gegyo or wooden ornaments hanging under the gate on each side of the roof.” These features are traditional Japanese. “The roof of a Japanese gate is like “… a crown…” designating the significance of entering. It speaks “Entering here is an important act. Pay attention!”

Hiroshi used traditional gate measurements in proportion width to height. To fill open space after the perimeter fence was constructed, he had to add extension walls on each side of the gate.

The foundation was made with concrete and the footings placed four feet into the ground. Granite stones were placed at the base of the wooden posts. Hiroshi used Port Orford cedar, Western red cedar and redwood in constructing the gate. Port Orford cedar from Oregon is close to the Japanese hinoki cypress used in traditional Japanese construction. Port Orford cedar is dried for one to six years in order to stabilize it from shrinkage. Today, it is very difficult to purchase high quality Port Orford cedar, since most is sent to Japan and China.

Hiroshi relied on traditional joinery, where the work is done in his shop and later brought to the construction site. He works alone mostly and cuts the pieces in his shop, except for the pre-cut red cedar roof shingles.

Hiroshi uses three measuring systems: traditional shaku unit of length, metric and inch. The gate pieces were laid out, cut and shaped accordingly. The joinery was hand cut by saw, hammer and wood chisel, requiring traditional skills. He would hand plane many of the wooden pieces. The work in the shop required a lot longer than assembling the pieces at the construction site. Once the pieces were located on site, Hiroshi constructed the foundation and assembled the gate. The final work involved shingling the roof, attaching the kasugi or decorative wood ornament and installing the doors.

After 25 years, the pre-cut, red cedar roofing shingles were showing signs of wear and tear due to climate conditions. In 2024, Hiroshi was contracted again to repair the roof by installing hand-crafted copper metal panels. The new roof will be resistant to the weather and last for 100 years or more.

SAN MATEO BONSAI CLUB EXHIBITS TREES DESTINED FOR THE GSBF COLLECTION-NORTH

Reprinted; this article was first published in GSBF Golden Statements magazine November/December 1997.

SAN MATEO BONSAI CLUB EXHIBITS TREES DESTINED FOR THE GSBF COLLECTION-NORTH

By Nancy and Marian Eaton * Photographs submitted by Nancy Eaton

A visit to the San Mateo Bonsai Club show each September is always a treat. Over the years, club members, under the direction of their instructor, Mitsuo Umehara, have developed a multitude of excellent bonsai of many species. They specialize in fruiting bonsai, and more trees hung with colorful fruits are to be seen at their show than at any other in northern California. This year, however, the show promised to be more spectacular than ever before because four of the recent donations to the Golden State Bonsai Federation Collection-North were on display, one for the first time ever in public.

MR. GOTCHER WITH THE DAIMYO OAK READY FOR TRANSPORT

As we entered the crowded hall, our eyes were immediately drawn toward the brightly illuminated center of the room where a Daimyo oak with a massive, furrowed and hollowed trunk and long branches that reached for the ceiling stood. This tree, still planted in its original antique Chinese pot, was the gift of Dr. Robert Gotcher of Hillsborough.

The history of the oak as told to us by Dr. Gotcher, is a long and fascinating one. In 1861, Anson Burlingame was appointed United States Minister to China by President Abraham Lincoln, a post that he held until his resignation in 1867. Immediately thereafter, Burlingame was appointed envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary by the Chinese government to lead a Chinese diplomatic mission to the United States and several European nations. This mission resulted in the “Burlingame Treaty,” concluded with the United States in 1868., which recognized China’s eminent domain over all its territories, and to a great extent normalized relations between China and the United States. Through this work, Mr. Burlingame became a

very important person in U.S.- Asian affairs and undoubtedly received many gifts as he traveled from China by way of Japan back to Washington D.C. One such gift was the Daimyo oak (Quercus denrata), presented to Burlingame in Japan, and presented now, over a century later, by Dr. Gotcher to the Collection-North. We know that Mr. Burlingame acquired land on the San Francisco Peninsula in what is now Hillsborough, and although he died before he could build his retirement home there as planned, the nearby City of Burlingame was named for him. The tree has spent a good part of its life in Hillsborough; however, Dr. Gotcher believes that he is only the third owner of the oak since Anson Burlingame acquired it 130 years ago.

