Matsu Bonsai blog - Blog Listing Details

Matsu Monday - Study Group with Doug Philips

Matsu Monday

It's been another incredibly busy week. Not much has been done to the trees other than light fertilization and heavy watering. The temperature and humidity continues to rise. Growth will slow down soon as the heat hits the maximum for the summer. Hopefully we'll have several more weeks of heavy growth before things come to a hot screeching halt.

On Saturday, July 19th I'll be heading to Doug Philips house for an informal study group. Doug has invited all members of the Greater Louisville Bonsai Society to attend. It should be a great day filled with bonsai and barbeque. If anyone is interested in attending please contact me for more information and directions.

Here's more information from Doug:

The bonsai day starts at 9 am and will end around 4 pm. Bring a hunk-o-meat for the grill and a pot luck item….also, bring plenty of trees to work on…it has been my experience that some people have finished up and have left early because of no more trees to work on… I look forward to seeing you! Cheers dp

Matsu Monday - Root Over Rock

Matsu Monday

I had very limited spare time last week, but was able to work on a project that I've had planned for the last year or two. I've had the rock pictured below for a few years now. It's perfect for root-over-rock.

I've paired the rock with this low rectangle with soft corners. I've had the pot for a while, but was never sure which tree to place inside. Once the pot is all cleaned up it will be ready for Spring potting.

Several Japanese Black Pine seedlings were planted in the Spring of 2007 in preparation for the root-over-rock project. Next March I'll make the final selection and plant the black pine onto the rock. Pictures will be posted on this bonsai blog at that time. The wire on the rock shows the proposed shape to the tree.

Japanese Black Pine Grafting

The following tree was grafted this Spring. The bag has been trimmed to let the emerging candle to fully extend. More of the bag will be removed this fall. The grafting tape will remain until the following Spring.

In February a suitable bud was selected from the apex. Before the tree was too far out of dormancy the bud was grafted onto the back of the tree to form a new back branch. The scion was cut into a "V" and a slice was placed into the trunk. The bud was then securely attached to the tree. A plastic candy bag was placed over the graft and sphagnum moss placed inside. This helps keep the moisture level high.

Here is the tree just after the graft was attached.

The graft:

And the graft as of July 2008:

Matsu Monday - Busy Busy June

Matsu Monday

It's been an incredibly busy June. Aside from repotting time, June is by far the most busy time for me and my trees. Maples and other deciduous trees are in need of trimming and defoliating. Wiring can be done at this time as well. And all trees are in constant need of water and fertilizer by this time of year. But, the two types of trees that take up the majority of my time are pines and azaleas.

Japanese Black Pines and Satsuki Azaleas require a lot of work during the month of June. The azaleas are trimmed and thinned to two shoots and two leaves after the flowers have faded. Pines have all been decandled and last year's needles have been thinned to 3-5 pairs. All are looking quite bare, but will be full again in no time. Then, the process will start all over again next year. The work never ends. It's a good thing the work is enjoyable.

Thankfully, this is the last day of the month. Now I can get back to a more regular schedule. Watering, fertilizing, trimming, thinning, and wiring, oh my.

###

What has your Spring been like?

Matsu Monday - Japanese Black Pine Decandling

Matsu Monday

This past weekend was spent decandling Japanese Black Pine bonsai. The benches are absolutely filled with pines, so it was a very busy weekend.

Decandling is a technique reserved for trees that are nearer to completion. The process is used to regulate and control the candle and needle growth of show ready or nearly show ready trees. For younger trees and trees that are still in development different techniques should be used to develop the trunk and branch sizes desired for the completed trees.

For those that have been following the development of this particular pine, I have posted a picture of the decandled black pine. You can read more about it's previous development here and here.

This tree has really progressed over the last few months. The plan is to repot this tree into a nicer pot next year, and to correct the planting angle. It should be ready to show in another year or two.