As always, Sean gave a terrific demonstration full of interesting and useful information on pines. He brought several examples, both field-grown and developed from young stock, and discussed the merits of both for the bonsai grower suggesting that growing a pine from a seeding might actually give a quicker result than correcting the often straight […]
In a change of pace, this month’s meeting is a deciduous workshop rather than a demonstration. Timely work brings results, so bring a few trees and join us to get on top of things before repotting begins. As always there will be plenty of people to help if you need it.
It’s been pleasant to have a dry, although cold, start to winter, and I’ve been able to commence repotting my deciduous bonsai, as I’m sure many of you have too. Some of the species you should be working on include crabapples, maples, elms, wisteria, liquidambars, flowering prunus of all types, deciduous conifers and ashes. Bear
Ashley brought a large, old black pine to work on last month. Thirty years in the ground and three in the pot, the tree had some flaws but also had good movement, lovely bark and a beautiful nebari. It was a good time to work this tree as it was still flexible and slowing down
Sean is an extremely talented bonsai artist who has been practising bonsai for over twenty years. From a modest beginning in a small nursery on the Central Coast and a period of study with Lee Wilson, Sean became a popular demonstrator whose work has been represented in the National Bonsai and Penjing Collection in Canberra.
Our autumn in Sydney had some fairly cold days, forecasting the fact that winter was coming, and is, in fact, now here. With the sun moving lower in the sky during the colder months, you may need to move your trees around to get more direct sun. Keep frost tender trees under protection if frosts
Being the first month of winter means it’s the first of three ‘bench sprays’ with diluted lime sulphur over the next three months. I like to do any spraying on the first weekend of the month. That way I remember to do the task and it just becomes part of the winter monthly routine. Mix
Once again, Clinton Nesci gave a most interesting demonstration using Australian natives to create literati trees. Species like the Australian tea tree (Leptospermum ‘Mesmer Eyes’), Tick bush (Kunzea ambigua) and Heath myrtle (Baeckea virgata) lend themselves well to the literati style as they are elongating species with lovely rough, deeply fissured or flaky bark, small
Well known bonsai nurseryman, Ashley Brown has been surrounded by plants all his life. He started his horticultural career in 1985 working for one of Australia’s largest propagation nurseries and has owned nurseries since 1993; as a result, there are not many species with which Ashley is unfamiliar. In 2005, he moved to Jililby and
Autumn is well and truly on us now, with cooler nights and crisp mornings. We’ve had a lot of showery weather of late, so watering thirsty trees has probably not been a priority like it is in summer. Keep your bonsai in full sun if possible at this time, as this, combined with cooler nights,
