Bonsai Eejit

Bonsai Enthusiast from Northern Ireland

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Hinoki Repot

Hinoki Cypress repot today with Alan. A very nice tree with an view from below worth checking out.

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Raft Maple Progression

Back in 2013 my good friend Stephen bought this Raft maple from Willowbog Bonsai. The tree, Acer Palmatum Anyropurpureum, had previously been started from garden Centre material having. Even laid horizontally in a box for a few year to create the raft image. It had been displayed in John Hanbys Newstead Exhibition in 2010. These are some of the photos from the trees creation through to around…

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Austrian Black Pine

This tree once belonged to a bonsai enthusiast from County Cavan. It had been a bonsai, but due to ill health it was planted into the ground for quite a few years while he fought his battle. Sadly he died and his widow moved to a new home but took the tree with her, planting it in a large pot as we see it below in January 2016.

2016

She wanted the tree to go to someone who would bring it back…

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European Larch

The owner has had this tree a long time and it only needs a nudge in the right direction now and again.

Before work

The tree needed a good clean before work to clear the last hold out needles and remove the algae starting to clog up the branches.

Using the softest setting on my jet washer. As you can see the full power would carve wood

After clean up.

As many branches had risen a rewiring…

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New Polytunnel

My last little tunnel was 10’x8’ and along side my little greenhouse, they done a job for me for close to 25 years. The greenhouse was taken down in 2019 and the small tunnel alone just wasn’t going to cut mustard over winter. So, down it came and up went the new tunnel 14’ x 15’.

Old tunnel

Down it comes.

Mss as jot cut back on the boundary hedge to make room for a decent fence.

Secure again.

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Mugo Pine Evolution

A Mugo Pine that was gifted to me by an great lady called Valerie. I have watched this tree progress for many years since she first brought it to a club workshop with Willowbog Bonsai probably the guts of 15 years ago now. A tree that was upright, leggy and lacking hardly any branches back then. I only wish I could find the original tree photos. Valerie brought the tree back every few years and…

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Last Two

A few days back I shared a few pines that had been left with me to wire and style and I said I had two left to go. When given the work to complete its human nature to jump in and grab the trees that excite you the most and leave the tricky ones to the end. Well these are the end ones.

This little Mugo Pine is an oversized pot was a challenge. Humble material with a lot of the branches coming…

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Another Shore Pine

This was the latest on the tidy up list. It wasn’t quite ready for any wiring. Needed the strong areas thinned out and generally balanced out to aid health f lower branches. Ready for work after 2021 flush. The high root at the base was cut through half way to allow a staged removal. As with most of the Shore Pine I mange to collect, the bark is rather special.

Before

Other side

Thinned out

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Hawthorn Adjustments

This hawthorn has been knocking around my garden for probably 15 years and can be seen here as part of a case study on air layering.

It had a major repot in 2019 and sulked in a big way all that year. 2020 has been a shitty year for most of us but this hawthorn made a come back. I decided that although I like my hawthorn to have a natural angular appearance and to not over wired, this…

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Seedling Scots Pines

A friend has some Scots Pine that he started from seed over 30 years ago and have never been out of a pot of some sort in that time. They’ve have good years and bad during that period and this month I’ve been sorting them out and doing a little wiring for him.

Before tidy up

After

Second Pine before

After

3rd Pine before

And after

I love the fact that these trees have been grown from seed by the…

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Multitrunk Shore Pine

Another piece of collected material into the workshop for a basic first design. With Shore Pine I find you have to hedge your bets. It can take 4-5 years from collection and a first post collection repot before you can be certain what branches are going to be retained by the tree. Good health doesn’t mean the tree won’t drop branches, in fact with vigour they can shed lower branches as a result.…

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Lodgepole First Styling

I’m trying to work my way through some raw stock here that since collecting has established a good rootball and now needs work or they will fast become green blobs.

This lodgepole Pine was collected beside Lough Corrib a few years back. a tall slender tree with subtle movement perhaps not as noticeable in the photo. It has gotten very strong and I wanted to put the tree to work back budding…

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Chuhin Chamaecyparis

This Chamaecyparis Pisifera plumosa dumosa attracts algae to the bark and was in for yet another clean up. My little Japanese power washer was one of the best purchases I ever made and made short work of it.

It’s also a tree that creeps along growth wise and needs work several times a year to keep definition in the foliage mass. Cleaning the underside of branches and keeping subtle space is…

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Windswept Hawthorn

Had this Hawthorn for quite a few years now but 2020 saw it repotted at a more acute angle giving it more of a windswept feel.

A few reasons for doing it. 1. I love windswept Hawthorn in nature. I think they are one of the most “Irish” representative tree images and are a common sight along our coastline. 2. After several repots and root workings I’m just not able to deal with the heavy root…

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Shore Pine Rock Planting

This Pine had an average year with some difficulty getting water into the root mass. There’s loads of soil mass in there but a narrow opening into which it’s planted.

Possibly as a result, the lower extending branch to the left got weaker to the point were it was unlikely to bounce back. This was a branch that I was 50/50 on keeping anyway design wise and combined with Shore Pines trait of…

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First styling Itiogawa Juniper

This tree belongs to a friend but was in my care until it sold. During the last storm it took a leap off the bench and smashed its training pot. I’d always said it needed an angle change and with permission from the owner I removed a few unnecessary branches and placed some primary and secondary branches to set a structure for the future. I worked the deadwood stumps as well. They aren’t to my…

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Literati Scots Pine Tidy up for Winter.