What do I do with it?

Posted on 18-May-2022 by Neil Padbury

Lots of beginners struggle to decide what to do after selecting a starter.

One of the biggest problems is there’s always a range of options offered so it gets confusing. Different options is not surprising as there’s usually more than one way to achieve results with plants and for any individual tree there’s a range of possibilities depending what size and shape you are aiming for.

Let’s start with worst case scenario. A beginner has selected this trident maple seedling because it is cheap but now struggling to work out what to do next.

No wonder you cannot decide how to style this tree. There’s nothing to style. The best we can do for trees like this is to grow them on to get something that we can work with. Be realistic about timeframes. This will take at least 3 years to develop a simple mallsai type bonsai and 5-20 years to develop a show worthy trident bonsai.

Even at this stage there’s a range of options on how to grow on trees like this.

Some growers prefer to just plant the whole root ball into a larger container or in the garden and allow it to grow. This approach might achieve a fat trunk quicker but can take more years after a major trunk chop to grow a new leader and heal the large scar.

I prefer to start with some trunk reduction. Pruning early leaves smaller scars that heal quickly. It also encourages more shoots to grow and I’ve found that those extra leaders will still give me great trunk thickening but thickening is staggered along the trunk as each successive shoot adds more thickening. That means the trunks end up with even better taper right from the start. Extra leaders also gives me options when pruning later. I can prune for more or less taper and for more or less trunk bends. Any reduction in trunk thickening during the growing phase is more than made up in les years spent healing large chops and growing new leaders to match the stump that’s formed using the previous grow fast method above.

Hera are some photos of initial pruning for a couple of similar tridents. Both these already had side branches to cut back to but even if there’s no side shoots just chop the trunk at about the height you’ lime your first bend or branch to be eventually. The examples below are intended to develop as quite small shohin sized bonsai.

Note the change of angle for the second tree. Just because it has been planted vertical does not mean it must always stay that way. Always look for possible improvements from tilting your trees one way or another.

Next step is to check the roots. There are growers who feel that root pruning will slow growth and development. My theory is that nebari (surface roots) is a very important part of most bonsai. A thick trunk is great for bonsai but if the roots are tangled or malformed it won’t matter how thick or how good the trunk is. Layering a trunk is possible but that process adds several years to the development timeline. Growing good roots start as early as possible and regular root pruning promotes even better nebari. Even if regular root pruning does slow growth (and I’m not convinced it does) a few extra years will pay off when you don’t need to layer to improve the nebari later.

Plenty of good roots from just one year in the pot.

Start by uncovering the upper roots. Never cut through a root ball as in the next step unless you are sure there are good roots above your cut

Cut the lower half of root ball off then trim around the trunk. This removes most tangled roots and makes it easier to comb out the remaining soil.

After combing out the soil and tilting the trunk where I want it there’s one root too high on the left side.

Fortunately there are good roots just below so the higher root is removed to leave roots on a level plane.

Finally the freshly root pruned trees is potted up – at the new angle – ready for another year of growth. because I’m aiming to develop smaller, shohin sized bonsai I’ve used another smaller pot to restrict internode size. Feel free to use a larger pot if you’re aiming for larger sized bonsai.

Here are some more initial pruning for small bonsai using other species

New catalogues

Posted on 25-Nov-2021 by Neil Padbury

A number of customers have pointed out that the old catalogues appeared to be out of date because they were titled 2020. Shibui Bonsai years are designed to fit in with tree seasons rather than our traditional calendar.

Field grown trees are dug from the grow beds in winter – That’s July and August here – then pruned and potted up. Some new dug trees may be available as bare root but as I have no control over your subsequent care and conditions bare root trees are not covered by the standard Shibui Bonsai guarantee.

Fresh potted trees are hard to pack and post with no roots to hold the soil together so I delay sales until the trees have started growing and have plenty of new roots in the pots. The tridents are generally ready to cope with mailing by December so that’s when the new catalogues are posted (provided I’ve managed to find the time and energy to take all the photos and compile the catalogue files). By that time i can be sure that the trees have recovered well from the trauma of transplant and the massive root reduction that entails so you can be assured of getting strong, healthy trees with the traditional Shibui Bonsai guarantee.