Although the tree was apparently not been trained as a bonsai for years, that it is still healthy and growing is a tribute to the care its owners have given it over time. It is hard to guess how many years the oak had been grown in Japan before it came to the United States. The size of the pot suggests that it was a big tree when it was first potted, and it undoubtedly was trained for many years before it was given as a gift. Although we can only speculate about the actual age of the tree, we can be quite sure that it was imported from Japan earlier and still alive in the United States today.

FOUR MEMBERS OF THE SAN MATEO BONSAI CLUB ARE NEEDED TO MOVE THE TREE. LEFT TO RIGHT: MR. FUKUDOME, MR. SAKUMA, MR. OTA, AND MR. UMEHARA.

Visitors discuss plans and blueprints for the collection-north display grounds. Daimyo oak, as viewed from the probable new front.

Mr. Umehara knew of the oak’s existence, because he was called in as an expert to repot it about 20 years ago. He and Mrs. Hideko Metaxas were instrumental in acquiring the tree for the Collection-North.

Spectacular as the oak is, a number of years of careful training will be required to bring it back to bonsai proportions. This work will be in the capable hands of Mr. Umehara.

A few words about the oak’s antique pot: it is of Chinese origin, with patterns of flowers and a bird painted in cream-colored slip beneath a transparent brown glaze. Because no drainage holes were made in the pot, we know that it was originally not intended for bonsai. We know that pots like it were often exported to Japan, where bonsai growers drilled each with a single small hole low on the wall in an inconspicuous place to provide drainage. The oak’s pot has such a hole, surprisingly small compared to those thought necessary today.

Antique pot viewed from the front

Mr. Umehara’s Japanese white pine group

Although the oak was given the place of honor at the San Mateo show, three very fine donated bonsai were also on display. Two were trees raised by Mr. Umehara from seed planted 37 years ago! One was an informal upright Black pine with a wonderful thick, plated trunk. The other was a group planting of five Japanese white pines. Mr. Tadashi Sakuma, also of the San Mateo Bonsai Club, donated the California juniper styled by Masahiko Kimura at the 1987 Golden State Bonsai Federation Convention in Anaheim.

In a brief ceremony, GSBF First Vice President Seiji Shiba accepted the donated trees on behalf of the Collection-North. He presented certifications of appreciation to each of the donors. (Unfortunately, Dr. Gotcher was unable to receive the due to family emergency.)

Mr. Sakuma’s Japanese black pine

Mr. Sakuma’s California juniper

Dr. Shiba commended the San Mateo Bonsai Club for its efforts on behalf of the Collection-North, and said that he hoped other clubs would follow their lead in finding trees for the collection. He reported that the City of Oakland had granted the final permissions needed to develop the bonsai exhibition site. Work will begin by the end of the year. He stressed the need for establishing an endowment fund for the Collection-North and urged bonsai enthusiasts to contribute both labor and money to help the long dreamed-about Collection-North become a wonderful , permanent reality.

Transplanting a 1,500 Year Old California Juniper Bonsai

By George Haas

On December 31, 2023, the task of transplanting a 1,500 plus year old California juniper bonsai was undertaken by Peter Tea, a notable bonsai professional, at the Golden State Bonsai Federation’s Bonsai Garden at Lake Merritt, in Oakland, California.

The California juniper was collected in the 1990’s from the Sand Canyon in the high Mojave Desert located in southern California. The tree was donated by Oliver Kilroy.

“Yamadori” means in Japanese “collected from the wild”. The tree’s first transplanting was soon after being dug up and placed in a large, growing box for three to five years. This period would allow the tree to recover and to grow feeder roots radiating from the trunk, just below the soil surface. When the tree is healthy, foliage is bushy and branch runners appear, can it be fitted to a unglazed, clay bonsai pot. In this case, a very large, rectangle pot.

All bonsai require re-potting from time to time. A general rule for a large bonsai tree
would be five to seven years due to the following factors:

Age of the tree
Size of the tree and pot
Breakdown of the soil or compacted soil
Root growth or root bound
Water flow decreases

The last time this California juniper was re-potted was more than 20 years ago.

