Pruning – Expressions of Grace Bonsai https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk With age comes beauty and charm Tue, 06 Feb 2024 12:46:52 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.2 https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/little-logo-75x75.png Pruning – Expressions of Grace Bonsai https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk 32 32 My Japanese White Pine is in trouble? https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/my-japanese-white-pine-is-in-trouble/ https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/my-japanese-white-pine-is-in-trouble/#respond Fri, 26 Jan 2024 15:55:50 +0000 https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/?p=2539
A video update of this tree  is displayed at the bottom of this article .

Time seems to be flying by right now!  I had intended to do a short post on how I take and look after Trident Maple and Chinese Elm cuttings…but something unexpected took priority.

My most prized Japanese White Pine, that I purchased for £45 in 2001, took a definite turn for the worst.  The needles started to brown and fall off the tree and the new candles started to brown at the tips.  Never having had to deal with health issues on this variety I naturally panicked and assumed it was Leptographium (Root Rot) or Dothistroma (needle blight).  The first is generally excepted as the bringer of death whilst the second can be treated with fungicides.

I did consider over-watering as another possiblity and moved the tree to a drier location.  The candles did not improve and I chose to do an emergency examination…

Browning needles and candles

Over the course of about 2 months the needles continued to brown and then fall from the tree whilst the juvenile candles that had looked so green and healthy also started to brown off.  This had progressed to nearly 85% of the existing growth before I realised I had a problem. 

Too many other trees and I took this one for granted…

Looking under the topsoil

I pulled back the topsoil and immediately noticed a very fine white web-like substance covering the root area.  I assumed this was some deadly root rot and assumed the tree would die so I removed the tree from its pot to establish the extent of the problem.

The root system.

Having removed the tree I could see that the entire root system was affected by this white substance.  I removed as much of this as I could and looked for any live roots.  Having cleaned it up as best I could I repotted it into a larger ceramic and left it somewhere shady to die 🙁

I wasn’t convinced that this fit the description of either of the diseases mentioned but still had no clear idea of ‘why’?

Is this starting to recover?

I watered the tree once it was newly potted and then left it alone.  In truth, I was convinced it was dead / dying and had given up hope.  I was still unable to find any similiar pictures of this type of root rot online which was a little frustrating.

One month later over 70 % of the candles have returned to green vigour and are opening up.  I have lost a number of smaller branches to this problem but I am feeling optimistic. I have changed the watering habits and am now allowing it to dry out more than previously – was over-watering the real issue?

Feel free to comment if you have any firm ideas or experience of this problem – especially longer term treatments.  I am hoping it was just the volume of rain it received in the Spring.  With this trauma managed, I moved on to my nursery stock Japanese White Pine that had been purchased in 2015 for £9.99.

Right now is definitely the time to look at wiring and pruning.  You are specifically looking for the moment when the needle sheaths have dropped as your indicator.  The rules I apply are the same as discussed in my Scots Pine post.

Pre-Styling 2020
Some aluminum wire applied
The trunk graft
First styling complete

Root over Rock - Chinese Elm Pruning

In 2019 I finally treated myself to several completed ‘root-over-rock’ Chinese Elms.  I had always promised myself that I would invest in some premium bonsai once my nursery sales had increased.  Spending over £600 for just two tree’s was my biggest ever outlay but well worth it 🙂

Yesterday I spent nearly 3 hours pruning one of them so I thought you might be interested in some before and after images.

Chinese Elm from the front
The left side pruned
Two thirds completed
Don't I look great!

If any of your Chinese Elms are looking this way then now is a pretty safe time to prune them back to your desired shape.  All of the normal pruning rules apply but just be sure to leave it in a shady place for a few weeks to allow the newly exposed leaves time to acclimatise.

Happy Bonsaing and enjoy the summer break 🙂

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Time to prune that Scots Pine https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/time-to-prune-that-scots-pine/ https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/time-to-prune-that-scots-pine/#respond Fri, 26 Jan 2024 15:30:33 +0000 https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/?p=2503

In early 2017 I decided to purchase a batch of 20 Scots Pine two-year-old saplings from eBay.  They arrived bare-rooted and at the time I had no true understanding of the necessity of mycorrhizal fungi.  I potted them up in a standard garden centre mix and left them to ‘thrive’.  The short story is that they didn’t!  Of the original twenty, only three managed to establish a healthy roots system by 2019.

When I examined the ‘deaduns’ it was clear that no beneficial fungus had developed whereas in the three healthy plants there were obvious signs of the white ‘powdery like’ mycorrhizal fungi in the soil.  I did a lot more research and am now looking to purchase some for my next set of bare-rooted saplings.

Scots Pine Saplings
April 2017
Scots Pine 2020
Jan 2020
Jul 2020
Jun 2021

This is a classic example of ‘on the job’ learning.  Looking back I wish I had understood the requirements for succesful potting of  a bare rooted pine.  Perhaps then, I would now be dealing with twenty thriving potensai subjects 🙂

What I also learnt was how difficult it was to identify that the young saplings were struggling for those years.  Yet, if I had considered their progress, I would have identified that the majority were not producing new healthy candles – as they should AND this would have told me their was probably a root issue.

