Nichigo (日豪), is a Japanese word that essentially translates to ‘Japan-Australia’. It is a combination of the kanji for Japan (nihon 日本) and Australia (goshu 濠洲).

As for me, My name is Joe Morgan-Payler. I am a bonsai artist from Melbourne, Australia and have been involved in Bonsai  from the age of 16 for the last 17 odd years. The last 10 of which, I have been visiting Japan on and off and studying under Mr Urushibata of Taisho-en whom has had a huge impact on my approach and methods.

I am hoping that through this blog I can record my bonsai experiences in Japan and how they are influencing my bonsai practices here in Australia.

I will be posting about my Japanese studies and trips as well as what I am getting up to in my own garden, here in Melbourne, Australia and a few things in between.

For those interested, I enjoy passing on what I have learnt in the form of demonstrations, workshops, one on one sessions and talks. I also work on trees from private collections. For more information see the services page.