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kedo posted:When's a good time for me to defoliate/do some pruning on my trident maple? I've let it do its own thing for the past several years because I was trying to thicken up its trunk, but I think it's time for me to improve its canopy a bit. It's just about fully in leaf, should I give it a bit of springtime to store up some energy before I do anything? Wait til the new shoots harden off (stop extending and get actual bark instead of soft green stuff) then just go ham on it. You can take like 50% or more of the foliage off without killing a healthy maple. It should put out a second flush of smaller leaves from the interior buds. Peter Tea wrote a great article I re-read before working on any maple: https://peterteabonsai.wordpress.com/2012/06/12/the-trident-maple-project-and-summer-maple-work/
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May 12, 2020 01:13
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kedo posted:When's a good time for me to defoliate/do some pruning on my trident maple? I've let it do its own thing for the past several years because I was trying to thicken up its trunk, but I think it's time for me to improve its canopy a bit. It's just about fully in leaf, should I give it a bit of springtime to store up some energy before I do anything? Where do you live? I'm defoliating maples now. I'm in PA, so if you're south of me, it's on, if you're north of me wait a week or so. The signal to look for is your first flush of growth has hardened off and changed from that bright lime green to a more normal color.
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May 12, 2020 04:25
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Awesome, thanks you two, I appreciate the info! I'm in the process of migrating a couple dozen websites from server A to B for work so I have a lot of downtime, and that article (and website, for that matter) is much appreciated reading material. A followup question: most of my maple's branches still have green shoots at the end of the branches, but there are plenty of leaves growing in spots that aren't connected to green shoots. Could I theoretically defoliate the non-green stem leaves, and leave those on the green stems? Or would it be better to play it safe and wait until everything is hardened off?
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May 13, 2020 20:34
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kedo posted:Awesome, thanks you two, I appreciate the info! I'm in the process of migrating a couple dozen websites from server A to B for work so I have a lot of downtime, and that article (and website, for that matter) is much appreciated reading material. I'd wait, if you do that the tree could shift energy around in weird ways. Right now all the tree's energy is in the roots and is being dumped into the new shoots. You want to wait for it to run out of those winter stores and slow down before you start messing around, otherwise it'll just explode more new stuff out of any dormant buds.
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May 13, 2020 20:55
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Well, I was pruning some overhanging branches, and  (That is about 15' in the air) My wife was very confused.
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May 15, 2020 20:17
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Graaah some loving bird or other animal went ahead and ripped all the moss off of my juniper, and only the juniper, and left it wadded up in a little heap  It was really well established too, but apparently not as established as the moss on the picea plantings
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May 15, 2020 23:47
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kedo posted:Awesome, thanks you two, I appreciate the info! I'm in the process of migrating a couple dozen websites from server A to B for work so I have a lot of downtime, and that article (and website, for that matter) is much appreciated reading material. So... what do your trees look like and what stage of growth are they in? If you're developing your trunk I'd just leave it alone. If you're developing your primary branching, again, leave it alone. But if you're starting to ramify and control growth, the green parts are strong shoots, the stuff that's growing on the non green stems are weaker, interior buds. You'd want to do the exact opposite of what you proposed.
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May 16, 2020 03:49
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Ok Comboomer posted:Graaah some loving bird or other animal went ahead and ripped all the moss off of my juniper, and only the juniper, and left it wadded up in a little heap I have a spruce that used to have absolutely beautiful moss. I live on the edge of a creek and park, and so I get a lot of migratory and nesting birds here. Anyway, they figured out that not only do I top dress all my repots with sphagnum, it makes excellent nesting material and so does the nice moss on my mature trees! 