So hopefully, if you are new to pines, you will take this crucial bit of knowledge and use it wisely.  Key point for pines – do not bare root them.  You want to keep a good amount of that beneficial fungus from the old soil to keep the exchange of nutrients process going.

Early summer pruning:

Around this period of summer it is a good time to start looking at your Scots Pines.  This is when we can clearly see all of the new growth and make decisions on what to keep and what to lose.  As with all pruning we must ask ourselves what stage the tree is at and what we wish to achieve.  This is explained in greater detail in the first series of ‘pruning’ posts started June 2021.

In this case, I have three four-year-old potensai that have had wire applied to them in 2020 and are now ready for further styling and development.  I will only be using one of the three for this post and I apologise now if some of the information is a little repeitive.

Lots of new growth

In this image I have tried to capture several of the branches each showing numerous new healthy shoots. Our first task is to reduce any groups of shoots to just ‘two’.  This ensures we reduce the risk of unwanted swelling and also allows us to establish directionality to our design.

If their are any yellowing needles then these can be removed

An individual branch

You are able to see that near the tip there are three shoots growing from one junction – one of these must be removed.

As an observation, I also notice that lower down the branch there are smaller single shoots growing.  This is great news because it means I may eventually be able to cut back to this growth in the future.

Which do I chose

There are no hard and fast rules about which candle you should remove in this trio.  However it does help to have a design idea already in mind.  This way you can easily identify which of the shoots is growing in the wrong direction.

Generally it is best practice to maintain acute angles (less than 90 degrees)

Cut right back to the junction

I always cut right back to the junction to leave a flush transition to the remaining shoots.  In my experience it has not been necessary to seal these size wounds with cut paste.

This operation should be repeated across the entirity of the tree – even on branches you wish to grow out.  (We must always be careful of junctions swelling)

Shorten candles

We then shorten candles as shown in the image.  This should encourage back budding from the site of the cut and also further down the branch.  Hence we aim to achieve 2 new shoots at each cut site and thereby establish ramification for next years growth.

These pines are classified as ‘single flush’ which means what we do now sets up the growth for next spring.

The future branches

This is the branch after pruning is completed.  I have two growing tips at the end which will produce further buds for next year.

I also have two weaker juvenile buds pushing out further back down the branch.  These are key for my design and I am hoping that next year I can chose to either cut completely back to these OR remove the one on the inside and leave the outside one to develop the pad.

I do also wire my pines at this time and will generally leave this in position for up to 9 months.  I have set a reminder on my phone for 6 months to check for wire bite.  It is important to already know where and in which direction you are going to be wiring your branches before pruning.

I have included one of my latest Scots Pines Collaboration videos.  This was a very difficult young tree that had been growing in my nursery bed for several years.  A fellow YouTuber (Kennet de Bonde) suggested a completely radical over haul…

It is really worth taking the time to look back over some of his earlier videos – he is extremely clear in his explanations and visually makes it much easier to know what ‘you’ should be doing next.

It is also fun to see the various ways his hair is styled 🙂

Be ready for my shop page to appear soon(ish) – it will still be centred on ‘collections only’ but I am now able to take card payments.

Keep smiling…

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Potting your collected Yamadori https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/potting-your-collected-yamadori/ https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/potting-your-collected-yamadori/#respond Fri, 26 Jan 2024 14:48:14 +0000 https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/?p=4880 How much roots do I cut off a collected tree?

In Part 2 of this Bonsai Collaboration I root prune and pot my four collected field-grown trees.

Watch to see just how much root growth you can remove safely.  I ended up with two Smooth Leaf Elms and two European Hornbeams.

Jelle @GrowingBonsai  also pops in for a few more words of wisdom…

Topics Covered today:

Cleaning and root pruning the first tree.
Why can we prune so much root?
Into a pot.
Let’s look at the Hornbeam.
Some essential advice.
What can I do with this Elm?
A root cutting perhaps?
Another tree to pot up.
A disappointing Hornbeam.
Jelle has the last word.

God Bless & Happy Bonsaiing Xavier

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Autumnal Pruning and Wiring https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/autumnal-pruning-and-wiring/ https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/autumnal-pruning-and-wiring/#respond Fri, 29 Oct 2021 11:28:56 +0000 https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/?p=2659

Well…it has been a long time since I last posted and for that I apologise.  The last few months have seen me busy with my secondary occupation and thankfully, the bonsai have thrived without much intervention.  In truth, I find that Sept-Oct can be a period for rest and reflection.  The last of the fertiliser has been applied at the commencement of Autumn along with a final bug spray.  Though – the apples have really been attacked this year and have needed constant attention!!

I also had a visit from my favorite potter in September and she had some beautiful work for me to purchase.  A separate post will follow with pictures and details soon.  If you are unable to wait then have a look for Deiceramics on Facebook and Instagram.  I have also done a little bit of work on two nursery plant projects which I can share with you now.

Some wiring for my Azalea

I found this dwarf Azalea struggling in the corner of a local garden center.  Like many of my projects this one cost very little but has seen several ‘do-overs’ during the last few years.

