Over the years, I’ve experimented with a number of approaches to developing ume. I’ve fully defoliated the tree in spring, partially defoliated it, and avoided defoliating at all. I’ve let it grow stronger before pruning and kept it in shape with regular pruning. To date, I haven’t seen a big difference in how the tree […]
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Defoliating a Japanese maple
My shohin Japanese maple grew well this spring which makes it a good candidate for defoliating. I removed the leaves, pruned a few long shoots, and covered the surface of the soil with moss. Before defoliating After defoliating – 7″ tall When the new shoots begin to emerge, I’ll pinch them the same way I […]
Creating redwood bonsai: step 1
A common first step in creating redwood bonsai is to remove most (or all) of the branches. Removing the branches makes it possible to develop new branches with short internodes, and with short internodes, we have much more flexibility with how dense the resulting tree can become. For the tree to respond well to initial […]
Thinning a Japanese maple forest planting
Last year I repotted a Japanese maple forest that was created by Gene Lynch. As a result, the tree is far more vigorous this year than it was last year. I pinched it for a few weeks as the new shoots emerged but quickly fell behind as more new shoots appeared. Japanese maple in April, […]
Highlights from the ABAS’s 62nd annual exhibit
The American Bonsai Association Sacramento held their 62nd annual show last weekend at the Shepard Garden & Art Center in Sacramento’s McKinley Park. You’ll find photos of the event below. For those interested in learning more, event headliner Andrew Robson and I recorded a critique of these trees on the Bonsai Wire podcast. Hinoki/Sawara Cypress […]