My oldest bonsaï is one of those that have so far managed not to get sun scorched. It's from a cutting that was about 2 mm thick, then I decided to plant it on a pozzolan rock. The oldest photo I have (2003), some years after the cutting took : Today, some 25 years later : The pot is by Erin Pottery. I hope the Autumn colours will be nice...
Thanks Rich, I appreciate. Unfortunately, I didn't take care as much as I should have for this one - but I still like it ! It will be better next year... ;-)
The temperatures are mild. "They" say 6 to 9 at night, and 18 to 20 in the afternoon. So maybe it's srill time to "slip-pot" some of them little trees : If it doesn't get burnt by the sun next year, the blue colour of the pot will match the orange/red colours I expect from a healthy tree. This is just "slip-potting", if I can remember, I'll repot it properly in Spring. The pot is from one of the very few "bonsai" I bought. The nebari is no good, and the tree lost a lot of branches. So putting it in a big pot seems to be the right thing to do, and wait 3-4 yearks before working (seriously) on it. When I'm 70... ;-)
Ok, I’m hooked. Due to near terminal medical incident I had to leave my 41 in the ground maples for a mostly stay inside new home in Idaho. I would appreciate guidance in entering your cadre of bonsai. I still love maples. I’m just starting my 82nd but I’m not planning on leaving soon but even if I do I’d like to leave doing what I truly love. So… how to get started?
Hi @Geezer840 There are online courses for all levels and experience. Two that I know off back is Bonsai Empire, Bonsai Mirai, but there are others. There are lots of stuff on YouTube these days. You can go check out bonsainut.com. Which is a forum like this one with lots of information. I'm sure @AlainK and @0soyoung can give you more info and options.
I couldn't say more, real good advice. But basically, to me a "bonsai" is a potted tree that evokes a mature tree, or even just a nice-looking tree in a pot, with proportions that are "artistic" I would say. The skills in cultivation are of course essential if you want a tree in a small pot to survive. Pruning the top and the roots, the right mix suited to your climate, that's important. You can also get inspiration from images like those on various sites like : Bonsai4Me :: Bonsai (very useful for a "beginner") Bonsai Tonight (Jonas Dupuich) https://www.flickr.com/photos/arihatos_bonsai/albums/with/72157645174483121 https://www.m5bonsaiworks.com/ etc. I also like a different approach, the Chinese penjing. The rules of "aesthetics" are different in some regions of China, the species too, that enables other forms that are a kind of exaggerated form of the trees in nature, but that's also a great source of inspiration I think. Ficus in Vietnam... Dàn bonsai mini đang giao lưu | Bonsai Hữu Quang (Bình Định) | By Bonsai Vietnam | Facebook ... but similar techniques can apply to many maple species (and even to other deciduous and conifers) : https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=root-over rock maple On many web sites, people like "big" bonsai, and very often conifers. I tend to prefer trees that change colours, like maples and larch. And small is beautiful... ;-)
Three a. palmatum 'Orange Dream' in different sizes and stages of bonsai development; all begun as air layers off our landscape specimen. About 9 inches tall About 16 inches About 20 inches Right now they have certain exaggerations like letting a branch grow long to make it thicker before cutting it back to build taper and ultimately fine-branching (ramification). One doesn't just plug a twig into a pot and have maple bonsai like @AlainK's. Nevertheless, it is great fun that is never done.
I removed the leaves on this one. I did a bit of wiring, but I'm not really satisfied with it, I think I'll do it again. And on the photo, I can see a couple of branches that I will certainly prune :
This is a tree that to me has a "Chinese feel", a root-cutting from an Acer campestre that has rather rounded lobes :
Hi, Quoting myself : °-° I took a photo just when there was a flash of lightning, then <CRACKABOOOMM...) rolling thunder maybe a mile or 5 away, but no rain, no rain... So far, looks OK but a bit weak, as if he had to cross a desert... (But made it !)
The "Ishigami" (root-over-rock) is not at its best this year. I hope the autumn colours will be nice. Will be repotted next spring : The 'Orange Dream' is suffering a bit too, you can see that by the colour of the leaves. I had planned to layer it at the base to reduce the trunk height and get a better "nebari", but it's so hot and dry, and I'll have an operation in the weeks to come (L4 L5, S1 and the like) and I don't know how I will cope and if my sons and friends will be able to help. They probably will, but I'm getting a bit anxious, at 68, I've never had an anesthesia before... ^^ This one, an air-layer of the plain species, is doing fine : And if this one doesn't look like a bonsai, it could ;-) It's a vigorous seedling from 'Ryusen' that germinated in the spring of 2020. In a different pot, with some pruning, trimming, etc, it could look like a "Chinese-like" bonsai - different standards and styles, but a lot of... Poetry ?... ;°)
Yesterday night, I had a closer look at these two. They've been mostly in tha shade so they didn't suffer from the sun and heat. Palmatum, a "double air-layer", see the previous posts. I did nothing on it, just took the photo in my garage : Buergerianum. It was in a rather shallow, but I wanted the roots to fuse better so I put it in a much larger pot. I was disappointed to see that it didn't grow much this year : When I put it for 2 years in the ground, then in a pot, it developped much more (May 2013, June 2014): But I have seedlings and cuttings (they're so easy to make) so maybe next year I might graft some between the "legs" of the tree - if you see what I mean . . .
Different autumn colours, depending on the volume of the pot, when they were repotted, and how much sun they got :
Can't say that mine is a bonsai yet, but pre maybe....? So here's my Jerre Schwartz in some morning sun today.
Very nice ! Very good root flare from what I can see, one of the major feature of a bonsai. But as long as it looks beautiful, it's great as it is, just keep it healthy !