October 2021 I saw this tree at Flower Power and fell in love with the beautiful flowers. The trunk had nice movement and the price was reasonable, so it joined my collection as an apprentice bonsai. I have had mixed luck with leptos, losing four in one season after very careful repotting, including one […]
Observations When Summer Watering Heat and water are the themes of this time of year! As we enter the heartlands of summer, watering requirements get a little wonky. Water drives a few things within a tree’s system. 1. Cooling – this function makes up a bulk of the necessity for the movement of water. 2.
I gave up on roses as too much like hard work and insufficient flowering. I bought 8 lantana ‘Chelsea Gold’ and planted them in the front yard. Easy Peasy. No special care, they flower nine months of the year, in flower most of the time. No pests or diseases… what’s not to like? They are
I’ve had this Ficus macrophylla (the Moreton Bay fig) for twenty years, inheriting it when I bought the property and nursery, Bibo Bonsai, in Peats Ridge. For many years it has been kept alive and just moved with me when we sold and moved to Green Point. The tree has a large base with excellent
This is a great time to bring tropical species such as figs to work on. Root pruning and styling are both possible, so make sure you bring everything you’ll need if you want to spend your evening developing your figs. Pruning the foliage and styling of your deciduous trees and conifers is also appropriate during
The Victorian Native Bonsai Club hosted the 10th Symposium of Australian Native Plants as Bonsai in Melbourne at the end of August. The two day native infusion was well planned, superbly delivered and the delegates got a lot of facts and hints on growing natives as bonsai. The following are random notes taken during the
Marcela Ferreira does not like traditional forest plantings which are usually very formulaic. She finds them ‘anally retentive’ and boring. They don’t evoke anything in her mind. Marcela stressed that the bonsai artist needs to find their own voice in bonsai. With natives, suckering is desirable. More of an effort is needed to create an
I was introduced to Zeolite and Enfield Produce in Sydney by a bonsai mentor Rob Clausen and have been using 2-4mm Zeolite at about a 10% additive for about 30 years. As a relatively inexpensive mineral additive it attracts and retains fertilisers and releases them when the plant needs it, preventing soil nutrient leaching. Zeolite
In bonsai, a raft is one trunk along the ground supporting a number of ‘branches’ that have become trunks in their own right. Rafts come in straight and sinuous and are usually developed when a stock plant has branches on one side only. Plants that are good for rafts are privets, figs, crabapples and junipers,
Water Gum (Tristaniopsis laurina) is a great choice for bonsai, particularly in the Sydney area where it is commonly used as a street tree and thrives with little or no attention. Shiny, attractive foliage with bronze tips in spring, easily reducible leaf size, clusters of small yellow flowers and beautiful bark which flakes off in
