This tree was originally collected by Kevin Yates from a park in Eugene. Apparently it had been kept stunted by the nutria that lived in a pond nearby. When Kevin saw this post he recognized his tree and corrected me on several points on its origin- Thanks!
Euonymus is a popular genus for bonsai. The burning bush, Euonymus alata, is not a commonly used species, however, and I was excited to give it a whirl. This photo essay was taken in the creation of this bonsai during the Winter Seasonal of 2012, in February.
The Euonymus after growing in an Anderson Flat for a few years. This photo was taken the day of styling, in February 2012.
The stalwart Howard Griesler of Chicago working with the flex-shaft grinder to bring down the large pruning cuts. (Howard is a foodie and loves our eclectic Portland restaurants...)
The redoubtable John Denny from Iowa working on the rootball. (John is a master brewer, and typically makes sage comments about the local micros).
Both gentlemen washing the rootball of some mucky old soil. I stood far away.
The prepared rootball drying a bit before potting.
Pot prepared... for this tree we used a simple mix of 50% akadama/50% pumice. This is not a perfect pot for the tree, but at least it fits. I'm sure there is a colorful glazed pot in its future, perhaps a dark blue or green.
- Right about this time Howard's glasses broke. This was our solution---toothpicks from the kitchen deftly wired into place. It is rare to find an opportunity to wire outside of bonsai! One must take them eagerly whenever they arise.
The final result. It needs a stupendous amount of development, but it's an unusual species for bonsai and I'm curious to see where it goes. Certainly it will give the Japanese maples a run for their money in the fall with its vermillion foliage.
Mike,
You mentioned your soil mix was 50/50 akadama, and pumice. In the final photo the soil mix looks really dark. Is it still the same 50/50 mix, or do you use somethings different to topdress?
Yes, it is different on top. I usually top dress with sphagnum moss. NOT Peat moss, which is rotted sphagnum and becomes water repellant when it dries, but straw-colored sphagnum moss. It’s sold variously as Orchid Moss (Lowe’s) or New Zealand Moss. I add a diluted india ink to it to darken it. Be sure it’s permanent ink, otherwise it will just fade away.
Looks good. Encourages us all to look at often-neglected species for yamadori. Thanks for posting this.
what an excellent tree Michael !
Art Rodriguez
Nice work Michael, Howard and John! I am looking forward to seeing the development of the branches.
So are we!!! I hope we do better than the nutria that nibbled on it…