At a recent club meeting, Joe Day showed up with a trunk full of pots for sale. They had belonged to a former club member who is no longer in the hobby and was looking to sell them. It is always nice to have a selection of pots sitting around to select from when it comes to training or showing, so, I picked a few up and thought that I would share them with you.
Now, these are not super-fancy pots or custom made or anything, they appear to be 70's or 80's vintage Japanese production pots. Nice thick sides and smooth finish that you usually don't find on some of the Chinese and Korean made production pots.
Before we get to the pots I must confess something. No, it is not a deep, dark secret, just a little bit on my current state of getting around. I am hobbled, thankfully not permanently, but for at least eight weeks. I was in a car wreck several weeks ago and the patella on my right knee was broken into six pieces. It is held together now with screws, wire, and mesh and the entire leg is in a brace. These are the post surgery x-rays, they remind of the coffee can of nuts, bolts, nails, and miscellaneous parts that my grandpa had in the garage. It looks like the surgeon grabbed a hadful of hardware out of that coffee can and just through it in, lol.
Now, these are not super-fancy pots or custom made or anything, they appear to be 70's or 80's vintage Japanese production pots. Nice thick sides and smooth finish that you usually don't find on some of the Chinese and Korean made production pots.
Before we get to the pots I must confess something. No, it is not a deep, dark secret, just a little bit on my current state of getting around. I am hobbled, thankfully not permanently, but for at least eight weeks. I was in a car wreck several weeks ago and the patella on my right knee was broken into six pieces. It is held together now with screws, wire, and mesh and the entire leg is in a brace. These are the post surgery x-rays, they remind of the coffee can of nuts, bolts, nails, and miscellaneous parts that my grandpa had in the garage. It looks like the surgeon grabbed a hadful of hardware out of that coffee can and just through it in, lol.
Why am I mentioning this? Well since I am hobbled, it is very difficult to accomplish tasks, especially bonsai tasks. So, I am having to rely heavily on my minions. If you have visited the "About" page, you have seen them all. During the photo shoot of the pots, I was heavily assisted by Mo. Here he is hamming it up for the camera as he steadies the chair that I am sitting in with his head. He also helped me by making sure that eventhough I am hobbled, that I stay nimble and fast footed by laying completely in the middle of it all in various unexpected positions on the floor around the studio.
Mo, a Heart of Dixie Bonsai Minion, steadying my chair with his head...
Enough of that, on to the pots! I promised you a plethora, so here we go. Pot #1 is a nice deep pot that is made out of a milk-chocolate colored clay. It has a lot of detail, including cloud feet. The size is 8 1/2 inches by 11 inches.
Pot #2 is not as fancy, just a well made, deep, 5 inch by 7 inch rectangle with a nice cream colored glaze. This color glaze lends itself well with a variety of trees so it is a good pot to have around.
Pots #3 is a small mame sized pot with a textured ivory glaze and nice corner details. I don't know what I will put in it, but I seemed to always to be drawn to small pots. This one is well made. Dimensions are 3 1/4 inch by 2 1/4 inch.
Pots #'s 4 through 6 are actually kinda like a set, they are are exactly alike only a little different in size. Each pot also has chop on the bottom, I can't translate it, so if anyone out there can, please give me a shout. They are on the shallow side, about an inch deep, so I don't really know what I can grow in them. Maybe a ficus? I usually use a little deeper pot than most due to the heat, here, in the Heart of Dixie.
Pot #7 is the largest of the haul. I really like the shape, color, and depth; it should come in very handy this next repotting season. The size is 9 1/2 inches by 13.5 inches.
Pot #8 is fairly large, also. I is the traditional dark clay and will look good with a smaller Bald cypress in it. Dimensions are 8 1/2 inches by 12 1/ 2 inches.
Pot #9 is much like pots 4, 5, and 6 in shape and depth, and very shallow. It also has a chop but unfortunately it was not pressed well and hard to read. Another interesting thing about it is the square drain hole in the middle, I haven't seen a square drain hole very many times. Dimensions are 6 1/2 inches by 10 1/2 inches.
That is all of them, like I said earlier, nothing real fancy, just good solid pots. Now that I think about it, calling nine pots a plethora is probably kind of a stretch, but then I would have to come with a new title. I think I will just have to stretch it, I like the way it sounds.....