At Shibui Bonsai I have found that the juniper variety we know as Shimpaku is one of the best junipers for bonsai. It has naturally fine foliage and compact growth habit which means you can produce an impressive bonsai with less maintenance. Continue reading
For a while during the real heat of summer my trees slowed up and gave me a rest from pinching and pruning that is so constant during spring and early summer. The weather has started to cool a little and we have had a few light showers of rain. This is the time of year that the Australian natives just love and they have started to grow strongly. Continue reading
As is usual at a bonsai workshop I came away with a few new ideas and techniques.
Pavel is noted for working with and, in particular, bending larger collected conifers. During the workshop he mentioned that bends are easier if you twist the branch while bending. Twisting as you bend allows the fibres in the wood to bend further without breaking.
He also mentioned that he often wraps electrical tape over the wire and raffia when making extreme bends. This serves to keep the moisture in a branch if it cracks while bending which he feels aids in healing the cracks and breaks.
Something I had not experienced before was removing ALL old needles from a pine in order to wire and shape the material. I have always attempted to retain as many old needles as possible hoping that some will produce new buds to help ramify the branching. It is certainly much easier to wire the branches without the older needles.
If anyone else has something from the recent NBPCA bonsai week feel free to let me know and I can add it here.
It was great to be accepted into the ‘lenders’ masterclass at the National Bonsai and Penjing Collection at Canberra last week. Continue reading