Jan 28 2012

Garage Night Tree #2

This is a Beech that Stan brought along for some thinning out and general discussion.

This is the tree after thinning and with a slight change of front selected. It will need a slight readjustment in the pot and then it’s good to go.

Commiserations to Stan today, he’s a Manchester United Fan and insists on wearing his Utd top and scarf to my garage nights. Being a Liverpool fan this is somewhat inflammatory!! A pity the workshop wasn’t tonight, the jacket may have been left in the car 😀 Just for Stan, here’s a photo of Utd Goal Keeper today ‘Dylan DeGea’ lol

Jan 24 2012

Redburn Ramblers

As usual, here are some photos from my Sunday walk looking for trees to inspire when creating bonsai.

These were taken at Redburn Country Park overlooking Belfast Lough.

Two strange blokes wandering around taking photographs of trees 🙂

A very old Rhododendron hedge that has collapsed on itself. Spooky looking!

A Beech with fused branches in all sorts of shapes. Some really nice Beech here.

Again, spooky. Wouldn’t want to walk up there in the dark!!

Some of the beautiful Beech.

Rooting into it’s own decomposing stump hollow. How about that for recycling

We spotted 5 different Rafts on the walk. Some lying side by side. They all look to have been blown flat at the same time many years ago.

Side by side rafts

This one might even be worth digging up!

Old Scottie with his head in the sun.

Long uro on an Ash.

Grain in an old rotting log.

Through and through

This beech has obviously been eroded away by some sort of infection. Nice hollows on the trunk now.

Wouldn’t be a walk without fungi 🙂 This old stump looks as if someone has been throwing frisbees about!

Ivy Seed heads

Hill streams

Miniature world under foot.

Peek-a-boo fern

Stenna heading out of Belfast Lough

Hope you enjoyed the walk.

Nov 14 2011

Beech Stripped

I was clearing up some of my trees yesterday in preparation for Winter. This Beech was on my list for putting into the Poly Tunnel. This tree is 63 years old. Forestry records 🙂 This is it with the leaves still clinging on.

And this it after Stan and I did a little plucking. I always like to remove the leaves on my Beech over the Winter. This way I can enjoy the branch structure and it leaves fewer places for little beasties to hide.

Oct 25 2011

A Few Others From Yesterday

Some from my very wet and windswept benches.

Aug 31 2011

Some Out… Some In….

Now that Josh’s trees are nearly all away home again after holiday care, I have just taken possession of Brian’s trees while he floats around on a Narrow Boat for a few weeks.

He dropped off his trees yesterday, and today I moved a few around the benches to make better use of space. I took this opportunity to take a few photos.

This is his Alder.

Shohin Pyracantha

Chamaecyparis Obtusa

Golden Yew

Brian lives in an exposed spot along the shore and has struggled to keep a few species in good health since he moved there I few years ago. He says ‘enough is enough’ and is now selling a few of them. This Beech is one of them. You can see that the leaves had been severely wind burned this year but the tree has put out another flush. Obviously a strong tree.

He has left them with me for care and to sell. A few others as well if anyone locally is interested. A beech group, a cascade juniper, Korean Hornbeam, Fuji Cherry and a Chinese Juniper.

Aug 30 2011

Autumn Creeping in…

What a strange year it’s been for our trees. I’m seeing signs of Autumn all around the garden and not always where you would expect it.

This is one of my Crab Apples, well on the way to leaf drop.

This is a Beech Forest that belongs to my friend Josh. One of the stragglers still to make it home after the Summer care. If you are wondering what the yellow bit is, it’s a rope off a kids swing that has been wound around the slate edge for a year to allow loose soil from the repot to mesh together.

This is my Hawthorn Raft already dropping leaves, not much in the way of colour though.

This Rhododendron usually only flowers in March. Over the last week or so it’s had flowers opening. They started at the extreme right and have been working their way back along the tree.

May 22 2011

Walk in the shade

It amazing the difference a few weeks makes to a walk. I walk in these woods every 2 or 3 weeks and this time it was striking just how full the canopy has become creating that dappled shade.

Blue skies after very heavy rain all night. We wrapped up expecting rain and the heat left us cursing the layers!

May 9 2011

Beech Loving Wasp

I spotted this little fella on my Beech today. Not a common wasp, may not even be a wasp but it sure looks like one. He was oblivious to me and the camera. I was wondering if it was one of those leaf cutting ones but he never got around to it. Pretty in his own way.

I also have about 20 million of these feckers in the garden at the minute. They do there very best to land on bare skin or fly into your mouth!!

Apr 24 2011

Easter Walk in the Woods

My family and I went for our traditional egg throwing/rolling session in the local woods followed by a bit of a walk. The bluebells are just reaching their peak flowering and it was beautiful to see the blue carpet wherever you looked.

It’s mostly a Beech and Hazel wood and many of the Beech are well into the growing season.

This is the battle ground for the egg rolling where I regained the winners title this year 🙂

Tree roots criss cross all the paths and the ground actually feels and sounds hollow under foot in many places.

Flowers can be seen everywhere. Here’s our native Bluebell, not the Spanish one that seems to be taking over!!

Some of the Yellow Gorse/Whinbush flowers. The air was heady with the scent of coconut from these stunning flowers. Pity they are too problematic for bonsai.

Some of the Blackthorn were still holding onto their flowers.

One of my favourite photos of the day, an old Beech ringed with a patch of Bluebells. New Beech seedling can also be seen reaching for the light before the parents shade them out.