Well known for her very beautiful kusamono and kokodama, Young Choe has a deep interest in moss and is a member of a moss identification group along with Zach Stanley, a bryologist from the Pacific Bonsai Museum. In this workshop, she and Zach explained mosses, their identification, collection and cultivation. It was most interesting, even […]
Have this charming little privet, all of 16 cm high. The trunk has great movement, showy roots and a mushroom top. What more can you ask for? The problem was, the roots were getting too big and the top had nowhere to go/grow. There was bar branching but it wasn’t in your face so it
Lovely trident, upper structure well developed and ramification coming along very nicely. But the nebari looked like two legs doing the splits. A couple of years ago I cut a path all along the front nebari, brushed on rooting hormone and covered it up. A few roots developed but grew straight down. Which, while understandable,
I took over care of a Japanese red pine in December of 2017 from a very good friend who had had the tree for many years. It is an old Koreshoff pine that was grown from seed planted in 1951. I have come across quite a few 1951 Koreshoff pines with a number living in
At this time of year a lot of azaleas and camellias have or will be finishing their flowering period. It is important that if you want to have them for bonsais, there are a few things that you must do straight after they flower. Cut off all the old dead flowers and seed pods. Trim
As John’s demonstration had to be cancelled due to Covid restrictions, he has kindly provided these detailed notes on preparing trees for show. So, after some time nurturing and styling your bonsai, the time has come when you think it has reached a stage where you would like to put it on display for others
I was so disappointed in missing out on the Earth and Fire Pot Sale, cancelled due to the lockdown, that I immersed my sorrow in checking out plants at the Rockdale Community Nursery. A row of $40 Leptospermum ‘Pink Cascade’ caught my eye as some had interesting and thicker trunks. My first subject became my
Working on a neglected maple forest last week reminded me of Lee Wright’s warning about mondo grass in a previous newsletter. The under-plantings in this setting were totally overgrown and needed radical thinning or removal. Military grass, violets, miniature ivy and even Lonicera willingly vacated the pot, but not mini mondo grass which stayed firm
If you haven’t already, now is the time to prepare your pine trees for their spring growth. Maintenance now sets the tree up more even candle development in spring through balancing the energy of the tree by directing the energy away from the stronger parts of the tree to the weaker. Pines are apically dominant
As bonsai practitioners, we are always thinking about the past, present, and future aspects of our trees and the environments in which they live and grow. We constantly plan and prepare for the next step in the wonderful journey of bonsai and penjing. One preparation that can be completed any time of the year and