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May 16, 2020 03:52
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I've been watching Heron's Bonsai videos all spring and now that I have a house and yard I got a wild hair while getting some building stuff: Picea glauca var conica Factory default  Thinned out a whole shitload, front  Back  Doodles  That spray of samey stems around the crown where it got cut back in the past is irritating me but I don't know what to do with it other than let it grow and thin them out later. The house is also littered with cherry saplings from one big tree, next year I might try to get one of those into a pot, or at least transplanted someplace I can nurture it along. Edit- Soil. Right now it's in the soil it came in, looks like potting soil with some shredded bark. When I gave it a once over I put an inch or two of bark mulch from the yard in the bottom of the pot for drainage and to boost it up in the pot some. Should I be worrying about getting potting supplies at this point if it seems to be doing ok in what it came in? the yeti fucked around with this message at 21:17 on May 30, 2020 |
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May 30, 2020 20:24
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We're past the time for either styling or repotting spruce if you are in the US - I'd leave it alone for now and hope that it survives. Dwarf Alberta spruce are tricky, I don't work with them much. In general Peter Chan is not a good source - I'd rank him above Nigel Saunders, but below basically every notable artist on youtube. Check out Peter Warren (Saruyama bonsai), Bjorn Bjorholm (Eisei-en Bonsai), Ryan Neil (Bonsai Mirai), Mauro Stemberger (Italian Bonsai Dream), etc.
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May 31, 2020 00:32
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Ah well, it was a cheap mistake if it doesn’t work out  we had a lingering winter (cold into April) here so I thought I could get away with it. I do follow a couple of those other folks already, so I’ll shift my viewing accordingly, thanks! For my own understanding is peter chan’s material just not good for beginners or what?
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May 31, 2020 00:54
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fwiw, I really like Peter Chan and he definitely got me into actually doing bonsai rather than planning to get into bonsai at a later date, or after owning a home or whatever else but there are more "serious" and traditionally rigorous people out there. I like Bjorn's stuff a lot, incredibly talented dude. With all that said, I'm struggling to see the intent behind the cuts you made to that picea. I wasn't there and I don't know how those branches looked in person or met the trunk, so I'm curious to hear what your intent with the tree is. Why did you lop off its top? Where do you want it to get? Crocoduck posted:Italian Bonsai Dream wanna make that porno
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May 31, 2020 01:53
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Ok Comboomer posted:With all that said, I'm struggling to see the intent behind the cuts you made to that picea. I wasn't there and I don't know how those branches looked in person or met the trunk, so I'm curious to hear what your intent with the tree is. Why did you lop off its top? Where do you want it to get? Sure, I can try. My take on the tree was that the majority of the branches coming off the trunk were essentially thin and straight, going every which way radially. I considered the knobbly section of trunk and root there a good candidate for the front for interesting nebari as the tree ages; the crossing root is a flaw (right?) but I figured that could be removed at a later time. With that in mind, most of the smaller branches were removed with the aim of seeing more of the trunk and thinning the foliage to allow more air and light through it. The two largest bottommost branches I kept, although the second one faces away a bit so I'm not sure that will work. The top was a misstep frankly; I clipped the very top thinking it would encourage growth laterally instead of vertically, but that left it with a weird looking bare spike so I cut it back to where it is, thinking one of the stronger branches would make a new leader. All that said, it's still muddled because I'm not sure how to approach that node with the similar branches going every which way; taking them all off but a few seemed like removing too much without anything being brought forward so I just left it there. What I thought I'd be able to do when I selected it is have a relatively upright trunk with most of the interest in the nebari and branches suggesting downward movement; laden or tired looking if you will. the yeti fucked around with this message at 03:11 on May 31, 2020 |
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May 31, 2020 03:08
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the yeti posted:Ah well, it was a cheap mistake if it doesn’t work out He's... decent, but a lot of times he leaves a great deal of information out, so unless you know what you're doing and how to read a tree you can wind up implementing the wrong advice at the wrong time. He also has a shitton of trees, many of them cheap rough stock, and is often implementing shoddy care just for ease of management. It's not a big deal if you have 500 lovely trees and 100 of them die. Ok Comboomer posted:fwiw, I really like Peter Chan and he definitely got me into actually doing bonsai rather than planning to get into bonsai at a later date, or after owning a home or whatever else but there are more "serious" and traditionally rigorous people out there. I like Bjorn's stuff a lot, incredibly talented dude. I think getting people into it is definitely a virtue of Chan's. WRT to Italian Bonsai Dream, Mauro would like that riff on the title.
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May 31, 2020 22:14
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Aw dang, I just pinched/back trimmed my spruces about 2 weeks ago and I'm waiting to take pics when the backbudding has grown in for a bit. They've both come so far since March (I've also got one pre-bonsai that's a bit of a mess where I tried to turn a second head into a jin and it worked but it's an ugly, out of place jin, but also I don't think I can just shave it down and go formal upright so I'm leaving it for now and letting it mature). But now I might not get the chance. Maybe I'll post some fresh pics, and progress shots from the spring. Do we have a lifeboat Discord for this?
