Bonsai Northwest

Bonsai Northwest Bonsai Northwest is Seattle’s premier bonsai nursery and community hub for over 40 years. Bonsai Northwest was founded by the incredibly talented Sharon Muth.

Discover trees, tools, pottery, wire, rare bonsai material, expert advice, classes, demos, workshops, and a welcoming place for bonsai lovers. Bonsai Northwest has been supporting the art and hobby of bonsai in the Pacific Northwest since 1985. She founded the business to sell her handcrafted bonsai pots to local club members. As the business expanded, it incorporated finished bonsai trees, beginn

er bonsai lessons, and fine Japanese pottery. When Sharon’s son, John Muth, took the reins of the family business, he pioneered importing bonsai trees and expanded the availability of bonsai pottery throughout the U.S. Bonsai Northwest is still dedicated to serving the bonsai community.

Two more bonsai from the recent acquisition which brought the subalpine fir we featured Friday—and these two also come w...
09/06/2026

Two more bonsai from the recent acquisition which brought the subalpine fir we featured Friday—and these two also come with some serious age and development behind them. The Japanese black pine is a wonderful informal upright, with roughly 30 years of bonsai training behind it. The zelkova forest, composed of around 15 individual trees, has also been in training for approximately three decades. Both have the kind of maturity that simply can't be rushed, with established trunks, branching, and proportions that give their new owner a substantial head start.

Having received a little less attention than is desirable the last few years, they're now ready to be set back on the path to refinement—and they're looking for someone with a vision to take them there.

You'll find both trees in the high-end section of the nursery, alongside a growing selection of mature and professionally developed bonsai. This is the place to look if you're searching for a tree with a significant head start rather than starting from raw material.

Stop by Bonsai Northwest and take a look at these new arrivals and the rest of our high-end selection. Your next bonsai might already be waiting for you.

A new tree has joined our high-end sales area!This subalpine fir was recently acquired from a retiring local practitione...
09/04/2026

A new tree has joined our high-end sales area!

This subalpine fir was recently acquired from a retiring local practitioner and came to us with plenty of potential, but also a fair amount of cleanup to do. We spent some time removing dead needles and branches and getting a better look at the structure hidden beneath the foliage.

Now cleaned up, this tree is ready for its next chapter. There’s plenty of character in the trunk and branching, and we're excited to see what its new owner will find in it. With the right design and continued development, this could become a really beautiful bonsai.

The subalpine fir is now available in the high-end tree section of the nursery. We also have four other new specimen trees from the same practitioner receiving attention in the workshop; keep an eye out for those coming soon.

Stop by this weekend to take a look and see if one of these new arrivals inspires your next project!

Just thought we’d share some of the creations of the company’s founder, Sharon Muth. She originally created the busines...
08/30/2026

Just thought we’d share some of the creations of the company’s founder, Sharon Muth. She originally created the business to sell her pottery. We know there are bonsai pot collectors that cherish and keep her works in their collections. If you own some, feel free to share them below! Needless to say, these are not for sale, and these are just a sample of the pottery we have that she made.

The final two new benches were built to complete the update of Greenhouse 2! We hope you like the new look with the hig...
08/28/2026

The final two new benches were built to complete the update of Greenhouse 2! We hope you like the new look with the higher end bonsai on the left and the pottery only down the middle and on the right.

We have worked hard to try and make the flow of the nursery better.

Now the only question is what should we bring out from the back to put on them? Let us know below if you have any suggestions.

Our cut paste and screen order came in! Top Jin, Kikuwa, Callus Mate and Kiyonal brands.
08/26/2026

Our cut paste and screen order came in! Top Jin, Kikuwa, Callus Mate and Kiyonal brands.

08/21/2026

In an effort to keep our bonsai as healthy as possible, we’ve installed a misting system in the two retail greenhouses up front. Humidity plays an important role in keeping plants and trees happy, especially during hot summer days. The misting system automatically turns on whenever the relative humidity drops below 40%.

This is in addition to a large industrial fan that continuously pulls air through both greenhouses, providing the crucial airflow that bonsai need.

We’re constantly trying different methods and fine-tuning our growing environment to ensure our trees stay as healthy and happy as possible. It’s all about creating the best environment for them to thrive.

Over the last few days, Jay and Cory have been working on this shimpaku juniper, originally started by John Muth roughly...
08/17/2026

Over the last few days, Jay and Cory have been working on this shimpaku juniper, originally started by John Muth roughly 10 years ago.

You might be thinking, “That tree looks a lot older than 10 years!” And you'd be right. This is a tanuki, also known as a phoenix graft—a bonsai created by joining young, living material with an old piece of deadwood.

Tanuki are an interesting intersection of horticulture and illusion. A piece of weathered driftwood, perhaps salvaged from a former bonsai or found in the mountains, becomes the foundation for a new bonsai. A channel is meticulously carved into the deadwood, and a young juniper whip is carefully fitted into it. As the living tree grows, it gradually integrates with the character and form of the ancient wood surrounding it.

