Garlic Succession - An Example of Synergy of Bonsai and Veggie Gardening! + NEW Sale Of The Month

Upcoming bonsai events/announcements in Columbus, OH:

• 8/8 Bonsai and Coffee: Intro to Indoor Bonsai (Wiring Styling Focus) Workshop @ Casa Cacao - reserve your spot while you can!
• 8/16 - Columbus Bonsai Society Meeting at Franklin Park Conservatory (Bring Your Own Tree)
• NEW August '26 Sale of the Month at In Vivo: get a free cherry tomato plant for your late summer and early fall harvesting with the purchase of any tool, indoor or outdoor bonsai tree, workshop, book, pot, and more here in Old North Columbus. I will also extend this offer to online orders where it is legal for me to ship them (excludes a few states and media mail). Anyone who wants to volunteer and work on trees together can also get one.
• I also just listed the tomato plants for sale at Invivobonsai.etsy.com if you want a bulk quantity. I'll try to start adding more live plants there but locals will always get a cheaper deal due to avoiding fees and shipping costs.

          Over the last few years, I have gotten increasingly into vegetable gardening and it's an area I am still experimenting with and learning more about. When I sell bonsai at events, I have always told people that bonsai is easiest if you have other plant experience already as you are halfway there on a lot of fundamental knowledge. Well now I'm going in reverse! In pursuing vegetable growing alongside bonsai, my goals were to save money and eat more fresh healthy food, which is very easy once your plants are happy and producing at a rapid pace. You definitely don't want any food you spent time and effort growing to spoil, so it does force you to eat more veggies than you might have otherwise!). At some point I will make a bigger article on what I am learning in the crossover of these two planty hobbies. Both require specific seasonal steps to be the most successful so there are definite similarities.

Repotting and Thinning Mature Ficus and Jades: Steps for Maintenance of Historic Bonsai

Source material: August 2020

            Recently, I randomly ran into someone who inherited some historic bonsai trees that I had previously been caring for alongside the former owner. Mrs. E had 3 different indoor bonsai - a Ficus benjamina dwarf variety, a Ficus macrocarpa, and a jade (Crassula ovata) grove - all 20-30 years old or more. While Mrs. E had an excellent garden and a proven track record for the maintenance watering and care of these trees, she did not have the nuanced experience in bonsai for more serious operations such as repotting and styling. This is why I and other Columbus Bonsai Society members before me were asked to come help her every few years to keep the trees healthy and not let them get too unshapely. She was my first bonsai client when I moved back to Columbus. Normally Mrs. E sat out with me, and we'd chat while I was doing the bonsai work. In this article you can see the before and after from their repotting when I first met her and these trees.

            In Part 2 next week, I will share an "Open Letter to First Time Bonsai Owners" which is adapted from the email I sent to the new owners of these trees. My goal was to provide the essential points needed to keep the trees happy and healthy and to assess their needs for a novice bonsai artist especially for dealing with precious older trees as your first foray into bonsai.

Sections:

1. Repotting of Historic, Mature Tropical Ficus and Jade Bonsai (this week)
1. Ficus benjamina
2. Ficus macrocarpa
3. Crassula ovata, aka Jade
2. Open Letter to First Time Bonsai Owners (next week)
1. How to assess a bonsai's immediate care needs
2. More recent pictures from pruning these historic Ficus bonsai.

In Vivo Bonsai Announcements/Upcoming Events in Columbus

• April 12, 2025 - 4TH Annual Columbus Bonsai Society INVASIVE Alliance / Yamadori Study Group Dig. I am organizing this free event for the 4th year in a row. As I have written about previously, come out and learn your native vs invasive plant ID, get some advice on digging trees and getting them to live, and on turning our home-grown species from wild bonsai/yamadori into successful bonsai. RSVP here by 4/11.
• April 27, 2025 - Columbus Bonsai Society Monthly meeting on Techniques for All Stages of Deciduous Development. I will be leading the discussion and presentation. All members are encouraged to bring one or more deciduous tree and think ahead on what techniques or next steps you think that tree needs for this growing season. Facebook event here.
• May 03, 2025 - Bonsai and Coffee. Intro to Indoor Bonsai Workshop at Casa Cacao Cafe in Columbus, OH hosted by yours truly. Sign up here.