The catalogues on the catalogue pages are current right through to the following November but the later you are the less trees will still be available.

Good bonsai are not like many other retail goods – I can’t just get more from the factory to fill the shelves because bonsai growing is seasonal so we must learn to fit in with the annual and seasonal growth patterns. New trees are only added each year in December.

offerings of trident maples are good again this season but there were no Chinese Elms ready for sale this time.

The few pines and junipers I potted up have all been sold (provided they recover and grow well) before going in a catalogue.

I’ve only potted up 2 field grown Japanese maples – catalogue still in progress at this stage but should be posted soon.

There are also a few Prunus ‘Elvins’ from the grow beds along with a couple of feral plums collected locally. Catalogues will be up as soon as the weather allows me time to take photos and compile the catalogue so, if you are keen on great flowering bonsai, keep an eye out for that one soon.

Enjoy the new offerings.

Neil

Old bonsai for sale

Posted on 27-Oct-2021 by Neil Padbury

One of the original members of our local bonsai society passed away last year. His widow has asked me to help sell off the last of their bonsai as she is downsizing and will not have space to keep these trees.

You now have the opportunity to own some Australian bonsai history at very realistic prices.

Trident maple, 1983 – $500

This trident maple is nearly 40 years old. A great opportunity to own an aged trident bonsai.

74cm tall (including pot), width 60cm

Moreton Bay fig, 1982 – $900

This is a superb example of twin trunk bonsai and has great ramification we expect to see in a bonsai close to 40 years old. Also note the great nebari.

65cm tall (including the pot), width 65cm.

Note that although this tree is labelled as Moreton Bay fig I am pretty sure it is actually Ficus rubiginosa – Port Jackson fig. Way back when these trees were being developed there was quite a lot of argument about fig ID and many PJ figs were misidentified simply because they lacked the rusty colored leaves. We now know that PJ figs come in many variants including green leaf like these 2 trees.

Moreton Bay fig, 1984 – $600

The almost horizontal right side trunk on this tree makes it a unique bonsai. I think the aerial roots at the front of the tree should go but I’ll leave that decision to the next owner.

55cm tall (including pot), width 60cm

WA fig, 1983 – $300

60cm tall (including pot), width 60cm

For more photos or info on any of these trees please email neil@shibuibonsai.com.au

spring trimming

Posted on 2-Oct-2021 by Neil Padbury

Deciduous trees grow fast in spring. Knowing how and when to prune and trim is one of the most important bonsai skills. This post is a tutorial that should improve your knowledge of what to do when.

The first concept is one that is often overlooked in many bonsai blogs and courses – Stage of development.

Good bonsai growers do not treat all trees the same. We use different techniques and timing on young, developing trees and change as the trees become more advanced. Unfortunately many bloggers focus mainly on techniques used for older, advanced trees and seem to forget that the vast majority of the readers are relative newbies with young trees.

It is the end of September here at Shibui Bonsai and I’ve been spending quite a bit of time pinching new growth on Japanese maples.

Japanese maples have some unhelpful growth habits that can quickly spoil the look of a great tree. New shoots grow very fast. If allowed to grow unchecked they can develop very long internodes and large leaves. Excess growth can also thicken delicate twigs and cause unsightly bulges on branches and trunks. On advanced trees new shoots are pinched as soon as possible to reduce vigor and slow excessive thickening.

Japanese maple before pinching new shoots

Usually I pinch the extending shoot tips as soon as I can get hold of them. I’ve even seen photos of growers using tweezers to get hold of the tiny shoot as early as possible.

Sometimes the shoots are already too strong and long. Don’t be frightened to nip those ones below the first leaves. There are always plenty of dormant buds at the base of any active shoot which will activate when the shoot is gone.

Pinching new shoots is time consuming on older, well ramified Japanese maples but is an important technique to maintain fine ramification and avoid unsightly thickening. Trees do not just stop growing after pinching. Some slower shoots will still be growing so I’ll usually need to pinch every day or so for a few weeks. Buds at the base of the leaves will also activate after the tips are removed and in a couple of weeks a whole new crop of shoots will begin to grow and the process happens all over again.