The goal isn't as simple as just trying to make a young tree look old. It's to create the impression of a single, ancient tree shaped by decades, or centuries, of hardship and survival. The living vein follows the natural contours present in the deadwood, branches emerge and intertwine with remnants of the past, and the contrast between fresh growth and weathered wood creates the visual tension that makes a good tanuki so compelling.

Done well, the distinction between what was once alive and what was added later becomes almost impossible to separate at a glance. The artist is essentially collaborating with a piece of history, using living material to extend a story that the deadwood began long ago.

And, like any bonsai, the illusion only gets better with time. As branches ramify, the live vein thickens, and increasingly integrates with the deadwood, the two trees read more wholly as one.

This tree is still very much a work in progress, but we're excited to see how its story continues to develop.

As we sorted through a recent acquisition, this juniper immediately caught Cory's eye. The previous owner had clearly sp...
08/15/2026

As we sorted through a recent acquisition, this juniper immediately caught Cory's eye. The previous owner had clearly spent years developing interest in the trunk, creating a combination of live vein and textured deadwood that was just waiting to be revealed. Now it was time to tame the foliage and start bringing the whole tree together.

The first step with an unrefined juniper is defining the margins of the live vein. A gouge was used to carefully explore the layers of flaky bark until the edge of the living tissue could be identified. From there, the remaining loose bark was peeled away, revealing a smooth, reddish-purple live vein winding up the trunk.

Next came cleaning and preserving the newly exposed deadwood. Brushes, water, and a little elbow grease removed algae, dirt, and remnants of old bark from both the new and existing deadwood. Once everything was clean, lime sulfur was applied to protect the exposed wood and highlight the beautiful contrast of the weathered, white deadwood against the live vein.

With the trunk cleaned up, Cory could finally focus on finding the tree's best front. Three promising options emerged, each highlighting different aspects of the trunk while presenting its own challenges to work around. Ultimately, the chosen angle offered the strongest combination of trunk movement and interaction between the live vein and deadwood.

With the front established, it was time to select branches, apply wire, and begin positioning the foliage.

The result is a dynamic little literati with a strong sense of movement and plenty of character; now eagerly awaiting the right pot to complete the composition next spring.

What would you choose for it? We'd love to hear what kind of container you think would complement this tree.

It’s not always glamorous to run and operate a full service bonsai nursery. 😁 Sometimes you have to put the work in an...
08/13/2026

It’s not always glamorous to run and operate a full service bonsai nursery. 😁 Sometimes you have to put the work in and get rid of those pesky weeds that don’t need the fertilizer and watering to grow nice and big. And then other times, you go to turn on the water line and the handle breaks clean off. Of course, it has to do that when the water is off. Anyway, it’s all fixed now.

Repotting season was a busy one for us this year, and despite our best efforts, not every tree was able to get the fresh...
08/09/2026

Repotting season was a busy one for us this year, and despite our best efforts, not every tree was able to get the fresh soil it needed. Fortunately, there are a few techniques we can use to help keep those trees healthy through the summer.

One of them is soji, the technique of cleaning and refreshing the surface of the soil.

Over time, organic matter such as fallen needles and leaves, old fertilizer, dried-out moss, and weeds can accumulate on the surface of a bonsai pot. As that material breaks down, it clogs the spaces between soil particles and reduces water pe*******on. If you notice water sitting on the surface or running off the edges of the pot instead of soaking in evenly, a little surface cleaning may help restore percolation.

For this technique, we most often use bent-nose tweezers to gently loosen the top layer of soil, working radially outward from the trunk. A small shop vacuum can be useful for removing the loosened material as you work. The goal is to clean down until you begin finding intact particles of bonsai soil.

It's important not to treat soji as a substitute for repotting. If the soil remains broken down or compacted deeper into the pot—particularly once you've gone more than roughly a quarter of the way down—it's best to stop and plan for a proper repot during the appropriate season. The broken down soil you've removed will do enough to keep your tree healthy and well watered until repotting season.

Once the surface has been cleaned, sift some fresh soil and add it back to the pot. If you've exposed any roots use a chopstick to gently work the new soil around them and fill any voids. Finish with your usual moss top-dressing and give the tree a thorough watering to settle everything into place.

Soji is a simple technique, but it can make a big difference during the hottest part of the year. Keeping the surface of your soil open and well-draining helps ensure that water can reach the roots evenly when your trees need it most.

Sometimes bonsai maintenance isn't about doing more, it's knowing and doing what the tree needs to keep growing well.

Address

10716 State Route 162
Puyallup, WA
98374

Opening Hours

Wednesday 9:30am - 5pm
Thursday 9:30am - 5pm
Friday 9:30am - 5pm
Saturday 9:30am - 5pm
Sunday 9:30am - 5pm

Telephone

+12062428244

Website

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