Alpineart's Blog

This was a collected tree which was growing in water logged or bone dry red clay .It constantly died back over the 12 or so years prior to its removal a couple of years back . When it was removed a found it to be buried 300mm deeper than the root ball ??by whomever planted it ‘ The root ball itself was very poor which is understandable, so it was potted up in a quality free draining mix for a season , then a set of multiple layers were placed onto the trunk .Last year they were severed and today the original 90mm base and the middle layer got some much needed root work/Narebri improvement .Using a method i learned from a Member of Ausbonsai.com and have successfully employed on Maples , Plums and Chinese Elms and are soon to trial on pines i  set to work . I have also used this method on the layer of the mid layer taken off last year ,  to see if it works above the ground . No reason why it shouldn’t but nothing ventured nothing gained . First of all the plant remained in its pot and the roots were inspected by removing some top soil and making the decision form there ..I tilted the tree over just enough so i could drill a series of 2.5mm hole where required around the appropriate section of the base and trunk  in the case of the layer .Using bamboo toothpicks snapped in two  simple soak water and dip the blunt end into some hormone powder and insert into the drill holes. I have in the past used soft wood toothpicks and the strike rate was less than 60 % bacteria and decay seemed to destroy all hope of the roots forming . With the tooth picks set a blend of Bonsai mix with added spagnum moss is placed into or around the base/trunk , which ever the case maybe . Because the tree has been disturbed i have used a probe/chop-stick to settle the soil back around the roots as per a normal re-pot . With this task complete a good soak to settle the soil and potted layer , i wont trim these 2 tree’s , allowing all the growth to grow unhindered for a few months ,then cut back by 50 % allowing the excess growth to generate the power to produce the new roots .

Cheers Alpineart

What to do with some shabby plum tree trunks that would take for ever and a day to transform into a suitable trainer . Many idea’s came and went until a topic on Ausbonsai.com showed a magnificent specimen grown by an elderly gentlemen whom unfortunately has Passed away . Inspired by his Penjing i have decided to dedicate this trainer to his magnificent work . These were collected 2 years ago and left in plastic pots to battle the elements . Little or no trimming or care has been taken with the plants , until the topic on Ausbonsai hit a spot in my heart as to the possibility or creating a clump style Prunus Cerasifera . I have search high and low for good specimens but have been unable to locate anything of interest . Starting with 5 plants i simply arranged them i a suitable order to not only have balance but would and could be turned into a clump style raft . I began by drilling and screwing each base together using stainless steel screws , starting with the 2 main trunks 1 of which has very poor roots . An area of bark and sap wood was removed for a close snug fit then screw into position . The next tree was added using the same method , the forth tree was place to the rear of the setting to give it some depth and anchored as the previous trees were . Lastly the final trunk was positioned and screwed onto its sister tree . With the hard work done i potted the clump trainer into a large plastic pot , removing a section of the pot to allow the outermost trunk to lay over somewhat , this hopefully will form the raft section of this trainer in the coming years . This will now be grown on it this pot and come next season i will be ground grown for some serious growth . The shaping and pre styling will be maintained over this growing season .

Cheers Alpineart

This was collected from a test plot 12 months ago, no-one has been able to  identify this species of pine so it s a 2 needle trainer . They are very easy to collect having excellent feeder roots close to the base and can handle rough treatment .I collect these bare rooted and bring them home . Some say you can’t do that with pines , i collect several species including Pinus Nigra Austriaca bare rooted . The terrain around here doesn’t allow for an easy collection being sticky clay and shale . None of which can be left on the roots as they will rot very quickly . Collecting dozens of pines per season i can basically tell whether or not it will survive before i dig , knowing the species and its dislikes helps . As with all collected material its potted in Red Scoria and pine bark , this seems to work extremely well on all my stock . I have decided on an informal upright trainer in this case using a thicker upper branch for the leader, it was chopped at this point last year when collected . The bark on the younger branch is soft so i have wrapped it in raffia to reduce the damage to the bark when bending and shaping . After the raffia is wrapped the wire is placed onto the trunk and upper leader using 2-3 3mm aluminium wires . Due to the one sided growth the leader will require a major rotation approximately 180 degree then another 90 degree futher up from the exit point to the mid upper section along with some severe bends to shape the trunk . With the trunk rotated and shaped wires are added to the lesser branches and shaped . With all the hard work done including trimming and needle plucking i  decided to have a check of the roots , this was simply a matter of trimming the ugly thick roots out and potting it into a doubled up seed tray as i had  no pots to suit this tree . This will now be set back into the scoria beds and left for another season . The wire will be removed in about 9 months to allow any new shoots to sprout from were the raffia is .Being a younger soft leader i have no doubt that it will back bud in the voids of the upper section . Finished height of the tree is 600mm with a 35mm trunk , the ageing bark on the lower main trunk is something very unusual as it is very similar to a Desert Ash have deep fissures and coarse block bark on the aged trees. Cheers Alpineart