Younger trees that are still developing need different technique. Shoot pinching is designed to slow growth and avoid thickening. When growing younger trees for bonsai we want just the opposite so development pruning is aimed at increasing growth.

In this case new shoots are encouraged to grow. Don’t start pinching. Don’t worry about the trees looking overgrown or having large leaves. Both those things are actually contributing to faster increase in trunk thickness so let all the shoots grow when the tree is young.

In the earliest stages I often let shoots grow for a whole season and only prune after the leaves drop in autumn. That approach will give maximum trunk thickening. Unfortunately it often also produces long internodes and much of the new growth may have to be pruned off completely at some stage. fast thickening and good structure can be hard to balance.

At some stage in the development of any bonsai the grower will begin to change from this ‘growth’ technique to ‘refinement’ or ‘maintenance’. There is no set age or size when such change take place. You as grower need to decide when is right for you and for your tree. i generally base the timing on trunk development. When trunk thickness is approaching the size I want in the completed bonsai I start to change pruning technique. Change does not have to happen all at once or over the whole tree. Often I will be trimming upper branches while allowing lower shoots to grow free to help thicken those lower branches. Some shoots may be pinched while others are allowed to grow longer before pruning back. Knowing the results of different techniques can help you choose the appropriate technique and timing to deliver the result you need.

Trident maples grow in a similar way to Japanese maple but do not pose the same growing problems. Even on the mature trees I rarely pinch emerging tips really early. On trident maples I usually let the shoots grow a few sets of leaves before trimming back with scissors.

some older trident maples from the Shibui Bonsai personal collection

Spring at Shibui Bonsai

Posted on 29-Sep-2021 by Neil Padbury

After the cold, bleak winter spring seems to arrive suddenly. The first green shoots on Chinese elms are the heralds then, suddenly, everywhere is new life and color.

Late winter and early spring sees an ever changing pallette of color as flowers come and go. Prunus are some of the first quickly followed by forsythia, crab apples and azaleas. If you happen to have a green thumb you may even be able to get wisteria to flower reliably as a bonsai

Shibui Bonsai has an ever changing list of flowering trees suitable for bonsai. Email Neil to see if I have the one you are searching for. Please don’t ask if you can buy the trees pictured above. They are all from my personal collection and hold far more sentimental value than monetary. I do, however, offer younger stock at reasonable prices, some already at flowering age and size.

Azaleas also make great bonsai if your conditions are right. At my last property something was just not quite right and azaleas slowly deteriorated over several years until they died. Moving just a few Km saw a miraculous change and now they thrive under similar care. I cannot work out the details, just that it is so.

Azaleas have been grown by gardeners all round the world for many years so we now have a bewildering array of types with a wide range of flower colors and shapes. Here are a few from Shibui Bonsai nursery this month.

Azaleas transplant really easily. It is one of my favorite species for collecting from gardens as they seem to transplant successfully any month of the year. Don’t bother trying to retain a large root ball – azaleas don’t need it. Shake off as much garden soil as will come away without undue damage to the roots, cut damaged roots to fit the container and pot with good quality potting soil or your favorite bonsai mix, water well and place in a semi-shade area until the roots recover.

Azaleas will also grow new buds on old wood so taller stems can be chopped hard with confidence knowing masses of new shoots will usually appear all over the stumps. i currently have some quite large collected azaleas for sale. Most are planted in large polystyrene fruit boxes and are too big to post but there are also a few in 15, 20 and 30 cm orchid pots. POA

Many other flowering species suit bonsai. Here are few I occasionally have available for sale.

Spring at Shibui Bonsai

Posted on 1-Sep-2021 by Neil Padbury

It has been some time since I posted here. Spring seems to have arrived a bit earlier than usual this year so I have been busy trying to get through all the early spring bonsai work. I have completed the annual harvest of trees from the grow beds and they are now potted up and on the benches for recovery. Most have very few roots after the hard root prune at digging so it will take a few months before the new roots are strong enough to cope with movement and transport. watch for the new Shibui Bonsai catalogues around the start of December.

