‘Janet’ Juniper. The name derives from the fact that I collected this tree from my sisters garden. There is no Janet Juniper in the Hillier Manual of trees and shrubs 🙂 This tree has big sentimental value to me for a few reasons.

Janet was the one who got be started with bonsai by buying me a tree back in 1993.

This juniper was lifted from her garden in 1995 when she was selling the house to emigrate to Australia.

It is also one of the first trees I have ever collected and is the first tree that I ever carved.

It has humble beginnings, it still had a £2.50 price label buried in the trunk when I lifted it. It had a spread of 7 feet in width and was 4 feet high. It was cut back hard, amazing it survived to be honest and responded well with rapid back budding. I have been unable to ascertain the variety. I have never seen it again in a garden centre. It has fine needle foliage with a light blue tinge. If left to over grow, some scale foliage will appear.

This is the oldest picture I can find of this tree. It shows my first feeble attempts to carve and style. Not a pretty sight!

1997

I have changed this tree more than any other tree in my collection, I constantly juggle the front seeking the best option. I’m still looking!

1998

2000

2003

This is the tree now in 2011. It was repotted this Spring in a new pot from Walsall Ceramics.