This past weekend the Bay Area Bonsai Associates, affectionately known as BABA, held their 34th annual exhibit at the Lakeside Garden Center in Oakland, CA. The exhibit featured bonsai in formal and informal displays. Most of the formal displays are situated on individual tables that let viewers see trees from three sides. This is great […]
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Feed me!
What’s wrong with this picture? Cork bark black pine The tree is growing, but there is no sign of fertilizer. With tea bags filled with cottonseed meal That’s better. The sooner I can start fertilizing, the stronger I can make the tree by decandling time. I enjoy seeing the male flowers on pine, despite the mess. […]
Time for a smaller pot
First develop the trunk, then work on the branches. That’s how I think about bonsai development. If the trunk has yet to reach its final size, I use large pots and encourage vigorous growth. When I’m happy with the trunk, I move trees to smaller pots and focus on refinement. A number of my black pines turn […]
Too much of a good thing
As I worked my way through the repotting of many pines this winter, I found a young specimen that’s beginning to take shape. Nice, I thought, it even has a good root base. Then I looked closer. Black pine – 11 years from seed Up close, I found that the roots were actually a bit much […]
Repotting young cork bark black pines
Repotting recently grafted young pines is just like repotting non-grafted pines, only additional care is taken to avoid damaging the union. Grafted cork bark black pine After removing the pot Note the white spot – there are signs of root adelgid infestation. For those curious to see how mycorrhiza differs in appearance from adelgid infestation, […]