Unfortunately, I have no earlier images to show how far it has evolved.  I have wired and pruned it to maximise the flowering opportunities. I removed a lot of additional buds to ensure next years flush is at its best.

This Buddleia was another garden centre cast-off which I planted into a growing bed several years ago.  It has been heavily pruned up to 4 times / year and was then transplanted this March.

The trunk has majestic movement and with a little more branch reduction in 2022 this specimen should make a promising bonsai.

I will repot this into a ceramic next year.

Decidious pruning & Wiring

We have now reached the time for pruning and wiring of some of our decidious trees.  The optimal time is just as the leaves have browned off and begum to fall.  We normally have about 2 weeks to wire and prune whilst the tree can still allocate resources.  Any later than this and I find that work can be detrimental to the health of the bonsai.

So…right now two of my favorite species are dropping their leaves: The Linden (Small leaf Lime) and The Red Oak.  The Linden is  a relatively robust tree that has soft bark.  Care needs to be taken when wiring but with patience you can obtain fantastic results.  The Red Oak are much smaller examples and the wood is a lot harder to bend. 

If your tree is still in development then I would advise you to prune only those buds where you are already happy with the branch girth.  I find it better to wire out the long shoots into shorter and more interesting shapes.  Invariably, these get pruned back heavily a year or two later…

The branches have been wired to maximise future growth

This Linden was purchased from a local hedging supplier in 2017.  I removed the top 4ft and left the tree to recover for 2 years in a grow-pot.

It had been pruned twice / year and fed heavily.  The roots are still a mess beneath the soil line and I have yet to decide how many of the visible ones will be kept.

I have wired the secondary branches ‘out’ to optimise space for next years shoots.  I reduced the ‘visual’ length of the shoots by wiring in bends at appropriate bud sites.

This still requires the removal of one of the lower branches to avoid inverse taper developing.

Air layer plans for 2022

Some of the wiring has been done with the knowledge that I shall be removing the upper third of the trunk.  This will be achieved by applying an air-layer in late May.  The site of this is shown by the two black lines.  I have traced in white what will hopefully become a new potensai.

The reason for this operation is to eradicate the ugly stright trunk and allow a new ‘tapered’ apex to be developed from the existing lower branch.

It will be frustrating having to wait another year for the air layer removal to take place but I am looking forward to seeing how this looks in 2023.

 

Red Oak - Pre and Post Autumnal Work

I purchased 10 x 2-year-old whips in 2015 and left them to grow in plastric pots till 2019.  They were very slow to grow and I had no clear plan for their development.  In the end, I decided to treat them all as Mame projects and secured them in small ceramics.  These have large leaves so I tend to remove at least 65% of the growth to give an ‘impression’ of leaf pads.

The leaves turned a brilliant red in late September and then dried out by last week.  I removed the final few leaves yesterday by carefully peeling them away from the new bud growth.  I removed unsightly stubs and rubbed off the buds I did not need.  I then wired a few of the branches out to optimise next year’s shoot growth.  The branches can be quite hard so be careful with your bending!

Japanese maple - Autumnal Pruning

The one tree that must be watched for leaf-drop is your Japanese Maples.  Due to the amount of water movement they have in Spring I always do my pruning work around this time.  At the moment the leaves are about 50% still green so I shall wait another week before I commence pruning and wiring them.

Off all of the decidious varieties the Japanese Maple benefits most from having its development work done at leaf drop.  The process is no different from what I have described above but i am sure i will add a few pictures of me carrying out this work in a later post.

This is a ‘must-do’ activity.  if you forget, then your next safe opportunity for pruning will be in late May 2022.

Happy Bonsaing

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Cuttings and general bonsai upkeep https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/cuttings-and-general-bonsai-upkeep/ https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/cuttings-and-general-bonsai-upkeep/#respond Fri, 06 Aug 2021 13:25:56 +0000 https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/?p=2577

If you are anything like me then you will really struggle to throw anything away.  Every year, since I started in bonsai, I have spent as much time taking cuttings as I have in developing the trees.  This was not a deliberate choice on my part – just a natural desire to use all of that discarded material.  When I first began, I had no idea that there were techniques used for successful propagation.  I just took an offcut and planted it into some garden soil.  Any size and any time of the year that I was pruning…

Why is my stick alive?

Surprisingly, I had a reasonable amount of success during the early years so it never occurred to me that I was just lucky.   I still have an eight-year-old Corkbark Elm that started off as a broken branch discarded into a compost pile. 

I later learnt that Chinese Elm are particularly easy to propagate from cuttings – which did explain the success.

The branch that lived!

I take my cuttings twice a year.  First, is sometime in late May / early June when the spring flush of growth has extended and hardened off.  This also coincides with my pruning cycles and the increased temperatures / daylight hours.  Ideally, we would want nightime temperatures to be above 15 °C to aid root development. 

The second occasion occurs late July when I carry out my general pruning to maintain bonsai shape.  I have most success placing the cuttings into damp perlite or vermiculite.  They are then kept in a propagator or covered with an upended plastic bottle.  I keep them misted but do not water.  They are normally kept in a shaded part of the garden to reduce transpiration. 

