AusBonsai

Beano - check the sizing requirements. Trunk is to be under 1cm ...not 1mm!

Back to the volunteer nursery this morning ... lovely folk.

This should give me a few options. Woo hoo.

I imagine River Red Rum and Blackwood might be a rather big challenge!

Actually all 5 varieties might be a challenge - hopefully you can see the tags.

32 pots in total - $50. Very kind of them - they generally seedlings are $2:50 each. Indeed - after about 30 minutes chatting about what I was up too - they were as invested as I was!

Each and every seedling is under 1cm but I post photos and tape measure if/when entered.



Bonsai teaches me patience.

32 pots in total

and this is why I'm only going with plants I have in my possession at this time. Last year I bought that many natives, and more, and they're mostly all out of the running now because they're too thick at the base. After my water bill went up to around $600 for a quarter, I'm looking at reducing my number of trees!

Good on ya though Mark, they are going to give you such joy, I'm sure!

Meanwhile I'm still wandering around in amongst the plants with a tape measure....

Thanks Mel and good luck wandering around with your tape measure.

Also - people in Victoria might find this helpful - I found it online this morning.

I’ve got to get to that Boronia this weekend. I’ll take Rory’s advice and ensure that it survives a repot by the date entries close on 31 Jan, 2019.

On that note - I’ve already been busy - I’ve potted up some possible entries...

A River Red Gum Group.

Conceptually, there are two parents (on the right) looking after their kids as the play by the river ... I have purposely left sweeping curves that lean downstream... bear with me ... I have a reasonable verdant imagination!

A Swamp Paperbark group. In this group the bends are more aggressive; ghosts dancing in the swamp!
Perhaps I should be banging these in the ground to thicken up but actually, for me, I need and want to see the story of the group from the outset. I have used over-sized training pots that I had on hand - I can then let them grow out but still keep an eye on the each tree on its own and in the context of the story.

If and when I post in the comp. I have more photos to prove size (if needed) and I’ll note the species, height etc.... but first, let me see if they live! For example, the gums took a serious hit; I took a good inch off a tap root looking thing...! It was like the trunk just extended straight down as opposed to a tap root. Anyway - it’s gone and I hope I haven’t sucked the life out of the seedlings! We’ll see soon enough!

Plus ... I’ll have other options to consider including Boronia, Wattle, Hakea to name a few ....[SMILING FACE WITH SMILING EYES]


Bonsai teaches me patience.

I just remembered these acacia howittii sticky wattle that I purchased at the Vic Native Bonsai Show earlier this year. Surely a chance to enter ....

Can I just check on process. Should I formally enter lots of entries into the competition and then whittle back to three finals by end Jan 2019 or should I work on trees (eg root prune and repot) and then enter by end Jan 2019 when I know they have survived?

No drama either way - just checking.
Bonsai teaches me patience.

Hi MJL,

Just wait till closer to the end of January and submit the 3 entries you want.

Patience good sir.

No problem Rory - will do.

Here’s the Boronia you were interested in .... I’ve given the root ball a fair whack. It’ll either dead or a possibility by the end of January. [THUMBS UP SIGN]

Bonsai teaches me patience.

It appears that I keep disqualifying some of my trees as potential entries to this competition.

To ensure that my trees are alive (or not) by the end of January - I repotted two sticky watches this afternoon. In the spirit of failing fast, failing early - I went pretty hard at the roots. Clearing the surface to expose any nebari and/or better spread any roots. I also removed 2/3 of the root mass - at least.

My issue is this... with one of the trees (on the left of the first photo below) - I seem to have exposed a wider section as the new base. This means that the tree is now wider than the 1cm rule - after clearing the surface. See below. I imagine this means that this tree is cactus for the competition but the other may still be a chance. Is this correct?

See below and the next post. I can only upload five photos at a time on my PC - so please excuse the two posts on the one topic.

Here's the one that I think is now disqualified... (albeit it is not entered yet)
Hard to see but this tree has been replanted at a much different angle to original and will help accentuate curve of trunk on future ... don't worry about the rock and moss - they are not design features - rather the rock is helping to hold the tree in place and moss is helping to keep the top of severely chopped root ball moist.

And here's the second post related to the second tree. The tree on the right in the photo below.
Regardless of whether they make the competition, I am having fun with natives as Bonsai and I am sure we'll all learn heaps by participating in and following this competition.

My first tree here is going to be a 'normal' upright'ish but weeping, semi-cascade style. The second - a full cascade.

Cheers,

Mark

All these entries flying in. I am reserved to photograph atm but I have about 40 or so possibilities. Will see what’s strongest and most promising mid jan.

Thanks for the effort Rory.

Squizzy

Hi Rory, just wondering, i have a emu bush with a root that grows about 5mm high off the trunks true root line. Question is where does a trunk stop/start for the 1cm rule? Thanks for your time

no idea wrote:Hi Rory, just wondering, i have a emu bush with a root that grows about 5mm high off the trunks true root line. Question is where does a trunk stop/start for the 1cm rule? Thanks for your time

Generally the trunk starts at the soil line, but if the 2nd trunk is attached to the same trunk (2 trunks), then you need to show that the trunk isn't a clump or that the join isn't lower in the soil.

Rory wrote:

no idea wrote:Hi Rory, just wondering, i have a emu bush with a root that grows about 5mm high off the trunks true root line. Question is where does a trunk stop/start for the 1cm rule? Thanks for your time

Generally the trunk starts at the soil line, but if the 2nd trunk is attached to the same trunk (2 trunks), then you need to show that the trunk isn't a clump or that the join isn't lower in the soil.

Giveaways at the local nursery today

The trunks are both under 1cm but I presume will need to pull them apart to show they haven’t joined


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