Some of the new trees repotted and recovering at Shibui Bonsai

We usually take a trade space at Canberra Bonsai show but the spread of Covid has now impacted the capital and this year’s show has been cancelled. In an unexpected twist resulting from restricted movement in Melbourne and Sydney online sales of Shibui Bonsai stock has surged with many enthusiasts taking advantage of the time at home to look for new trees to add to their collections. Bonsai customers can order online and have their trees posted direct to home. There are still some trees from the 2020 catalogues available so email neil@shibuibonsai.com.au to find out what is left.

A few of the filed grown trident maples on the sales tables

For those starting out in bonsai Shibui has plenty of smaller starter trees that have been grown specifically for bonsai. Choose from old favorites like trident maple, Japanese maple, Chinese elm, cotoneaster, crab apple and shimpaku juniper. Prices from $15 through to $30 + delivery costs. I am happy to discuss what might be suitable for your situation, skills and price range but if you already have a good idea just email your requirements and I will try to match your ideas with trees from the sales benches.

I have always liked something a little different so I’m always on the lookout for rare and unusual species so I now have a range of rare and unusual species available, including: Buxus harlandii, Huon pine, Chojubai dwarf flowering quince, Prunus ‘elvins’, a few different satsuki azaleas, Cotoneaster damerii (tiny leaves and compact growth habit), Luma apiculata (Chilean myrtle) and more………

More recently my efforts have turned toward smaller bonsai. That also means I tend to pot up more trees that will suit the smaller sized bonsai. If you are also looking to expand your bonsai interests into shohin sized trees I may have suitable stock. Pictured below ar e just a few of the trees that would be suitable to develop shohin sized bonsai.

Repotting season

Posted on 29-Aug-2021 by Neil Padbury

It has been some time since I posted here. Spring seems to have arrived earlier this year so I’ve been concentrating on getting my seasonal repotting done before the trees start growing in earnest.

Each year I try to repot a portion of the larger bonsai.Each tree doesn’t usually need doing every year so I can usually get away with only doing around 1/3 of the larger trees each year on a rotating basis which spreads the repotting load.

The smaller bonsai seem to do much better when they are repotted each spring. Rapid root growth soon fills the smaller pots and it can become really difficult to water these if the pots are still crammed with previous season’s roots. My shohin trees have done so much better since I’m repotting annually.

I’m always looking for new and better or different trees to add to the Shibui Bonsai show tables. Each year a few new trees reach the stage where I think they deserve a proper bonsai pot. This year a couple of collected plums made the transition to bonsai pots for further development. The restricted space in the smaller pots should mean shorter internodes that will make it easier to build better ramification on the branches.

I also had pots suitable for a couple of Root over rock trident maples that have spent years in plastic pots while I developed ramification on the branches.

Trident maple Group planting

Posted on 1-Jul-2021 by Neil Padbury

I’ve done some previous posts about starting a group planting but posting this year’s offer of seedlings https://shibuibonsai.com.au/?p=2338 prompted me to put together the group shown here.

I’ve found bonsai groups a great way to get a reasonably acceptable bonsai specimen in just a few years. No waiting for decades for the trunk to grow or branches to develop. Lots of trunks together help to provide the visual bulk and canopy so your group can look presentable relatively quickly.

Bonsai groups can be any size and have any number of trees but more trees together tends to look better sooner.

I’ve started here with the group pack shown in the previous post. Shibui Bonsai forest packs consist of a mix of trunk sizes. If you are finding your own seedlings try to get a similar range of trunk thicknesses – a few thicker ones and a range of thinner ones to fill out the forest. there’s around 20 trees in the forest pack but you don’t have to use all of them. Spares can be used for other projects.

As well as the seedlings you’ll need a tray. I use these nursery seedling trays because they are easy to get and a convenient size, durable and easy to get but any convenient container will do. For different sized groups consider an appropriate sized tray. Your container does not need to be as shallow as this. My older trident groups were established and grown on in much deeper polystyrene fruit boxes. Larger, deeper containers will allow your trees to grow and develop quicker if you want to speed up evolution.

Start by sorting an root pruning the seedlings if they have not already been done. tridents are really resilient and pruning thick roots short will help promote more finer and surface roots vital to good bonsai.

