What about My Tree?.

By Mick.

            The audience were treated to a wide selection of short presentations

George
Collected large Hawthorn. The tree was shown to Lee Verhorevoort in April for advice on planting it over a rock. Lee had said it could not be done. George collected bits of old plaster found on the canal bank and stuck them together with bath sealant to form a large “rock”. George called it “A real cheat Root Over Stone” and passed around samples of his "rock". In reply to questions George explained that it had only been planted a month  ago out of sheer necessity in good soil, leafmould and grit.

John
Two Buddlias.  Removed from Mother-in-law's garden about two years ago as a single tree with a twelve inch wide trunk. It was rotten and fell apart into three pieces as it was removed, one of which subsequently died. John said the remaining two trees would never make classic bonsai but were generally nice plants, tolerant of watering. They flower profusely but it was not possible to reduce the size of the flowers or fruit.

Keith
Azalea.  Keith said that he had followed Alexander Kennedy’s recommendations for pruning an azalea. In disbelief he had cut off all the branches as advised, and placed the tree on the kitchen windowsill. He was pleased that the remaining trunk now had new shoots growing all the way down. Keith’s talk was on automatic watering. In the past he had relied on friends and relatives to water his trees when away on holiday, but he had lost four trees one hot Easter. Using a middle price range Gardena programmer he had set up a  automatic watering system which had satisfied his needs. He would write a full explanation for the Bonsai Bulletin

Ken
 Japanese Larch group. Describing the Larch group he had brought Ken said one of the trees had died and there was potentially a problem in finding a matching replacement.  He advised that when planning a group planting to obtain additional trees of the same type, colour and size to cover such an eventuality. Ken also spoke about automatic watering. A friend had purchased a kit of parts for Ken and fitted it up. Ken had made up two L-shaped boards (like bookends) onto which he had fitted 180 degree mist spray heads. Placed fifteen feet apart they give a seven foot horizontal fan shaped distribution. Ken showed a wall mounted water tap with integral non-return valve, mounting flange, and 15 mm copper water pipe. Ken’s water is very hard and his trees have a white deposit. He had set the timer to run for half an hour at night but considered this to be too much for a ten day holiday. In replying to questions Ken said that the system had not been operating long enough to experience "furring" of nozzles and spoke about water usage

Mary
Lonicera Nitida. Mary described the tree she had brought as “a bit hairy”. Before the meeting members had given her advice.  However, several more suggestions were offered. To get rid of all dead wood, get rid of the heavy top covering and give it a good feed. Mary said that she expected it would be necessary to remove branches but she was rather fond of its airy lightness. Peter suggested that a branch at the top could be wired up and not to remove branches yet. The general consensus was to implement her own ideas. A wrong decision made would be only temporary as the tree would re-grow.

Peter W.
Large Scots Pine. Peter had purchased a very large untamed Scots Pine in a 12" to 15" container from a local nursery for £8.50. George visited Peter and was so impressed that they returned to the nursery but could not find another for George. The Pine had a large well-proportioned trunk but some of the back branches were dead or thin and lacking foliage, presumably due to insufficient light for a long time. The needles had been covered in woolly aphid and Peter had taken great delight in watching them dissolve after applying methylated spirit. Peter went on to explain how he intended to commence training the tree.

Steve
Collected tree of unknown species. George suggested that it was a Goat Willow or similar willow. It had been growing in sand. Steve was wondering what to do with it`s unorthodox style. One suggestion was to remove a branch at the back and tilt the trunk over to form a cascade. Other suggestions were to use one of the branches for an “approach graft” or to cut it back hard to allow it to bud back as it was very healthy and vigorous.

Vicky
Chinese Juniper. This tree was healthy and green in some places but weak and brown in others. After advice that the tree might be suffering from small unseen aphids or mites which reduce a tree’s vigour, Vicky asked what insecticide she should use. “Bug Gun” was suggested. “Star weed” in the pot should be removed immediately as its roots choke the soil. Other suggestions were to place the tree in dappled shade, mist spray it; possibly give it some foliar feed; and to turn it regularly.

Peter F.
Three-tree group of Maples grown from collected seeds. Peter was unsure of their species. After discussion as to whether they were Sycamores, knowledgeable members believed them to be Norway Maples because Sycamores bud much earlier. They were potted in garden soil, placed in full sun, and watered occasionally. The semi-cascade of one tree had originally been planted upright then laid onto its side. Peter said that the leaves were large despite being the third set this year. They have had a varied life, sometimes being grown separately and sometimes put back into a group. Peter considered that none of them are suitable as single tree bonsai.

Robert
Wild Olive, Clump style.  Robert said the tree was probably forty years old and had been collected three years ago from a garden in Ibiza. Originally it was about five feet tall. He had cut off the top, bound the branches, wrapped it in aluminium foil and brought it home. It was heavily pruned and the stump planted deep into open ground but later raised up. The result was a multi-stemmed clump. He intends to wire it and leave it until next year. It has a good but unconventional trunk. It is kept outside in summer but put into a cold greenhouse during winter. Peter suggested that it could be grown in the “Japanese Turtle” style where the group of trees grows from the “back of the turtle”.

David
David hails from Hawkes Bay on the East coast of New Zealand’s North Island where the climate is hot and dry. Automatic watering is almost essential. He belongs to Hawkes Bay Bonsai Club, which has a membership of thirty and competes with nearby towns of Hastings and Napier. In the whole of New Zealand there are only sixteen clubs with a total membership of four hundred. They have some very good overseas speakers. New Zealand has very strict horticultural import laws, so they have to rely on indigenous species collected from the wild. Native yews and Cowrie trees (300 ft. Tall and 55 inches round) look odd as bonsai. There are not many Scots Pines but Pinus Contorta (which is considered as a noxious weed) grows like crazy. Some pine trees are fully mature in fifteen to twenty years. There are some very good yamadori Contortas but they tend to die if brought down from high altitude to sea level. Some trees can be collected from between the railway lines. David was very envious of British hedgerows, as there are none in New Zealand implying that he wanted to get digging !  

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Frimley Show
Photos by Phil

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Next Meeting.   10th October 2000
“Creating a tray landscape (Saikei) and a group planting”
Corin Tomlinson

A double feature meeting