New Spring Growth

With an increase in the daytime temperatures some of my small trees are beginning to wake up from their winter sleep Her are some pictures of the ones that have been re-potted this year.

Acer Palmatum Deshogo shohin

Acer Shishigashira

Chojubai Quince shohin

Old Yamadori Hawthorn in a new Ian Baillie pot

2 more homegrown shohin Hawthorns

2 shohin trident maples. Both these trees suffered a bit last year, each losing a good lower branch due to the long cold winter but they are looking much stronger this year.

My 2 Zelkovas are usually the last of my trees to leaf out. the buds are swelling at the moment but it will be a few weeks before the new leaves return.

And finally today, this isn’t new spring growth but I couldn’t resist showing it anyway. One of my cotoneasters  still looking great with a good crop of last years berries still intact.

Some Autumn Colour

The autumn colour is over now, for this year, but here are some pictures, which show the best of it in recent weeks.

This Zelcova Serrata never disappoints me

Here are some hawthorns which have performed well this year.

2 maples in development.

My large Japanese beech is starting to look good.

The cotoneaster landscape.

 

and finally my favourite larch

Re-potting 2 Broom Style Zelkova Shohin

My 2 Zelkova Serrata shohin trees are generally the last of my deciduous bonsai to be re-potted. The first one has been in its Watanabe Ikou pot since I acquired it in 2013 and its been 2 years since the roots were last trimmed. The Ikou pot is quite small and shallow and doesn’t provide much room for development. This year I have decided to give the tree a rest and plant it in a much larger pot to restore its vigour and hopefully thicken up the trunk a little. The first picture shows how it looked after the last root pruning in 2015.

The second picture shows how it looked when it was removed from its pot at the weekend, Plenty of long roots there.

This is how it looks at the moment in the larger pot, not so pretty. It will stay in this pot for next 2 years while I continue to develop the tree and after that time it may be returned to a smaller pot if I am happy with its progress.

The second tree has been in this Wallsal pot for 2 seasons. Both  trees were acquired at the same time but this one has spent its time in slightly deeper pots than the first one and has grown much stronger.

I have repotted this one into the Ikou pot this year

This is how the second tree looked 4 years ago

 

Autumn Colour in My Shohin Trees

As the days get colder, reminding us that it will soon be time to move our trees into their winter protection, The autumn colour in the garden just gets better.

Here are some pictures of a few of my shohin trees that are looking good at the moment.

Trident Maple

Cotoneaster

Zelkova Serrata

and another Cotoneaster

Summer Defoliation Continues

Here are 2 more shohin trees that were partially defoliated today

Acer Shishigashira before

Acer Shishigashira after

Zelkova Serrata before

Zelkova Serrata after

 

Final Preparations for the National Show

It’s been a busy week collecting moss and carrying out the final preparation of my trees for the Scottish National Bonsai Show tomorrow. Fortunately the weather has been kind and we are enjoying sunshine and warm temperatures at the moment.

Here are some pictures I took this morning of the trees and accents I will be taking with me.

Chuhin Japanese Larch

Shohin trident maple in a pot by Eimei

Shohin Deshojo maple in a yellow Shibakatsu pot

Cotoneaster in a pot by Eimei

Zelkova Serrata in a pot by Ikkou Watanabe

Hinoki Cyprus in a pot by Hokido

2 Pinus Parviflora in Bigei pots

Sedum Spathufolium Capa Blanca in a pot by Junsun Yamamoto

Saxifrage in a Suteki accent pot by Simon Haddon

Deciduous Shohin in Late Winter

Now that the winter maintenance on my larches has been completed for another year it’s time to start work on my deciduous trees. Here is a group picture of some of the better ones I will be working on this week, weather permitting of course.

The daytime temperatures in my greenhouse are beginning to rise and the buds are starting to swell but with night time temperatures likely to fall below zero, extra vigilance is required to ensure that no damage is done. This is the riskiest time of year for small trees in small pots.

A New Year Begins

 

 

As I sit here at my laptop, reflecting on what was for us here in Scotland, one of the most challenging growing seasons in my experience. A season, which began with a bitterly cold Spring, followed by a Summer with very little sunshine; saved only by some good weather in the autumn, I thought I would share again some of the photographs which are my personal favourites and mark the highlights in my bonsai year.

Without a doubt my favourite tree this year is my Lions Head Maple which just goes from strength to strength with each passing season. It looked particularly good in Autumn this year.

This cotoneaster has been another favourite of mine, more so because it was collected from my garden for free. It was planted in this red glazed pot by Eimei in the Summer to show off the berries and had its first outing to Bonsai Europa in October.

This hobby is as much about the people you do it with as it is about the trees and my life would be a lot duller without my good friend Gerry and the members of The Lanarkshire Bonsai Club who feature regularly on these pages.

The next photograph was taken in late May and it was the first occasion that all my trees were outside at the same time.

My highlight of the Summer was our winning club display at the Scottish Bonsai Show. It’s always a joy to see trees that you have cared for displayed at their best.

My 2 favourite junipers were both re-potted this year.

The first is a Blauws Juniper, which is almost complete. It will need a fine wiring and a good display table this year

The second is an Itoigawa Juniper. It is coming along well but the foliage needs more refinement and it will have to be re-planted into a slightly smaller show pot.

A few more that are beginning to come into their own, that may venture out to the show bench this year.

Zelcova

Potentilla

Japanese Larch

Cork Barked Elm

Finally, I would like to thank all of the people who take the time to look and comment on my posts, It’s you guys that make the effort worthwhile.

HAVE A HAPPY NEW BONSAI YEAR

All Ready for Bonsai Europa

As I set off on the journey south to Bury, here’s a preview of the trees I will be contributing to the Lanarkshire Bonsai  Club display at Bonsai Europa this weekend.

Juniper over rock in a Chinese pot

Dwarf Hinoki in a pot by Hokido

Trident maple in autumn colour ( I just hope the leaves don’t drop off)

Cotoneaster in a red pot by Eimei

Zelkova in a pot by Ikkou

Getting Ready For The Show Part 2

Here are some more pictures of the other trees that I will be taking to the Scottish Bonsai Show in Troon this Sunday.

Japanese Black Pine in a new pot by Bigei.

Dwarf Hinoki Cyprus in a pot by Hokido

Zelkova Serrata in a pot by Watanabe Ikkou

Another Zelkova Serrata in a new pot by Walsall Ceramics

The first three will be in our club’s display and the last one will be entered in the separate shohin competition.