I have had several distractions this last month, including minor surgery, so I haven’t given my trees as much attention as I normally do at this time of year. It’s okay to sometimes have a break from repotting if you normally keep everything up to date, although it’s important to never let your trees get […]
Everyone who participated enjoyed Tony’s workshops in early June. Tony is so knowledgable and engaging, it is always a pleasure to work with him. Trees ranged from small to large, developing to refined and all were improved by the end of the day. New skills and techniques were learned. Thank you to Paulette for being
As always, the Australian Plants as Bonsai Show, at the National Botanical Gardens in Canberra, was a wonderful display of native bonsai. It is always inspiring to see. Below are a selection of trees with their catalogue descriptions. 19 Ti tree Leptospermum grandifolium Tree age 23 years Styled since 2004 Pot by Roger Hnatiuk The
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
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
We have had a few new members join at our recent show, and I’m bearing in mind that some of you might be quite new to the bonsai adventure. Even if you don’t yet have many trees to work on, attending a workshop can give you valuable information and tricks to then go home and
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
Marcela Ferreira is a Melbournian passionate in her interest in Australian native trees as bonsai. Marcela has dedicated her bonsai interest in working with hundreds of natives from tube stock to yamadori and has achieved a reputation as an authority on these plants. Her attitude is- grow lots, kill lots, learn lots. Marcela gets a
If you have never tried your hand at a group planting of deciduous bonsai before, this month is your chance to be guided in developing one of your own to add to your collection. This is one of our planned focus workshops for the year, creating a group planting of a deciduous species of your
Spraying with diluted lime sulphur in winter can help kill pests and fungal spores on benches and trees. In my garden, the first month of winter means it’s time for the first of three ‘bench sprays’ of lime sulphur over the next three months. I like to do any spraying on the first weekend of
