Jan 1 2018

Bonsai Eejit in 2018

Happy New Year to all those who follow this blog.

2017 was a big year for me with bonsai taking a bigger role. Ireland is a small place and we are isolated in many ways from the rest of the bonsai community and 2017 saw me covering a lot of ground teaching bonsai.

I’d just like to say a massive thank you to all the other ‘bonsai eejits’ that made this year so successful. To the 30 who took part in one to one sessions, to the 11 who took part in monthly study group sessions. To the 2 Irish clubs in Leinster and Munster who’s support and faith in my abilities has been massive. To the folks over in the Ayr Bonsai for inviting me over to talk back in March.

2018 will see a continuation of the groundwork laid in 2017. I have 10 days in January with the guys down in Munster Bonsai doing one to ones and starting a new Bonsai School set up following the years of success my own club had with this format with Willowbog Bonsai.

I’m continuing the Study Group series with Leinster Bonsai through until May 2018. If you are Dublin based and interested in taking part, contact the guys here.

I will also be expanding the study groups set up here at my home. These have been running for a year now and feedback has been fantastic. If you live local and want to know more, then click here.

I look forward to catching up with bonsai friends worldwide again in 2018. A happy new year to you all.

Dec 28 2015

One to One: Hornbeam & Zelkova

Here’s a couple of pieces I worked on last week during a one to one session. Both the before shots are slightly older photos but give a good view of the changes made.

First up is a hornbeam that was getting it’s first proper wiring. Tree has a nice trunk and we wanted to get it started on the path to make a nice deciduous image.

And then this Zelkova group got taken out of it’s training box and potted into a more suitable pot. Two new smaller trees were added at the rear to help the image.

Jun 25 2015

One to One: Hawthorn

Had a long one to one session today with the main focus being on the Hawthorn species and a few Maples thrown in for good measure.

This one is really coming on since being worked in a session last July.

This was the tree in July last year. Coming along nicely.

May 14 2015

One to One – Field Maple

I had a one to one session on Tuesday night and was rather taken with this Field Maple, Acer Campestre, that was one of 4 trees worked on in the session. The tree had been purchased from Kaizen Bonsai a few years back and some of Mr Potters carving was clearly evident. I think this species in under used here in the UK. Yes, I know it a little coarse in the branch structure, but the species bring so much more to the table in the way of character.

We were limited to what we could do with the tree in leaf but were able to make a few decisions and remove a few unwanted branches. A partial defoliation was done, a bit early but not an issue with this species. A new front was found and a slight change in potting angle for next Spring. The tree will get a full wiring in the Autumn and will be a very nice rugged image in the years to come.

Apr 16 2015

One to One: Mixed Bag

I had Ben over for a one to one last Saturday with a van load of trees to discuss and work on, always an enjoyable session with Ben.

These are a few of the trees covered on the day. First up a beech that got a pruning, thread grafting and a repot.

This Beech group on a slate had a few adjustment made to the slate so it didn’t look like it had just been stolen off a roof!

And finally a Yamadori Hawthorn getting it’s first shaping. A strange one to do but we opted to try and recreate an actual Hawthorn image that can be seen throughout Ireland. Typically seen growing the in the middle of a field with cattle lying under it. I suggested this to Ben as a possible accent feature but thankfully he’s wise enough to know that this would be tacky 🙂

Mar 14 2015

One to One : Scot’s Pine

Another one to one today, this time helping out with a tricky repot of a Scots Pine. I love this tree! It’s been in a wooden box for a few years to increase vigour after a few years dealing with Needle Cast. I helped with the first styling of this tree back on 11th September 2001, an easy date to remember due to the tragedy that unfolded as we finished the tree.

This was the tree today.

And after a tidy up and old needle removal…

Then the repot

and the result

Over exposure but kinda cool all the same …

It’s been nice to keep a connection with this tree over the years. I even looked back in my files and found some older photos.

September 2001

March 2002

And a virtual image I made back in 2002. Not too far off the mark.

Stephen reworking the tree back in 2004

2011 with Stephen for scale. The tree isn’t really that big, Stephen is tiny!

Being inspected by Peter Warren in 2012

Mar 11 2015

One to One : Zelkova Group

Had another one to one session on Tuesday night, this time helping to get this Zelkova group planting on the right track. This is a very natural looking group put together last year after the trees had been field grown for a number of years by a previous owner. The group needed a serious working through planning for the best approach for each tree and branch. We had some die back to deal with and a few straight branches to sort out.

This was it last April after putting it together.