The best results come with: Fuji Cherry, Trident Maple, Chinese Elm and Boxwood.  With indoor varieties I find that Ficus and Jade root very easily and all I need to be careful of is not to overwater them as they succumb to root rot quickly.

With Fuji Cherry I take a cutting from the point where the stem has changed colour and hardened enough to be self supporting.  I remove the growing tip and around 3/4 of the leaves.  I use a general purpose rooting hormone and then place the cutting into the soil medium.

I have used a range of potting mediums with success.  The real issue is to ensure you establish a humidity bubble to stop the stem drying out.  Don’t worry if the leaves fall off – shoots may still appear 4 -6 weeks later.

Dawn Redwood was a surprise success for me and though I only take 3 or 4 a year it is great seeing them develop.  I tend to concentrate on last years unwanted growth as it gives me a thick stem.  I use either perlite or sphagnum moss and then cover them to preserve humidity.  

It is worth remembering that after a couple of years you should consider loosely wiring the main trunk to produce the movement you desire.  Once the trunk thickens too much you have no hope of bending them!

Trident Maple are treated exactly the same and you can take up to a pencil thickness cutting.  With the thicker cuttings I use sphagnum moss as the potting medium as I find this helps the hardened wood stay hydrated whilst the roots form.  I normally leave two or three leaves on the shoots and remove the growing tip.  I always cut at the base of an internode section.

I will take up to two dozen cuttings for each washing up bowl I use – success is up to 80% for me normally.  In Year 1 I will thin out any obvious weaklings and then split them in year 2 to individual pots.

Japanese Larch are the hardest cuttings from my experience.  I have tried a variety of times and methods and can boast the grand total of 3 successes in as many years!  But at least that is three more than I had before – at no cost 🙂

Satsuki Azalea are best taken as heel cuttings.  This is when you gently peel the shoot away from the trunk or branch.  My success with these is also mixed and I have found the cuttings that have taken are extremely slow to develop.  But again, they are free…

Like the Trident Maple, you can take very thick cuttings off of a Chinese Elm.  They often propagate successfully without need of humidity covers and this time of the year I am planting all of my prunings into washing up bowls.

This spring I removed a large straight branch from one of my bigger Elms.  I removed all of the bark on the lower side and wired it into some soil to attempt a variation of the ground layer technique.  I definitely have new growth so time will tell…

I have found that so long as you apply the general principles to your propagation success will follow.  It may be discouraging in the first year because they are still not bonsai but watching them send out new shoots is definitely rewarding.  It doesn’t matter how many failures you have because the ones that do take will be your future bonsai masterpieces. 

I definitely recommend you scouring You Tube for content on ‘how to take’ cuttings – there are loads of videos available.  The only cautionary thing to remember is that we each live in different areas and it can be surprising just how varied results can be within our own ‘micro’ climates.

If you are ever confused at whether your cutting is viable it is worth taking a closer look at the rare but popular ‘dead tip’ variety.  This is a sure give away that your propagation failed!  Oh…and don’t be confused by the little green weed – that will never make a bonsai.

It is now the time to carry out 2nd pruning on your Japanese Larch but more on that in the next post.

Happy bonsaiing 🙂

The rare 'Dead Tip' cutting
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My Chinese Juniper Project https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/my-chinese-juniper-project/ https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/my-chinese-juniper-project/#respond Thu, 29 Jul 2021 19:34:33 +0000 https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/?p=2561

Two or three times a year I pay a visit to my favourite stock supplier – Savin Nurseries.  It is a massive garden centre hidden in the rural(ish) village of Lower Stondon and can cater for any of your vegetative delights.  It is also well known amongst bonsai suppliers for a broad range of premium and budget trees.  So this May I visited to find some low-cost starter trees such as Fuji Cherry, Yew or any other deciduous bargains hidden in the corners…

Little did I expect to settle on a four-foot monster Juniperous Davuricus – better known as Chinese Juniper.  Most of you know already just how much I hate working with Junipers but I am still a sucker for challenges if they are at the right price.  Twenty pounds later and a squashed ride back in my Kangoo found me wondering what on earth I was going to do with it???

It was too late to do an initial repot and as I had no idea how to style it with all of the multiple trunks I put it in the corner of the garden and ignored it.  I have found over the years that it is always best to ‘leave a tree alone’ when you really have no idea what to do with it.  Then out of the blue, just a few days ago, I started ‘fiddling’ with the trunks and clearing out the lower debris 🙂

A four foot monster juniper

Junipers are extremely popular for bonsai styling and are generally very forgiving.  They are best worked on in the spring or mid to late summer and the main rule is to never remove all of the foliage from a branch – if you want it to live. 

Multiple trunks to sort

Once I had cleared away all of the moss and dead twigs I could start to get an idea of which trunks I wanted to keep.  At this stage I recognised that their was no obvious primary trunk or front so I started to look for anything that had promising secondary branch structure or would be easier to bend once wired.

