Question from my mum... yes I am a "mummy's boy!"

[mashby]

Hi all
There have,as always, been some extremely interesting topics on the various forums but this might, possibly, be a first.
My wife and I travelled to Koh Samui, in Thailand, about 4 years ago. When we left to go home, we decided to take a number of souveniers for friends and relatives back home. My wife saw these exquisite flowers in hardwood bowls, that had been hand-carved from soap - the flowers not the bowl! The soap was very fragrant and also looked very beautiful (I am just now aknowledging this - my wife doesn't know about this site - because I actually wanted to try and bring back torches - about the size of a big mag-lite) that had tasers built into them). Not surprisingly, my wife's decision prevailed. Our female relatives and friends were thrilled with the gifts and most of them placed the bowls into their bathrooms, where the fragrance would fill the room.
Pictures of the bowl and flowers (bear in mind, the flowers are now over 4 years old and have lost their fragrance and have lost about 1/3 of their size).

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My mum is interested in my various bonsai, although she doesn't have a green thumb and doesn't want to risk killing things. However, my dad's thumb and, indeed, his whole hands, are so green that I think he is the world's largest leprechaun (at 6'4"), and, actually, when he was the railway Station Master at Tambellup in the inner southwest of WA in the very early 1960s and near Katanning - where I was born many years ago - he decided that the railway house provided to him needed fencing placed around it. He went to the local woodyard and bought some jarrah picket fencing. About six months after putting up the fencing, about 1/2 of the pickets started sprouting foliage!
As the soap-flowers, which were kept in their en-suite, have lost their fragrance, Mum asked me whether I might be able to use the bowl as a bonsai pot and pot up a small bonsai for her to display, again, in their bathroom.
Without the flowers, the bowl has some tissue paper stuck to the bottom, pictured, which I can clean. The diameter of the bowl is 14.5cm and the height of the bowl is 5.0cm. I have photographed the bowl together with a "Double A" battery for comparison.

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The bowl is made out of some sort of hardwood, but unlike other Asian wood that is brought into WA, it has not warped, split or dried out. That may be due, in part, to the location in which the bowl has been kept but I think it is some sort of a better class of wood.
I am comfortable cleaning the bowl, cutting out some drainage holes and placing some small feet on the bottom of the bowl. However, if the bowl is to hold potting mix and be watered on a regular basis, I think the bowl needs to be treated to make the bowl waterproof. I have some "Earl's Wood Hardener", do you think this would be appropriate? Or should I use some form of actual "waterproofing" agent?
My concern with treating the bowl with any sort of waterproofing agent, or even the wood hardener, is the potential for some residue being left which may prove poisonous to any tree I may place into the bowl.
Therefore, my question - in an extremely roundabout way - is has anyone used a wooden bowl for potting bonsai? If so, what did you do to treat the bowl?
Any answers or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. There really isn't any great rush to get this done, because I can just keep "forgetting" about mum's request and eventually give it to her as a Christmas or wedding anniversary gift!
Thanks in advance.
Take care and I hope you and your families are all healthy and happy and that your lives are filled with love and joy everyday.

[kcpoole]

What a Story, do you work in the TV industry

If you treated the bowl with Earls, I see no problem with contamination. It is used on trees all the time and they are watered all the time so leaching would occur.

I think you would have to retreat it every potting to ensure is last a while but it will eventually degrade.

Ken

[alexm]

Just an idea - but maybe as well as using the wood hardener you could line the bowl with some plastic so it doesnt get too much direct contact with water?

Would have to make sure that the hole in the plastic matches up with the drainage in the pot.

[Duckbed]

I haven't tried this but as a suggestion you could use a fish friendly pond sealer. http://www.wrimcowaterproofing.com.au/index.php?p=1_81

This is just one product I found but I'm sure there are plenty.

Cheers,
Rick

[Nos72]

Hi,
a quick search of nontoxic wood sealers on Google has produced a DIY option as well as a few others..

http://www.ehow.com/how_5836740_make-ow ... ealer.html

[mashby]

Thanks for the input everyone.