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Jun 25, 2020 05:00
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Ok Comboomer posted:Aw dang, I just pinched/back trimmed my spruces about 2 weeks ago and I'm waiting to take pics when the backbudding has grown in for a bit. They've both come so far since March (I've also got one pre-bonsai that's a bit of a mess where I tried to turn a second head into a jin and it worked but it's an ugly, out of place jin, but also I don't think I can just shave it down and go formal upright so I'm leaving it for now and letting it mature). There's a pinned thread with a discord
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Jun 25, 2020 13:13
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I'm going to repot my Azalea Sunday, first time I've ever tried something like that.
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Jun 25, 2020 19:12
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 Here is my brick ficus , I've been letting him go wild and going to prune it come spring
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Jun 25, 2020 22:45
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Ok Comboomer posted:But now I might not get the chance. Maybe I'll post some fresh pics, and progress shots from the spring. Do we have a lifeboat Discord for this? Wait what now? Edit: Oh poo poo. I've been on these forums in some capacity since 2005. :[ Crocoduck fucked around with this message at 01:35 on Jun 26, 2020 |
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Jun 26, 2020 01:29
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Crocoduck posted:Wait what now? My forums account is almost old enough to vote.
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Jun 26, 2020 05:42
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Jestery posted:
Nice, I do like that pot.
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Jun 26, 2020 06:32
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bessantj posted:Nice, I do like that pot. the roots in the soil have actually been shifting the brick around, the little jaunt of the brick offsets the strong horizontal element of the pot and i like that
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Jun 26, 2020 06:44
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Jestery posted:the roots in the soil have actually been shifting the brick around, the little jaunt of the brick offsets the strong horizontal element of the pot and i like that It does look like a lot is going on with the tree. Keeps it interesting.
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Jun 26, 2020 16:00
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Yeah, I've been keeping him out of sight so I'm not tempted to trim him. I want to really shape him come summer so he is very shaggy now
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Jun 27, 2020 04:03
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Jestery posted:Yeah, I've been keeping him out of sight so I'm not tempted to trim him. I want to really shape him come summer so he is very shaggy now It's a ficus. Defoliate and wire. Gotta set the branches. 
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Jun 27, 2020 08:09
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Repotted my Azalea and then promptly knocked it off the table, smashing the pot, didn't see where it landed and stepped on the poor tree snapping half of it off. 
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Jun 30, 2020 15:33
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  My sister got me the umbrella tree this year for my birthday and I found this thread when looking for tips for care. I figured I'd also post the rest of my plants that I have in my window, in the hopes you could identify the ones in the second picture. Anyway, that's pretty much it. Hooray!
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Jun 30, 2020 16:28
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bessantj posted:Repotted my Azalea and then promptly knocked it off the table, smashing the pot, didn't see where it landed and stepped on the poor tree snapping half of it off.
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Jun 30, 2020 18:40
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Slugworth posted:Can it survive this? Because if so, I think that's a far more interesting tree to own and care for moving forward. Well I've put it back in the pot and am crossing my fingers. Poor thing looks terrible, though it does have its roots I didn't smush them too bad.
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Jun 30, 2020 18:46
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bessantj posted:Well I've put it back in the pot and am crossing my fingers. Poor thing looks terrible, though it does have its roots I didn't smush them too bad. Brutal, I'm sorry that sounds so rough. I bet it will live and now you have the freedom to style it as aggressively as you want! Post a pic
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Jun 30, 2020 18:58
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Midsummer progress pics incoming, but some quick questions: 1) Does anyone know any good resources for rock usage/selection? I've been going through a huge pile of small boulders the previous homeowners collected from the Shenandoah valley for landscaping and there are some that seem pretty cool and might work well with some of my various pre-bonsai, but I'm looking for any techniques or aesthetic hints before I go whole hog. Things like color palette selection, species that do/don't work well for root-over/clinging-to rock designs, technical concerns with keeping the trees healthy, etc. On the one hand I might be over-thinking it, but on the other it's been my experience that there's usually way more depth than I suspect in every aspect of bonsai... 2) How hard would it be to successfully bisect a (young) juniper down the trunk with good odds of survival? I've got a tree that's starting to shape up but I am thinking that the natural first branch is way too low/thick. I've left it because I figure it's helping build up the trunk, but looking at it more I'm thinking that the "main" tree would make a nice informal upright, but the "extra" branch at the bottom could actually turn into a decent semi-cascade. bessantj posted:Repotted my Azalea and then promptly knocked it off the table, smashing the pot, didn't see where it landed and stepped on the poor tree snapping half of it off. 