This was it on Tuesday night. Extension growth has been cut back a few times over the last growing season.

This is it after pruning last night with it’s new owner. Still some branches in need of work but care needs to be taken not to lose the naturalness of this image. Another year in the training box gaining vigour will allow for more detailed work next Spring and perhaps a pot.

Mar 2 2015

One to One: Repotting Session

Saturday was another one to one session for me this time helping to repot some tricky trees.

This Hawthorn collected from a garden by Ben a few years back was one of the first trees tackled. A decision had to be made about a heavy long root that would dictate what pot it would fit into.

First this tree moss covering the lower trunk had to be removed. I hate this stuff. It gets in under rough bark and can cause it to lift off.

We then had to wash out the old mix and any original field soil. This allowed us to see exactly what had to be reduced and allowed us to see that the heavy root could be removed without putting too much stress on the tree. It had done well under Ben’s care and plenty of fine root was in evidence.

My handy root washing system 🙂

And this is the tree potted up at it’s new angle.

Next is a Shohin Cotoneaster. The current pot is too heavy and clunky for the tree.

Ben has this little Epimedium accent in a nice Erin pot and he thought it was a better option for the Cotoneaster.

I think he was right, works for me, especially as the tree fills out further.

This little pine was moved from a flower pot over into this new home. Early days but interesting project.

This Larch from a previous one to one styling was brought along to be repotted at it’s new angle.

This big Juniper was actually first one repotted. It’s a real odd ball of a tree but has been fun to play around with.

This literati Pine also got a move from a flower pot. Early days again for it but going to be really nice in a few years.

A busy but very productive session.

Mar 1 2015

One to One: Zelkova

I helped out with the development of this Zelkova on Friday night. The owner has just bought the tree and wanted to get it moving in the right direction. I know this tree well and have seen it pass through the hands of 2 other club members over the years. It originally came into Northern Ireland from Japan back in 2002 I think. Below is it when it can in and also sitting on the bench in the background in the nursery in Japan.

This is the tree now. It’s had an up and down life here. After some great work early on it went through a period of neglect due to the owners personal circumstances. At one point near death, it was bought by another friend of mine who did a great job of getting it back to full health. Many of the original branches had died and in some places new branches have started to develope.

It has a great nebari, probably the best feature of the tree, and some very old bark on the trunk showing the age of the tree.

Although the image as it sits now looked good from a distance, there was a lot of issues with heavy branches high up the tree, new thin branches lower down that need to be grown on to fatten, and some ugly pruning wounds that need reduced now. We picked a slightly different front that the last owner to improve the trunk line and taper.

This is it after pruning and reduction of wounds, Some branches have been left uncut to allow extension and thickening.

And this it it after some wiring to reposition branches. Still a way to go with this one but give it 5 years of good care and it will be a very nice tree.

Also done in the same session was this little Shohin Japanese Maple. It needed a repot and into something a little larger to allow for development.

This Shohin Korean Hornbeam also got a repot and a serious thinning out of the foliage too. Sorry no before photo. Typical of mass produced imported material but with some effort I think it can make a nice image.

For anyone interested in a one to one, click on the tab at the top.

Feb 15 2015

One to One : Japanese Maple Clump

This really nice Japanese Maple Clump came to my place on Saturday for a little work. Already a great tree, it needed a little work to keep the foliage under control and to help improve ramification.

One of the issues with this tree was the trunk on the far right which is a lot stronger than the other. This was going to need a heavier pruning.

We started with the other trunks to build a better structure. This is something that needs to be kept on top of with a decent tree or thickening of branches on outer reaches will occur and years of work can be ruined. Afterwards we removed quite a bit from the fast growing trunk on the right and then sealed all the cuts to stop dessication.

The reduced strong trunk.

Next step was to remove tree moss that was covering the nebari and starting to climb the tree. This was hiding one of the best features of this tree. Initial work done with a toothbrush and fingers but was finished off with a water jet.

The final change was to do with it’s position in the pot and the direction of movement of the tree. The tree was potted a year ago and sat centrally in the pot. However looking at the movement of the main trunk and the nice flow of those to the left of it, we decided that by potting the tree slightly further to the right and giving more negative space to the left would add more interest to the image. This will require the strong growing tree on the right to be kept under tight control. The tree was taken out of the pot and a little root pruning allowed us to reposition it without the requirement for a full blown repot. The roots were fantastic for a years growth.

The tree before and after work. The plan is for the lower left branches to be extended further to help create a more dynamic image over the next few years. Pot is slightly big for this Winter image but perfect for the development that’s required to take it to the next level.