And, Ken... yes I worked in television back in the 80's (here in WA, then Canberra out of the old Parliament House, during the '87 election campaign and then in Sydney editing music videos, documentaries, television ads and promos etc) but then made the stupid decision to go back to uni (here in Perth) and become a lawyer. What a disaster! At the time everyone wanted to be like Corben Bersen in "LA Law" and they acted like it. Then at the law firms, the partners would work us to the ground for a pittance - but charging the clients like wounded bulls - all the while taking long lunches, buying boats and holiday homes "down south" because of "under the table payments" from clients (to avoid taxes etc) or by receiving payment in shares in companies IPOs. All too late for me though. After 15 years as a lawyer... into the loony bin for me. On suicide watch. Then I found Buddhism and bonsai - a great combination for mindfulness, concentration and pure thoughts of happiness and design.

Thanks again to my bonsai friends (even though I don't know everyone of you), I appreciate your input and can truly feel a real sense of a loving community among you all.

[Kyushu Danji]

Thanks for the input everyone.

And, Ken... yes I worked in television back in the 80's (here in WA, then Canberra out of the old Parliament House, during the '87 election campaign and then in Sydney editing music videos, documentaries, television ads and promos etc) but then made the stupid decision to go back to uni (here in Perth) and become a lawyer. What a disaster! At the time everyone wanted to be like Corben Bersen in "LA Law" and they acted like it. Then at the law firms, the partners would work us to the ground for a pittance - but charging the clients like wounded bulls - all the while taking long lunches, buying boats and holiday homes "down south" because of "under the table payments" from clients (to avoid taxes etc) or by receiving payment in shares in companies IPOs. All too late for me though. After 15 years as a lawyer... into the loony bin for me. On suicide watch. Then I found Buddhism and bonsai - a great combination for mindfulness, concentration and pure thoughts of happiness and design.

Thanks again to my bonsai friends (even though I don't know everyone of you), I appreciate your input and can truly feel a real sense of a loving community among you all.

I study law. There is even a compulsory course these days that warns of the high rates of depression among both law students and graduates. Glad you found bonsai and were able to share your story with us.

James

[Sahara]

i have to say i was in awe of just reading the story never mine the pot lol.. glad to see you pulled through with real life stuff like myself

[mashby]

Thanks Saharah. James, I would certainly take that course because, if I recall correctly, lawyers are "right up there", within the top 10 professions liable to suffer severe depression and suicide. Take care but on the way try to make as stress free much money as you can!
Michael

[Kyushu Danji]

Thanks Saharah. James, I would certainly take that course because, if I recall correctly, lawyers are "right up there", within the top 10 professions liable to suffer severe depression and suicide. Take care but on the way try to make as stress free much money as you can!
Michael

Thanks for the advice Michael

[mashby]

Hi again everyone

An update on the progress of the "wooden pot saga". After reading, and taking into account the kind advice I received, I decided in the end to go with, after checking potential toxicity:
1. A couple of coats of Earles wood hardener on the inside - I then drilled a drainage hole and 4 tie holes into the bottom of the pot;
2. Several coats of a wood polish that was basically mineral oil and beeswax;
3 A good coating of a silicon based water sealant; and
4. I then sanded and painted the outside of the pot with a light mahogany tinged varnish.

I then glued 4 rubber "feet" onto the bottom of the pot.

I then looked at possibilities for a plant to put into the pot. Because it was so shallow, none of my "in progess" bonsai appeared suitable. So I decided to place an Adenium (possibly A. 'obesum') ("Desert Rose") into the pot. I then placed the pot and plant onto a small bonsai stand.

On Friday last, my whole family had a party at a restaurant in the hills near Perth to celebrate mum's 70th birthday and also Mothers' Day. She was very pleased with the result. So am I.

Thanks again for all your kind advice.

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[nealweb]

Looks good!!!!!

[Kyushu Danji]

I like it. I think the species you chose suits the pot as well. Great work!