Time to get that aluminum wire

I hate Juniper for two reasons.  The first is that the juvenile growth is prickly and the second is that they generally require a lot of wire work.  As my wiring skills have improved my desire to overcome this genus has grown stronger.  Just be aware that you need different guages of wire and that the bark can be delicate. 

Over the next two days I started to apply different guages of wire.  I tended to work on a trunk by trunk basis and then ‘hopped between’ interesting branches as I felt the artistic creativity direct.  With this sized project it is important to be prudent with how much of the foliage you decide to prune – it is far too easy to remove a branch that you later realise is pivotal to the final design.

Fully wired and bends applied

This is an example of one of many of the branches that had to be wired and bends applied.  There are two gauges of wire used in this example and it is crucial to be very careful with your application.  The bark can come away very easily and that will lead to branch dieback in many cases.  I learnt how to wire by practising on branches already removed.  Bonsai Mirai do an excellent video class on this technique.

A few more bends and prunes needed

I am now at the stage where it is just the apical regions to sort out.  As this is the first styling of a complicated clump I have left a lot more branches than the final design will require.  All I am looking at now is to resolve any obvious flaws in the primary structure.

After about 5 hours work and £12 of different guage wire I am finished.  This is the front that I have chosen for now and I may tilt the tree forwards when I do the repot next spring.  The wire will be checked in about 9 months time though I expect it to remain in place for at least a year.  Several of the cut trunks and branches will be turned into deadwood and shari later in the summer.

I am really happy how this has turned out and I am quietly optimistic for its future development.  I am expecting some of the secondary branches to die as a result of clumsy wiring – but it happens!  I ended up removing around 60% of the original foliage so I will keep it in a shady spot and give it time to recover.  If all goes well I would hope to see new growth later in the year.  I will dump a load of fertiliser on it once the summer is coming to an end.

So I hope this has peaked your interest in Juniper as a bonsai subject.  They are easy to find and pretty cheap so all you need to invest in is the wire.

Happy bonsaing 🙂

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Making a Bonsai from Garden Centre Stock https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/making-a-bonsai-from-garden-centre-stock/ https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/making-a-bonsai-from-garden-centre-stock/#respond Tue, 13 Jul 2021 16:49:40 +0000 https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/?p=2524

Last year my daughter bought me a conifer from the local garden centre for Father’s Day.  I took it with great joy and then left it in the corner of the nursery until I felt the time was right to fiddle with it.  The last time I attempted to make a bonsai from this sort of material I made a horrendous error but more on that later.  I have no idea what the genus for this conifer is but it looks healthy and ready for pruning 🙂

Before going into this project I will show you a few pictures of one of my Satsuki Azalea in full bloom.  It does look fantastic but requires a repot before the winter as the soil has completely broken down.  I have removed flowers regularly to try and conserve energy and I have also done some light wiring to try and turn the flowers to the front.  I will probably do the repot in a couple of weeks once the bloom has fallen.

Satsuki Azalea in pink bloom
Light wiring to turn blooms
Wired up for about 9 months

Making my garden centre bonsai

A typical garden centre conifer

This tree cost about ten pounds and has no obvious ‘bonsai-like’ features to work with.  This is why it has sat about in the nursery for a year.  Now is not the time to consider repotting!!

First job is to clean away as much juvenile growth as you can so it is easier to identify branches you wish to use in your design.  Having an idea how tall you wish the tree to be also helps because you might as well reduce the height at a location where you have suitable upwards pointing growth.

Slowly working my way up the trunkline

I noticed that this material had a low thinner upward pointing branch that could be used as a potential second trunk.

I then removed all of the crotch growth and anything growing close to the trunk line of any branches I chose to keep.  My approach was to pick alternatively growing branches that reduced in thickness the higher up the trunk I went.

Don’t worry too much about your choices – just make sure you remove any opposing branches in your design.

More growth removed

I have used a wooden block to open up the secondary trunk to facilitate easier branch pruning and selection.  I will remove the block at the end when I am ready to apply some heavy-guage aluminum wire.

As I work up the tree my selections are based on achieving optimum numbers of branches from front, back and sides.  I have also trimmed off growing tips to encourage some new growth where I want it.

I am now looking at making decisions for the apical region.

First prune now completed

As I have worked my way up the trunk the length of each succesive branch has been reduced to produce something akin to what you may see in the mountain regions where they typically grow.

The apical region has been thinned out but no firm decisions on which shoots will be kept as part of the apex.  The overall design has sufficient structure to give a pleasing look and I am hopeful that with heavy fertilisation it will flourish.

Wired and left to recover

The second trunk has been wired and some movement applied.  I have put a reminder on my phone for 9 months time for removal.

The big thing to watch out for is removing too much growth.  This is the error I made in 2015 and the tree eventually died.  I will now feed this and leave it in a shady part of the nursery to recover for a few weeks.

I will then give it more sun and let it grow unchecked for at least one year.  The branches you have kept now need a chance to establish themselves and start putting on new growth.

Despite all of the rain I have been slowly working my way around some of the yamadori Hornbeam and Beech that I dug up in 2018/19.  All are looking in good health athough the greenfly have definitely been active.  I have been spraying everything that is ‘green’ and decidious with a general purpose bug solution. 

