llan has been doing bonsai since 2004 when a birthday gift and a demonstration at the Campbelltown Bonsai Club’s show hooked him. He has held President and Vice President roles in the Campbelltown and Newcastle Bonsai Clubs and has given talks and demonstrations at numerous bonsai clubs across NSW, including an excellent demonstration on Acacia […]
With the sun lower in the sky during the colder months, you may need to move your trees around to get more direct sunlight. Keep frost tender trees under protection if frosts are likely in your area. To prevent your bonsai trees from having constantly cold, wet feet and damp foliage, it’s important to reduce
With boarders opened at last, there has been the opportunity to see interstate bonsai artists demonstrate again, even if there’s a bit of travel involved. Jarryd Bailey, from Montane Bonsai in Tasmania, has been a visiting demonstrator at both Bonsai Reshaped at the NBPCA and the Central Coast Bonsai Club. Jarryd is passionate about native
ACCENT PLANTS I prefer small trees, mini, shohin with a few medium… arthritis in my hands… scourge of ageing. I enjoy creating beautiful trees with these sizes but the downside is having small enough accent plants. I have started collecting succulents. They like the warm spot on my hot water heater, the ones that prefer
Autumn is well and truly on us now, with cooler nights and crisp mornings. We’ve also had a break from all that summer rain, so hopefully your deciduous bonsai will be starting to show some autumn colour. Keep the trees in full sun if possible at this time, as this, combined with cooler nights, should
As always, the team at the National Bonsai and Penjing Collection of Australia in Canberra organised an excellent event in Bonsai Reshaped. The workshops with Scott Martin and Jarryd Bailey were full and enjoyed greatly by all those involved. All trees moved to a new level, whether in development or refinement. The simultaneous demonstrations were
While the weather remains warm, it’s a good time to repot many species, particularly evergreens like pyracantha, cotoneasters, olives and star jasmine etc. Most can also be repotted in early spring, but I prefer autumn, as the daytime temperatures are usually more stable. Recently repotted trees will need protection if the nights suddenly become cold
I got this Kunzea ambigua from the native nursery in Heathcote and lost any stying ideas when I looked at it at home. In the end, after cutting away what I didn’t feel I could use I decided to plant it at an acute angle and let it grow a bit. It delighted me with
As always, Clinton presented a very interesting and informative demonstration on dwarf species and in particular, a dwarf Banksia serrata, known as Cape York variety at the nursery. Clinton pointed out that some banksias are better than others when it comes to bonsai. This variety has a short natural internodal length and by working it
April brings the very talented Hugh Grant as our demonstrator. Well known and admired for his work with native species, particularly yamadori, Hugh is also very adept in designing and styling exotic species as well. Having trained at Mirai, with Ryan Neil, Hugh brings a western perspective to his bonsai practise. Hugh’s focus for this