Some of the trees for this project after root pruning

The thickest, tallest tree becomes the focal point for the group. Usually placed around 1/3 from either left or right and just in front of the mid-line front to back. I’ve gone with a 1/3 left placement this time as shown.

Now add the other thicker trunks. This is where you can add your own creativity to the group but they will generally be towards the front and closer to the middle than the edges. It is easier if all your trees are relatively straight but if you have trunks with some movement you will also need to try to create harmony by arranging the bends so they look similar.

Pay particular attention to spacing. I’ve found this is particularly difficult as we seem to have a natural tendency to plant things equally spaced so I have to think carefully and force myself to put some trunks quite close together to create a random spacing within the group of trunks. intertwining roots of adjacent trees is no problem but if your trees have lots of roots don’t be frightened to cut roots on one side so you can get the trunks close.

Keep adding trunks with smaller ones mostly toward the outer edges and back. Thinner trunks at the rear helps build an impression of greater depth and size. If some of the trees have branches try to place those so the branches grow into spaces or out of the group. That won’t always be possible so keep branch cutters handy to remove any that are growing close to other trees.

Keep checking that you are not making rows of trees. It seems to be another human trait to line things up but nature is more random so if you see rows forming just move trunks a little to break up lines.

Check from the side as well. Look for lines forming and check that all the trees are standing at a similar angle to create harmony. I often need to add more potting soil to prop up trees as they don’t have many roots for support yet.

After I’m happy with placement and angles I trim the trunks to final height. Try to make the thickest focal tree the tallest then work out toward the edges, pruning each tree a little shorter so the overall outline will be a rounded dome. Don’t forget that your trees will always grow up so pruning shorter than required now can be a good thing.

After watering your group into the fresh soil do another check and reposition any trunks that have sagged or leaned over. Now put your new forest in a protected place to settle in. Check occasionally to make sure trunks have not fallen over. Just push any problems back into position and add some more potting mix if required.

Another trident group planting a few months after assembly.

I generally find some faults during the first year. Things I should have seen but didn’t. Spaces that don’t look great and trunks at odd angles that clash with the overall look. Any of these things can be corrected next spring when the group can be chopped into sections and re positioned or new trees added to enhance the composition.

The groups above have been assembled from relatively young trees but groups can be made from more mature trunks which will give an even better look sooner. Here’s a shohin (under 20cm) trident group I put together last winter with trees from the Shibui Bonsai sales tables.

If you would like to create a trident group from more advanced trunks talk to Neil to see what we have available that would suit. I’ve supplied larger trees for client group projects and I’m happy to select trees that I think would work well together.

Eventually your trident group could end up looking something like these.

Olives as bonsai

Posted on 29-Jun-2021 by Neil Padbury

There has been lots of interest in olives as a commercial crop in this area because they love the conditions. Olives also make great bonsai.

Olives were first planted in North East Victoria over 100 years ago. They liked the climate and soils here so much they quickly spread as birds carried the seeds. Local councils, landowners and Landcare groups now recognize olives as an environmental weed in many areas. While that is not such good news for the native plants that feral olives compete with it is great news for us as bonsai growers because we have lots of wild grown olive stock to collect.

Olives are great for bonsai. They are generally really hardy and can survive short periods of dry that would kill many traditional bonsai favorites. They are very easy to transplant and can survive radical root reduction. Olives also have the ability to produce new buds on older wood and generally respond to trunk chops with masses of new shoots. On the down side olives are slow to grow so starting from seed or tiny seedlings will probably lead to frustration. Fortunately older trees are readily available as weeds in many places now so starting with well developed trunks is a much more viable option.

Our local Bonsai group has organised a number of ‘digs’ where members can help remove some of the ferals and get some good stock to develop future bonsai. I’d just like to share some of the trees I have obtained this way

Digging trees for bonsai is not always easy. Some of the best trunks are found on steep or inaccessible terrain. Some tools make the job easier. A shovel is usually the minimum tool kit for would be bonsai collectors but a crowbar may be required in rocky or harder soils. Pruning tools help reduce the mass to a manageable size. Many collectors find a chainsaw or battery powered reciprocating saw invaluable, especially for larger trees.

