What's the last thing you've learned in bonsai
- Thread starter bwaynef
- Start date
Cajunrider
Imperial Masterpiece
The practical side of putting together a bonsai forest with larger trees when all the arrangement, placement, perspective aspects meet with different sizes, existing roots on the trees, the health of each tree etc. I planned ahead and number each tree, then plotted the arrangement but then had to modify the plan to accommodate what I found with the roots.
PS: Then I put together the forest and discovered my forest looks like it came from the behind of a hippo.
PS: Then I put together the forest and discovered my forest looks like it came from the behind of a hippo.
Shogun610
Masterpiece
Well if you have to shuffle them on carts in and out of garage to avoid freezing temps it’s really not that detrimental . Keeping out of wind and frost is biggest part
BonsaiPoppie
Mame
or cats.
BonsaiPoppie
Mame
My wife was going to throw away an old spatula, so i took the rubber part off and used the handle for repotting. It works great to push the soil down around the sides. No more doubling upon chopsticks.
Mike Corazzi
Masterpiece
That 2023 is the worst year so far for nearly everything.
Wind, rain, rain, wind, cold.... just shitty!
Wind, rain, rain, wind, cold.... just shitty!
BonsaiPoppie
Mame
Here too.That 2023 is the worst year so far for nearly everything.
Wind, rain, rain, wind, cold.... just shitty!
Mike Corazzi
Masterpiece
Has anyone checked to see if the Earth is still on its axis?
BonsaiPoppie
Mame
It is, but its gone wonky.
Cajunrider
Imperial Masterpiece
This means your chop stick must be hand polished with 1000 grit sand paper. The tip must be made razor sharp then blunted back with precisely 2 six inch long strokes of the tip on 600 grit paper. The chop stick must be reconditioned after every repot.
Cajunrider
Imperial Masterpiece
This reminds me of the one night I saw an escaped trauma patient outside the ER room at Ben Taub hospital in Houston.
The patient with head heavily wrapped in bandages stopped another guy and asked for a cigarette and a light. Then he struggled to light the cigarette.
Patient: "Keep it still man!"
Other guy: "I am keeping it still. You are moving your head."
He finally got his cigarette lit and stumbled outside into the night.
Two minutes later a bunch of nurses and an orderly came out.
"Does anybody see a guy with his head all wrapped up?"
"Yeah! He just walked that way."
Hospital employees frantically did a search and returned a few minutes later. I got curious and asked them what's going on.
"He got stabbed in the head. The knife is still in there. We wrapped his head up trying to keep the knife still and arranged for surgery but he took off. We can't find him. We called the police to look for him. If they can't find him then he'll wind up in the morgue sooner or later."
August
Chumono
Ryan Neal? Is that you?!?
Cajunrider
Imperial Masterpiece
No silly! If I were Ryan there would be a consultation fee or you must be a tier 3 customer.
jeremy_norbury
Omono
I learned that I REALLY have more trees than space.
That seems to be a common problem.
August
Chumono
It feels like I learn this over and over again in different ways but...
I had a short conversation with the owner of Crumps, a local succulent distributor, about their cult-following soil blend which seems to mostly be 1/8th scoria mixed with organic fines. I told him how in our hobby, large and fine particles do not mix, and in general how we shoot for about half water and half air in a pot at any given times, and he explained to me how the scoria is an important component in the mix for it's large air holding capacity and relative lightness. I told him I do indeed have some succulents growing well in the stuff and he asked me if I use it for bonsai.... I said something like "God no..."
and after thinking on why that is for a bit, realized:
We dont simply use well draining soil and call it a day, we must use soil that drains *so* well that we can water twice a day in the summer as a *cooling* mechanism without ending up with a swampy mess Which is quite a bit different than the way cactus and succulent or even tropical aroid growers need "well draining" soil.
I then realized that we are all a little nuts for this one
I had a short conversation with the owner of Crumps, a local succulent distributor, about their cult-following soil blend which seems to mostly be 1/8th scoria mixed with organic fines. I told him how in our hobby, large and fine particles do not mix, and in general how we shoot for about half water and half air in a pot at any given times, and he explained to me how the scoria is an important component in the mix for it's large air holding capacity and relative lightness. I told him I do indeed have some succulents growing well in the stuff and he asked me if I use it for bonsai.... I said something like "God no..."
and after thinking on why that is for a bit, realized:We dont simply use well draining soil and call it a day, we must use soil that drains *so* well that we can water twice a day in the summer as a *cooling* mechanism without ending up with a swampy mess Which is quite a bit different than the way cactus and succulent or even tropical aroid growers need "well draining" soil.
I then realized that we are all a little nuts for this one
The main reason I need that well draining soil is not to keep me busy during summer but to allow my trees to survive our rainy days, weeks and months.
on topic
always check planting angles at least three time before anchoring
Cajunrider
Imperial Masterpiece
A lesson I have yet to learn but it is looming LARGE.
