I am very interested in camellias for bonsai and already have picked up a few locally to experiment with after watching some video of Arthur Joura doing one and the guy in South Africa.I do plan to provide camelias for bonsai. Any other flowering species recommendations would be appreciated
Yes to all of the above. Plus keep in mind that some of us don't want giant trees, so big isn't always the goal.
Very good point. Most of what i am planning to sell as bonsai will be mame or shohin size. And of course starter plants can become any size you want them to be
Yes, please.
I do 100% agree with this. I believe most great old kabudachi maples in japan were created by natural fusion in a pot over decades rather than tying together with a wire.
That could be remedied by placing the trees through holes more spaced out in a tile or board, they'd ground layer themselves and root fuse in the ground pretty quickly I would imagine.
When you say “you would love to find a source to propagate off of” . . . are you talking seed or cuttings?
sheffields.com
If you’ve already got one, you can have more. I’ve grown them from cuttings fairly easily.
My goal is to provide this type of material.
For rigida i was referring to cuttings. They apparently root very easily from cutting. I actually found some rigida with really good genetics after I made that post. The person I bought them from has worked on one of the best tosho in japan and he told me that these tosho that i got from him have the softest needles he has seen. He had dozens that he rooted and said its very easy to do.When you say “you would love to find a source to propagate off of” . . . are you talking seed or cuttings?
I have 11 Juniperus rigida in Anderson Flats. They are several years old however, I haven’t noticed any juniper berries as of yet. I may have to put a few into the ground and/or wait a few more years before that happens. My understanding is that Tosho are poor movers of water. I’ve assumed that might make them difficult to propagate via cuttings or layering (but I haven’t tried). Sheffield’s still has Juniperus rigida seed available:
Juniperus rigida - Common Bonsai,Shrub - Needle Juniper, Temple Juniper
Juniperus rigida, commonly known as Temple Juniper, is a beautiful and attractive evergreen tree, native to northern China, Korea, Japan, and the far southeast of Russia. It has a loose, open habit, with sharp, needle-like bright green foliage that looks
I second the vote(s) on Pinus parviflora, Crataegus laevigata 'Paul's Scarlet', and Fagus crenata.
The U.S. bonsai community would benefit from a good source of Prunus spinosa. A few years back, I managed to source a few that are now producing lots of fruit (seed) and they now have plenty of branches & roots for cuttings and layering. I had a hell of a time finding the trees I have. Trees and seed are banned from import into the U.S. due to Plum Pox Virus. I stratified some of the fruit that I harvested last season but, I didn’t take the time to scarify the pits. I have grown them from seed in the past but, I cracked the pits prior to putting them into refrigeration and had success the next spring.
Perhaps I can get you some propagation material if you have trouble sourcing viable seed or live trees.
When I hear “soft needle” Tosho, I immediately start wondering . . . are they really Juniperus rigida or are they Juniperus conferta (Shore Juniper)? You may very well have the genuine article. I just know a lot of people started calling Conferta, Tosho because Rigida can be hard to come by here in the U.S.