Here are some photos of Albury Wodonga Bonsai club members digging feral olives

Club members at Allan’s Flat olive dig March 2017

As mentioned earlier olives can be chopped to bare wood and will soon produce new shoots. The trees shown below had some good surface roots but they will still survive with far fewer roots if necessary and it is not uncommon for collected olives to be ‘flat bottomed’ meaning the trunk bulge is cut horizontally through the widest part and the trunk planted as a virtual cutting. Surprisingly, most olives survive this rather drastic root pruning, even when there are no small roots left.

A few years later, with care and good pruning you could end up with something like this.

Shibui winter 2021 Seedling sale

Posted on 28-Jun-2021 by Neil Padbury

We have plenty of self sown maple seedlings in the garden beds at Shibui Bonsai again this year. These have all grown without any help so I can supply them at reduced rates. These seedlings will only be available until they start to grow in spring or until sold out.

First up let’s deal with quarantine. We cannot send trees to either WA or Tasmania due to plant quarantine rules and before you start complaining it is best to remember those restrictions are there to protect you and your wonderful environment from a range of pests and diseases that we battle daily here in the Eastern Mainland.

Trident maple seedlings are supplied in a range of different sizes

Small: seedlings with trunks under 3mm thick only 50c each. These are still flexible so suit wiring and bending or as smaller trees in a group planting. Also useful for root grafting.

Medium: trunks 3-6mm diameter approx $1 each

Suit group plantings, growing on, threading through plates, fusion projects and more.

Large: trunks 6-10mm thick $2 each

Great for larger trunks in a group planting or to grow on for larger bonsai trunks in future.

There are a few trunks larger than 10mm. $5 each while they last. Please note that thicker does not always mean better. These will usually have a large trunk chop and may have less attractive roots than the smaller ones.

Forest packs $20. A mix of different sizes suitable to make your own group planting. Usually 3 large, 10 medium and 10 small trunks.

Bent trunks: While most of these feral seedlings are pretty straight some have bends. These bent ones could be better for approach grafts to roots or to grow small trunks with good low bends. Price as per trunk thickness above.

I am happy to select seedlings with specific characteristics if you let me know exactly what you require so the more info you can give me as to your plans the better I can tailor your order.

Japanese Maples: These are not as prolific so numbers are limited and most are smaller size than tridents above. All JM seedlings $1 each and you get whatever sizes come up.

Please don’t expect too much from these feral seedlings. They will be packed just as they come out of the garden as shown above so some have lots of roots, some have fewer but all should survive as tridents are really tough. Even those with just a very few roots have great survival rates. The roots are only trimmed roughly to fit in bundles. You can’t expect me to do detailed root work at those prices so that’s up to you when they arrive. Trunks will be chopped to fit into a 50-60 cm long pack. Further detailed pruning to size is also up to you.

Trees are sent bare root. I’ll bundle the trunks, wrap the roots in wet newspaper and wrap in a plastic bag to retain moisture. Trees will survive quite comfortably this way during delivery and for several weeks if necessary. On arrival please check and refresh root moisture if necessary. Trees can be stored in a cool place for a few weeks or even longer if you are not ready to pot up straight away. For longer term storage roots should be buried in damp soil, sand or sawdust until planting is possible.

Delivery: Please allow for the cost of delivery in addition to the tree price. Trees are sent direct to your mailing address via Auspost. Price depends on the size, weight and destination of the order so I’ll need to quote each package to give you the best price so please supply your delivery address or at very least a postcode when ordering so I can calculate a price for delivery. typical cost is likely to be: smaller packages under 1kg $15 regular mail or $20 express. More than 1 forest pack or larger numbers of individual trees could be $25 or $30 for delivery.

Email neil@shibuibonsai.com.au to place an order or to discuss your needs this season.

Shibui Bonsai

Growers of Pre Bonsai and Bonsai Starters

Category Archives: Uncategorized

What do I do with it?

New catalogues

Old bonsai for sale

spring trimming

Spring at Shibui Bonsai

Spring at Shibui Bonsai

Repotting season

Olives as bonsai

Shibui winter 2021 Seedling sale