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Jun 30, 2020 18:58
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Oof, and I thought I did bad by my azaleas this year when I forgot to water them during the first week of the George Floyd protests and killed off all their flowers early Good luck little floor tree
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Jun 30, 2020 20:10
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It's an azalea, it should be fine. Just keep it moist and above freezing in the winter. WRT to rock selection, look for something with lots of texture and divots. You can always carve it yourself with tools - lot of the ibigawa stones you see Kimura and co. using have been treated in myriad ways. Bisecting a juniper? I dunno, you're going to have to see what the roots are like next spring. Post pics yo.
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Jul 1, 2020 09:38
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Crocoduck posted:It's an azalea, it should be fine. Just keep it moist and above freezing in the winter. Word. Thanks for the lead -- came across this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oH5N4Yt7zVg I'll post some pics whenever my children five me some peace
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Jul 1, 2020 18:27
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Crocoduck posted:It's an azalea, it should be fine. Just keep it moist and above freezing in the winter. Well I hope you are right! Harry Potter on Ice posted:Brutal, I'm sorry that sounds so rough. I bet it will live and now you have the freedom to style it as aggressively as you want! Post a pic Ok Comboomer posted:Good luck little floor tree  thank you, here's a pic
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Jul 2, 2020 17:13
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Second flush of growth is coming in wonderfully on the piceas. Idk whether to take pictures this weekend or wait for them to grow out for a couple more weeks. I think I might have to repot two of them but I’m scared. And I really don’t want to mess up the scape on one of them. I took pics in late May and never posted them (more important poo poo happened in America and I got distracted 🤷🏻♂️ ) but the trees look so much better now. Really glad I soaked them in tupperwares during the heatwave last week. I wound up killing a good bunch of the leaves on my azaleas by being too late with soaking them. These things appear to be bulletproof tho and they’ve since grown back fresh leaves + budding ramification. Call it an ad hoc defoliation I guess 🤷🏻♂️🤷🏻♂️. They may not be true Satsukis but for $6.50 a pop (60% off) at Home Despot they’ve done marvelously.
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Jul 11, 2020 00:33
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Ok Comboomer posted:Second flush of growth is coming in wonderfully on the piceas. Looking forward to comparing our HD azaleas!
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Jul 12, 2020 02:37
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1) how do people here feel about ficus bonsai? What about “Ficus ginseng” grafts of the sort commonly sold in places like IKEA? 2) say somebody hypothetically got one with attractive aerial roots to try some root-over-rock planting, and when Will this heal? Even better, will the plant grow scar tissue around the area? Will it throw out more aerials to fill in the space? Can anything be done to make the situation better? Should the injury be wrapped/packed? What if this hypothetical individual wanted to keep the tree around the rock and needed the split there? It seems like it’s in a precarious spot but it’s a ficus, and we deliberately split trunks and branches in this hobby all the time. trilobite terror fucked around with this message at 00:17 on Jul 13, 2020 |
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Jul 13, 2020 00:02
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Ok Comboomer posted:1) how do people here feel about ficus bonsai? What about “Ficus ginseng” grafts of the sort commonly sold in places like IKEA? 1) Ficus bonsai are great. Folks out in Taiwan are doing spectacular things with them - check out Min Hsuan Lo for some examples. Ginseng ficus are not ideal - the graft union is ugly and distracting, but with patience and the right climate, you can grow them out. I don't necessarily like Adam Lavigne or his styling, but on his blog there are some ficuses he's grown from humble ginseng beginnings to decent trees. 2) It's a ficus, you should be ok unless you knocked the graft out. Even then really...
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Jul 13, 2020 18:18
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So a couple weeks ago I got a red maple sapling that I’ve been struggling to figure out what to do with, it’s a branch grafted onto a trunk and it’s very straight. Today I decided to turn into a raft bonsai which I’ve only heard of being done to pines, is it a bad idea to do with a deciduous tree
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Jul 13, 2020 21:03
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