“Dear Morten, it is a great joy and honour to congratulate you on 30 years with bonsai and 20 successful years of Shohin-Europe!

You have surely made a very satisfying personal journey, exploring the world of bonsai and shohin, and you have achieved so much. Travelling to many countries of the world, you have shown your expertise and gained valuable experience.

If there is one person in Europe standing out for making shohin bonsai popular, it is you. Your enthusiasm and friendly way of teaching has inspired so many people!

What impresses me particularly is that you don’t only teach techniques, methods and tricks, but show people how to really enjoy the shaping and care of the small trees and appreciate the beauty of shohin consciously. In our fast, hectic times, this is so important and exemplary.

In my first bonsai years, I had some problems keeping the very small plants alive and so I restricted myself to medium-sized trees for several years, although I felt a strong fascination for shohin.

Your first book “Majesty in Miniature – Shohin Bonsai” motivated me in 2007 to give the small trees more attention. Although I still love and have many medium-sized bonsai, shohin and shohin displays have become my special passion. It was a pleasure to translate your second book, “Shohin Through The Seasons” from English into German in 2020. For me, this seems to have closed a circle.

Thank you, Morten, for all the inspiration and information. I wish you all the best for the coming years and decades and hope that you will always continue your great work for shohin bonsai in Europe!”

Heike van Gunst