After repotting and pruning on these historic, mature ficus bonsai.

A Visit to Green Witch Gardens - Michigan's Largest Bonsai Nursery

            A few months back I had the pleasure of being invited to give a talk for the Ann Arbor Bonsai Society by Ellen Veselenak, their new club VP and head of programming. Before my club presentation, I was able to stop over at her nursery - the Green Witch Gardens - which I learned is the largest bonsai nursery in Michigan. As it turns out, the Green Witch Gardens was originally called The Flower Market, and has been operating between Dundee and Monroe, MI for decades through different owners before Sara, Ellen, and Melissa took over most recently. Since assuming ownership, the Green Witches have learned bonsai quickly, traveled to countless bonsai shows to sell their trees, and they have also become even more of a staple of their local bonsai scene with many educational opportunities each month. Meanwhile, the Green Witch Gardens also do some of the typical nursery/flower store things beyond bonsai as well. To dive deeper into their histories and plans for the Green Witch Gardens and what it means for them to strive towards being a community hub, I sat down with Ellen and Mellissa while I visited to record an interview with them during my visit. Please enjoy our conversation over at the Bonsai Time Podcast Episode 38 - Behind the Scenes at the Green Witch Gardens and get a glimpse of their nursery through the trove of photos below.

In Vivo Bonsai Announcements/Upcoming Events in Columbus

• CyberMonday sale: Now through 12/4/24 I am offering 25% off any purchase of $40 or more on my Etsy and my in-person bonsai nursery here in Columbus, OH. Contact me to visit in person or to discuss ordering/shipping any items mentioned below that are not yet in the webstore.
• My Etsy page currently has a variety of seeds along with my bonsai-from-seed printed guide to help you plan for the long term and a few bonsai books available there. In person you will also find trees, pots, wire, tools, soil, and more.
• January 19th, 2025, 2-5pm at Franklin Park Conservatory - Japanese Garden Design with Walter Reins
• January 25th, 2025 9am-11am - Intro to Indoor Bonsai with Upper Arlington Recreation. For details and to sign up, see here.

A row of larch bonsai at the Green Witch Gardens.

What's in a Grow Tent? The Science and Tools Behind Keeping Indoor Bonsai Healthy

Source material: November 21, 2021

        While we're on the subject of my latest Youtube ventures such as the Todd Schlafer demonstration I posted on the Columbus Bonsai Society's new Youtube channel last week, I wanted to also take a moment to share another recording from a recent CBS Meeting. Last November while the final few deciduous leaves were falling in Ohio and the first nightly frosts were appearing, CBS held a meeting focused on preparing trees for winter. One of our seasoned members lectured on how to protect outdoor bonsai over winter and I volunteered to present on preparing an indoor space for your tropical bonsai over winter. Given my background in academia and in science, my lecture focused on the biology of tropical trees, the physical aspects of tropical environments compared to the conditions inside typical homes, and how we can improve those conditions to help our trees grow better. Although many parts of the northern hemisphere are already exiting winter, for many apartment-dwelling bonsai hobbyists or those who otherwise are only focused on indoor growing, this lecture will be relevant at any time of year. A tree growing indoors on a windowsill will simply never grow at its full potential unless we supplement things like light, humidity, airflow, and warmth. You can watch the full lecture below to learn more about how you can improve the health of your indoor bonsai and develop them faster. I'll include some additional details at the end of the article including the exact products I've used in the past just to give you an idea of the possibilities.

Sections

1. Full Lecture - Time-Saving Tools for Growing Tropical Bonsai Indoors
2. Supplies to Improve Indoor Growing
1. My starter supplies:
2. My current supplies with grow tent:
3. Current setup with pictures:
3. Blog Announcements

Apparently, I'M in a grow tent! But seriously, read on to see what type of lights I've been using. This picture is from when I first got my grow tent in the fall of 2020. I have definitely noticed it helped my tropical trees stay happier in winter.