I also removed the wire from all of the younger potensai I worked on in March.  The timing was pretty good and only a few of the branches showed any scars.  I am fairly confident that these will grow out through the autumn.

Today I also pruned back my Trident Maples with the specific aim of finding some decent cuttings.  We are fast approaching the height of summer so be aware many of our trees will be heading into a dormant period.  I do not feed anything at this time – next opportunity will be as we head into Autumn.

So I encourage you to scour your local garden centres for something to ‘play’ with over the next few weeks.  My next blog will be all about taking cuttings and dealing with death…of our much loved bonsai 🙁

Keep on spraying…

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Caring for your Chinese Elm Bonsai https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/caring-for-your-chinese-elm-bonsai/ https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/caring-for-your-chinese-elm-bonsai/#respond Fri, 25 Jun 2021 11:59:48 +0000 https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/?p=2439

Wow – already a week has passed since my last post and still there is work to be done in the nursery!  I know the last few posts have been all about Post Flush Hardened pruning but I do think it is worth covering one more popular genus – Chinese Elm.

These probably represent the most featured of trees in our world today.  They can be cared for both indoors and outdoors and are mostly tolerant to ‘mistreatment’ 🙁

Let me first clarify one major point.  Chinese Elm are decidious trees that thrive in the outdoor environment.  All of mine are kept outside and happily survive both sun and frost.  Sometimes they shed their leaves and sometimes they don’t.  However, whenever  I have chosen to keep some inside I can’t help feeling I have chosen to ‘roll the dice’ a little.  Please, don’t let me put you off having them indoors – truly they will do well…if correctly located.

Olwyn the Chinese Elm
Olwyn the Elm

Olwyn Elm sits near a window which gets the morning sun.  It is a draft free and a well lit location.  If their is too much direct sunlight then the tree is moved into shade.   Lissy has this magnificent 3ft Elm on a large window ledge – the radiator is never turned on and the windows are kept closed to avoid temperature changes.

Lissy's Elm

Both of these trees were purchased through my nursery and both had been kept outdoors until they found new parents.  Lissy’s did suffer leaf drop in the first few months but the last I heard was enjoying life in the ‘country manor’ 🙂

Both of these Elms have been placed in what appear to be suitable locations.  However, the radiator at the rear caused one of the bonsai to dry out too quickly (from the bottom up).  This meant the owner was unware that the soil beneath the top level was bone dry and killing the tree. 

The issue with a wide open window is all about temperature variations potentially upsetting the ‘micro environment’ of the tree.  Not  a problem when the temperature is constant but certainly something to beware of.

And now for a little bit more pruning...

The principles of pruning remain the same and all you need to be aware is that Chinese Elm can put out at least 3 flushes during the growing season.

I normally let the tree get really overgrown before I start.  This tells me that it is healthy and should respond well to pruning.  I also make sure to clean out all of the unwanted juvenile shoots in crotches etc…

Once the tree has been cleaned out it is much easier to see what needs to be done.  Firstly I recognised that I want a new branch to grow and develop hence one of the new shoots will be left untouched.  I can now clearly see the profile of the apex and where I need to remove growth.

This is all about using a ‘clip and grow’ technique.  I clip back to 3 leaves knowing that new shoots will grow from the base of two of these remaining leaves.

Most of the time I try to prune back to a desired profile.  It’s not quite topiary but there are some small similiarities :()

It is also okay to cut back to bare twigs – so long you can see buds you want to activate.  In truth, if it is healthy, the Chinese Elm will back bud profusely the moment it recognises it has insufficient leaves.  The real issue, is where it decides to push out new growth!!!

All pruned

What do you do if?

You have sparse, long and leggy growth – It is likely that your bonsai is not getting the light it needs.  It is sending out longer growth to try and find the sunlight needed for photosynthesis.  Warm indoor air also encourages leggy growth.  SO MOVE IT

Very weak or no growth – To be a succesful bonsai indoors you need everything to be right…most of the time.  This is really just a sign that the tree is slowly using up all of its stores of energy.  This tends to show itself after a year or more.

The solution is to get it outside in the sun.  This should be a few months not just a few days.  I do keep some of my elms indoors through winter for decoration but they go straight outside once the sun starts to smile.  Darren of GroBonsai explains this brilliantly in his tutorial video.

It looks dead – Scratch the bark in a few places on the branches.  If the tree is alive it will be a healthy green. If brown, then that part has died.  Again, the answer is to get it outside somewhere out of direct sunlight.  And under no circumstances should you feed any tree that looks ill or is struggling.  My immediate response is to soak it in a bowl of water until all of the air bubbles have come out (about 5 minutes).

There is an informative YouTube video demonstrating  this process on the Species page.  thanks to Bonsai by Design for this short tutorial.

Happy pruning and never assume the worst…unless it catches fire 🙂

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Pruning Summary – Apple and a few others https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/pruning-summary-apple-and-a-few-others/ https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/pruning-summary-apple-and-a-few-others/#respond Fri, 18 Jun 2021 09:57:11 +0000 https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/?p=2374

Welcome to the final article covering the ‘Post Flush hardened’ period.  In truth, we should all have our decidious bonsai pruned by now…but life does get in the way sometimes!

