Source material: 2/09/2018
As the weather continues to warm up and
frosts become rarer here in Ohio,
repotting season
is on its tail end - if you're not already finished with it. I'm hoping to
squeeze in my last few this week and also plan ahead for future bonsai by
sowing my newest batch of seeds. In the spirit of finishing the repotting season, I was also planning to
post the second major repot I did this year - once which involves
substantial risk and reward. For now, that's all you'll get about it
because, in the spirit of breaking my habit of writing overly long articles,
today we have to first take a trip back in time and discuss the history of
my gargantuan
rosebush landscape-origin/yardadori
prebonsai. It has perhaps the largest
trunk rose I've
seen in the bonsai world (not that they're a common bonsai subject to begin
with!).
Sections
This rosebush originated from the same era of
my life as the previous post's
Mulberry. While attending the University of Washington for my undergraduate degree, I
didn't have a car and had to take buses, ferries, and Ubers to reach
Elandan Gardens
for my informal apprenticeship, but nonetheless, I was still hellbent on
fitting in my bonsai time and adding to my collection where I saw the
opportunity. Luckily, 3 years ago, I stumbled upon a huge rosebush. It was
freshly uprooted, bare-rooted, and destined for a grisly death by city compost
compactor.
Most of the homes in my neighborhood were
rentals so
landscaping was an afterthought. Since I was confident the owners didn't want it, I liberated the poor plant and analyzed its prospects for its new life
as a bonsai. In the picture above, the reddish bark shows the part of the trunk that used to be buried. Some species of trees that
clump at ground
level accumulate massive trunks underground as the clumps merge into feeding one mass of roots. When looking for potential bonsai material, that's the kind of thing you will never find out without a little dig-vestigation. You can see above the main trunk is about as thick as a pop can is tall and maybe a foot and a half long just in the previously buried section. In the pictures below, let's play with different planting angles that the tree could be viewed at to better utilize its entire trunk.
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I guess semi-cascade was an option too... I was not a fan in this case though. Planting angle #2.
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Possible planting angle #3.
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Possible planting angle #3 full-view. You can see the bush has many
stems coming off only a few places.
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Planting angle #3 from an alternate front. I'm starting to like this
one...
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Planting angle #3 from the opposite front as above.
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Still on planting angle #3, just a bigger picture of where the roots
and branches land in it.
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Okay, y'all can clearly see I arrived on planting angle #3 as
my future goal. As with the
front, the exact
future angle is uncertain and can be played with more later when the tree
has more substantial roots. Generally speaking though, I like that angle #3
will allow us to appreciate and use the entire trunk that used to be buried
and imparts some eye-catching movement in the trunkline as the above-ground
trunk splits off into another direction.
Before we can achieve
the radical transformation to planting angle #3, as with most things in
bonsai, we must take baby steps to help the tree evolve towards our goal.
On this day in 2018, it meant planting our new prebonsai at its old
planting angle in a large training pot with a 100% pumice soil mix to
encourage healthy roots and
recovery.
This is especially needed because the lower right end of the root mass
(see above) does not have many roots! Yet, for planting angle #3, we need
the tree to rely entirely on roots in that section so the rest of the
formerly buried trunk can be exposed. The transformation is possible, it
just takes time and planning.
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I used this old milk crate I found in an alley and lined it with
window screen to contain the soil. In hindsight, this size of window
screen got clogged a little too easily and I'm now testing a bigger
size.
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Some long roots were shortened and some roots on the top of the trunk
were removed to begin the tree's new path.
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The tree was mostly left to recover for the first year. It was placed in a shady part of the garden and water levels were closely monitored for dry soil or wilting foliage indicating a need for more water. Thereafter, our rosebush tree put on mild growth year after year. After moving it across the country to Ohio it has remained in remarkable health. Vigorous growth and backbudding are good signs, hence I knew it was ready to take the next step in its transformation. In next week's post, we will compress a 3-year wait for a dream into an instant.
Stay tuned!
2. Current Repot Operation
3. Blog Announcements
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Submit your trees for critique or advice here. I need new trees for the next Bonsai Buds episode! Guest announcement
TBD.
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Contact me if you ordered seeds from me last year and they did not
germinate. Now is the perfect time to plant!
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6 New seed types are now on sale on my Etsy store with my 10-year bonsai growing guide. I have
some unique ones such as Bloodgood Japanese Maple, Shore Pine, and more.
See if any catch your interest.
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I also recently updated the Seed-Growing Guide for 2021 with new
pictures!
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Baseline bulk options and pricing also updated. Now you get more seeds
for your buck!
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