Due to the age of the tree and length of time since its last transplanting, Peter was requested to undertake the task. Peter was assisted by his apprentice Eli Iristree, long time client Max Vally and garden volunteer Michal Tiede.

The tree and its root ball had to be gently removed from its current pot. It took everyone’s effort to lift the tree out of the pot. The tree was removed to the workshop area where work would begin on the root ball. Root pruning is necessary to clean up dead roots and shape the root ball to fit into its new pot. An unglazed, oval brown in color clay pot was chosen. The new pot is smaller in size and so careful shaping of the root ball was required.

Fitting the tree to its new pot requires a trained eye. Peter would look for equal distance and balance, making sure the right angle and/or levelness were obtained in settling the root ball into the pot. Next, comes the wire tie down of the root ball and tree. This step
is required of all bonsai trees so that there is no movement to disturb the growth of fine roots. Movement can damage the fine roots causing root rot.

New bonsai soil mix is then added to the re-potted tree. Peter uses a measured mixture of medium size pumice and Akadama pre-mix from Japan. The pre-mix is part Akadama, pumice and lava rock. Here they work to fill all the air pockets that surround the root ball. They moved the bonsai tree back to its bench to complete the work. Only when satisfied that no air pockets remain, Peter will water thoroughly.

Water is important to a healthy bonsai tree. Watering a newly transplanted bonsai tree is critical. Water must soak into the freshly added soil mix and drench the root ball and roots. Peter takes pride in using the water hose to water down the newly completed transplanting of this old, California juniper. The tree will be monitored for weeks to ensure nothing went wrong. From all appearances, the California juniper looks great in its new pot.

Before, front view

The Re-styling of John Naka’s California Juniper Bonsai

By George Haas

Bonsai Garden at Lake Merritt (BGLM) Item #146 California Juniper Juniperus californica

Date of acquisition: 1999

Height: 45 inches

Donated by John Naka

History: This tree was collected in 1989 from the northwest end of the California Mojave Desert referred to as the Sand Canyon.

Mojave Desert: The arid region located in southeastern California with portions in Nevada, Arizona, and Utah. The environment has little or no rain, too dry or barren to support much vegetation and hot climate. The climate experiences extreme variations in daily temperatures, frequent winter frosts and averages annual precipitation of two to six inches (50 to 150 mm). The Mojave has mountain-and-basin topography, and sparse vegetation which includes California juniper (Juniperus californica), creosote bush (Larrea tridentata), Joshua tree (Yucca brevifolia), burroweed (Isocoma tenuisecta), and occasional cacti (mostly species of Cholla). Named after the Mojave people. The Mojave Desert occupies more than 25,000 square miles (65,000 square km).
[Source: Britannica]

John Naka is referred to as the father of North American bonsai for his efforts to promote the living art of bonsai throughout the U.S. He was present and spoke at the grand opening of the Bonsai Garden at Lake Merritt in Oakland, California, on November 6, 1999. Naka collected some extraordinary California junipers from the Mojave Desert for bonsai.

From time to time, all legacy bonsai trees such as this John Naka California juniper must undergo re-styling as they continue to grow and increase in foliage mass. BGLM volunteers Samuel Tan and Addison Galambos undertake the task of re-styling this iconic bonsai. It will take several days to clean, prune, wire, and shape the large California juniper.

Samuel Tan and Addison Galambos undertake the task of re-styling the California juniper (January 2024)

John Naka California juniper before re-styling (2023)

The tree’s life vein is cleaned to distinguish it from the deadwood. Bending old, large tree branches downward create an aging impression. The bending requires special bonsai artistry and techniques with the carving out the branch, wrapping raffia and copper wire around the branch and then applying downward moving pressure to position the branch just right. It will take time for the branch to set and become semi- permanent. Guy wires are also used to bring down smaller branches. Thick four gauge copper wire is used on interior branches. The pot is placed on wooden blocks to change the overall angle of the bonsai design during repotting. Lastly, smaller gauge copper wires are used to complete the detailed wiring of branch pads.