I have started off with an image carousel displaying a few of the ongoing apple pip projects.  I have quite a few more in similiar stages but these were the ones pruned today.  The more I work with apple the more I learn and the more I come to see the potential they hold for novices and experts alike.  The biggest tip I have is not to let the shoots get away from you – they thrive in creating coarse and ugly junctions.

Apple potensai

Apple produce a vigorous flush of growth and sends out multiple shoots from each junction.  If left unpruned these will lead to unsightly scars on the trunk and primary branches.

This apple originated on Stronsay in the Orkney Isles.  Living a sheltered and cloistered life amongst the religious it found life in the chaos of Grantham overwhelming 🙂

 

The pruning approach is the same as I have described in previous posts.  It is also important to remove all basally growing shoots from the root mass.

There is also no issues with trying to clean up stubs and other unsightly bumps and lumps.  You can use bonsai tools (concave cutters) or any other sharp razor that allows for a clean cut.  It is worth purchasing awound sealant for those bigger exposed sites.

 

Apple suffers regularly from scab and powdery mildew.  These are unsightly and do lead to leaf loss and branch death. 

Scab is an air-borne, fungal disease and is easily recognisable by the black-brown spots that appear on the leaves.  It spreads during wet periods in late spring / summer.  By the time you have noticed scab, it will be too late to control with fungicides.

So I would advise:

Correct pruning practises that remove infected shoots and leaves to maintain good airflow inside your tree, reducing the damp microclimate beloved by scab.  Scab will also harbour in fallen leaves over winter only to infect next year’s new growth, so it’s a good idea to either rake up fallen leaves in the autumn or collect them with a mower.

Powdery Mildew seems to hit my apple bonsai every year when the sun begins to shine.  Unlike most fungal infections, apple powdery mildew spores do not require moisture to germinate.  Therefore, this infection is known as the “dry weather disease.”

The leaves and blossoms become covered with the fungal spores as they emerge from their buds.  The spores look like a light gray or white powder, and the infected leaves curl upward and eventually die.  These spores are easily blown by the wind and cause secondary infections on new shoots, leaves, and fruit.  As long as the shoots continue growing, the leaves and shoots can continue to become infected.

So I would advise:

You should prune any shoots that appear white in the early spring, so they won’t spread spores.  Regular use of an appropriate fungicide is crucial – especially early spring and then almost weekly through the growing season.  After leaf fall in autumn critically examine the trunk and branches for signs of infected growth…remove anything that concerns you.

Hornbeam

The hornbeam is another popular hedging style plant for novices to cut their teeth on.  A very forgiving subject you can make some serious errors and still have a fantastic bonsai.  This is a nursery ‘cast off’ that I saved in 2015.  I cut the trunk down 3 years ago and just let it recover.

Pruning is the same as with all of the other species and generally I always carry out a partial defoliation and leaf reduction.  It is slower to produce the second flush but it will appear.  Beware – this tree, like maples, are a favourite for greenfly…so make sure you spray 🙂

I will start to carve down the ugly stump in mid to late summer.

Leaf Reduction and Partial Defoliation:

This is the means in which we can encourage buds to be activated and is also a means of increasing air and light flow to the entire canopy.  I never remove more than 50% of the leaves and size reduction is also about 40%.  When I remove a leaf I always ensure to keep the opposing untouched.

 

This pruning process does not change across a broad spectrum of decidious varieties.  I have tried to highlight a few of the nuances for Dawn Redwood and Japanese Larch for which you must be aware.  You may find variations within your own collection so it is important to observe how your tree reacts to pruning and consider ammending timings etc.

The crucial element for any pruning is be certain you know what you are trying to achieve AND make sure the tree is healthy before you start reducing its ability to photosynthesize.  Where you have powdery mildew try to intervene early and always isolate the bonsai.  I spray quite regularly with one of the common brands of fungicide.  It may not look great this year but it is highly likely that next year it will come back strong.

I have included some examples of ‘before and after’  for Oak and Silver Birch.  Please enjoy and do contact me if you are uncertain in anyway – I will do my best to help. 

Happy pruning & spraying 🙂

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Pruning my Japanese Larch & Satsuki Azalea Bonsai https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/pruning-my-japanese-larch-satsuki-azalea-bonsai/ https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/pruning-my-japanese-larch-satsuki-azalea-bonsai/#respond Thu, 17 Jun 2021 11:46:23 +0000 https://www.expressionsofgracebonsai.co.uk/?p=2345

Today I am going to discuss how I prune Japanese Larch and Satsuki Azalea.  As with the Dawn Redwood, timing of pruning is an essential aspect of successful development.  The golden rule I try to follow with all of my pruning is:

“If you miss the timing then it is better just to wait a year than risk unwanted consequences.  The worse that can happen is the bonsai gets bigger and healthier.”

The Japanese Larch is an extremely vigorous tree and with the right conditions can produce up to three usable ‘new flushes’ of growth.  This means that if you monitor your bonsai correctly you could get three chances to create additional new branch structure.  That is why Larch are so popular and can so quickly take on the characteristics of an older tree. 

