Acceptable Use for a Healthy Tree ?

I’ll let you look at the pictures and decide on you own. Presented without comment —- One tree, four years of work and an indescribable amount of talent: that’s what it took to create this incredible masterpiece. A famous Chinese wood carver chopped down a single tree and tirelessly worked on it for over four years to […]

Professor’s Illegal Mountain Atop Building in Beijing

This story is everywhere, and I mean everywhere. Crazy acupuncturist builds a mountain villa on his apartment complex and he neglects to tell anyone about it. It’s like something you’d see in a Bond movie. Crazy mad-man villain sitting atop his stronghold in a fortified mountain villa, all the while drinking a ’56 Dom Perignon […]

Noel Kingsbury on the Japanese garden

Noel Kingsbury the famous English author is doing a multi-part posting on his blog about Japanese Gardens. I’ve decided to link to this because Mr. Kingsbury doesn’t do the usual and fawn all over every little aspect and detail of the Japanese Garden and, and YEAH!!! he acknowledges the real difference between Japanese and Chinese […]

Elephant Extinction if Beijing does Not Ban Ivory Trade

“The word ‘ivory’ rang through the air, was whispered, was sighed. you would think they were praying to it. A taint of imbecile rapacity blew through it all, like a whiff from some corpse.” — Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness It’s bad for the elephants and every year the situation worsens for the African elephant. […]

Tangshan Earthquake Memorial Park

I was absolutely riveted by this perspective for a memorial park for earthquake victims in China’s Northern city of Tangshan the park will be called Tangshan Earthquake Memorial Park. I can’t say it enough . . . this conceptual really strikes me as something very powerful and thought provoking. The architects for the project are […]

No Man is an Island . . . But His House Is!

The philosopher(name escapes me). who is responsible for that famous quote would have to rethink that thought if he were able to see this picture/situation. As for me; all I can say is, wow! That is one stubborn/and or greedy dude. [Photo and Story courtesy of Ananova] The copy to go with the story was […]

Heptacodium miconiodes

“The Seven-Son Flower”(SSF) has to be one of my top 5 trees for the residential landscape. I grade very harshly on the best because the need to have either 4 season interest, or another characteristic so powerful . . . the tree becomes a must have in the designed landscape. A small tree only 15′-20′ […]

Slow Boat in China

On a very small boat traveling near the 3 Gorges. This was a day trip during the boat ride down the Yangtze river. A lifelong dream of mine.

The 1st Post

That’s me, enjoying my trip to China