Fall Work On Satsuki Azalea
You wouldn’t think Japanese Black Pine and Satsuki Azalea are similar in any way. And yet the common techniques for Black Pine and Satsuki are mirrors. In spring we trim the new growth. In fall we simplify the robust summer regrowth. Both strong plants, under normal care and reasonably happy Black Pine and Satsuki will […]
Formal Upright White-out Exercise: Part III
Our formal upright design series wraps this week with comments on each of the 9 remaining design options. To orient again around the options, here’s Joe’s thumbnail layout. 7 was covered at length in Part II. 1. This option has one problem that is mostly a problem of position: the bar branch indicated by the […]
Formal Upright White-out Exercise: Part II
Part I was a white-out exercise with an Ezo Spruce, asking, which branches would you cut off, if any? Thanks to all of you who offered your favorite options. It’s a complicated tree with a lot of possibility and many good options. My students in a recent Seasonal class gave the 10 options on that […]
Formal Upright White-out Exercise: Part I
A white-out exercise is a fun way to explore design options. It helps see a new design without needing to cut off a branch. This Ezo Spruce was designed in 2016 and has since filled out. It’s a skinny-trunked tree, and now there’s enough foliage mass that the design might be improved by cutting off […]
October Bonsai Projects
Here’s a handful of October projects and what we did with them. A Vine Maple that has variously been called “The Boot” and “The Moose”. The current puzzle with this collected tree is that from the side, it has grown too much to the front. Where to cut it? One chunky branch to remove. And […]
A Quick Guide to Black Pine Fall Work
A bonsai truism is that in fall we get to clean up the mess we initiated in the spring. And for pines, this mess is most apparent for the multiple flush species, like Japanese Black Pine. Black Pine will regrow from a technique known as decandling, when we cut off the spring shoots. The pine […]
Using Birds In Bonsai Display: Part II
After the post about birds in bonsai display I received a note from a friend. She reminded me that there’s more to display than location and season, and that birds (and animals) have personalities and presences that spark an emotional response. And she’s right. So here’s Birds Part II, how we might subtly tweak a […]
How To Tweak Fall Color
We tend to think of fall color in deciduous trees in clear terms. The fall leaves of Gingko are yellow. Those of Red Maple are red. Except, sometimes the Red Maple has yellow leaves. Which asks a few questions. Why are plants not the same color year after year in the fall? What’s going on […]
How To Balance Long-needled Pine Shoots
The long-needled pines like Ponderosa and Austrian Pine tend to grow large end shoots with many needles. Selectively trimming needles off can help balance shoots, weakening strong ones and strengthening the smaller ones. Typical Ponderosa pine branch with a fat end bud on the main shoot (left) and 2 smaller shoots back down the branch […]
What Do We Do With Bonsai In October?
In fall, bonsai are starting the slow slide into slumber. The following photo essay shares a few ideas of how to read the results of our summer work, and what to do in the bonsai garden in fall. This Satsuki Azalea is telling us that watering and fertilizing were adequate over the summer, as we […]