With the Satsuki the key issue is to understand that pruning too late into the season will greatly increase the risk of removing the new growth that produces the flowering buds for the next year.  Hence most pruning work is done post flowering and certainly before the end of June.  If I am planning on major branch reductions or foliage reduction then it is carried out in the Spring with the knowledge that I am going to severely compromise the flowering opportunities.

Ready for pruning

Japanese larch

This starter tree was purchased as a 2 year old sapling in 2015.  It has been left to grow with minimal interference and was potted up this year for training.  The root structure is a little odd but I like how the trunk splits – certainly it is worth spending more time on it 🙂

The primary branch

I have decided that I want this tree to be a ‘Mame’ which means I am not interested in branch thickening as a priority.  Instead I am seeking every chance to increase the amount  of ‘twigginess’.  This means all shoots will be cut back to usable bud pairs – hopefully three times this year.

This will still allow branch thickening but not as much as if you left it alone for the year.

A larch shoot with buds

Each new shoot produces brownish buds along the length.  The location of these buds is haphazard and often not where you need them and it is this which dictates your pruning decision.

Using this case I would hope for up to 4 new shoots to push out from the buds. At worst, I should get two new shoots either side and staggered.  This achieves my aim of getting ‘2’ from ‘1’ (shoots).

Juvenile Growth

Often, the first pair of buds are so far apart that they are not preferable for usable ramification.  What we wish to achieve is lots of well spaced alternate branching.

In cases where the buds are unusable I prune right above the first whorl of needles – the base of the new growth.  This will encourage 2 dormant buds to hopefully activate.

A basic larch pad

Japanese Larch often have ‘lozenge’ shaped branch pads in the wild.  So I will select the leader and then prune a rough triangular shape back from that point.  It is important that you plan ahead based on the directions the buds should push out from. 

A birds eye view

Looking from above you should be able to see a pyramid like structure with the longest growth at the base.  Clearly, each tree will have different characteristics based on your own approach – but consider this as a basis to start.

Some growth may be kept longer to allow for directional wiring in the Spring.  Just because it isn’t pointing in the right place yet – doesn’t mean you should erase it 🙁

If the growth is too small to see the buds then just leave it for the second round of seasonal pruning.  This year has been a little later because of the frosts so I would expect my next Larch pruning to take place in 5 – 6 weeks.  You will be able to tell if it is the right time because you will have numerous shoots with observable buds.

Ready for pruning

Satsuki Azalea

This tree is relatively new to my collection and was purchased in 2020.  It is not yet ready for sale and still needs the packing soil to be changed next Spring.  However, it does provide the perfect example for different pruning requirements.

This bonsai has crossing branches, busy junctions, unwanted growth and examples of profuse back budding.

Leaf colours

I think it worth showing a picture of the ranges of leaf discolourations you can get.  It can be quite scary and cause you to think the worst of your bonsai.  Although some of these may be due to pests or fungal problems other causes can be frosts, too much rain or even too much heat.  I find it easiest to just remove the affected growth before running to pesticides!

This is a classic example of too many shoots.  Ideally I would like the two shoots coming from the branch stub but I noticed that one of them crosses the trunk.  It is also unlikley I would be able to eradicate the difference in taper.  So the best option is to remove everything above the lower shoot

The stub will be cleaned up in Spring.

Crossing Branch

Sometimes you may find that one of the branches is perfectly developed but just in the wrong position or badly crossing other branches or the trunk. 

Wiring is sometimes a solution but often removal is the better long term option – especially if there is younger growth that can be allowed to develop near it.

In this case, to the right, you can see a perfect secondary branch growing from the primary structure.

Busy Junction

This is the usual situation we find in which a third shoot has been allowed to develop into another branch.  This causes additional thickening at the junction leading to unwanted inverse taper.

So we have to choose which two are being removed.  This becomes more difficult the longer the branches are allowed to develop – so make early decisions if you can.

Shoot tips

In many cases you may wish to shorten a branch.  I normally just cut back to the next series of leaves at the length I desire.  This action will often trigger some back budding lower on the branch.  The top part of the image shows a number of growing tips that I chose to remove to shorten branches

Back Budding

Azalea will often back bud even on bare wood – no leaves at all.  I have carried out really hard prunes removing nearly all of the vegetation and triggered massive back budding.

It is this back budding that often provides you with the ideal next generation of branches.  So keep an eye on these buds and only rub away those you do not need.

I do find Satsuki to be a temperamental subject to work with and it is not my preferred bonsai genus.  It needs acidic soil and if you look back to earlier blogs you can read about a repot in kanuma soil.  It is also basally dominant and prefers to be a bush.  It is important that you prune lower branches hardest to allow energy to be distributed to the apex.  Always remove any of the lower suckers and shoots – they just waste more of the trees energy.

However, this is definitely worth all of the frustration and work when you see it flower in May.

I have taken some ‘heel’ cuttings from this pruning session which are now potted up and enclosed in a clear plastic bag to maintain humidity.  This will be the subject of my next blog article – never waste a cutting 🙂

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