AusBonsai

Stewart_Toowoomba wrote:good on ya Luke - this is better than a 20 hour round trip with stops!! Hope you get a spotters fee though......

Actually my partner and I are planning a road trip which just happens to pass Shibui's nursery Coincidence? Me thinks not . Anyway, I really want some nice pre-trained bonsai trainers (if that makes sense) That way I have trees in every aspect of development besides show worthy "finished" bonsai.

Good work Luke, sounds like you've hit on a winner there. Will definitely find the time to visit Glenberry as soon as I get the chance.

There all in Melbourne
Regards john m

just going back to buying seeds online.

I bought a few lots off ebay and they germinated fine, you have to use cold stratification for them to germinate properly though, which requires about 6 months. I did this with japanese maples, trident maples, chinese elms and sturt desert peas(hot stratification). They all germinated well, although all my trident maples died due to me planting them at the wrong time of year and most of the sturt desert peas

Hope that clears up that people thinking it can take two year for seeds to germinate(that only happens if you use old or poorly look after seed or bypass the cold stratification)

regards,
Ben

Aussie_Bonsai wrote:just going back to buying seeds online.

I bought a few lots off ebay and they germinated fine, you have to use cold stratification for them to germinate properly though, which requires about 6 months. I did this with japanese maples, trident maples, chinese elms and sturt desert peas(hot stratification). They all germinated well, although all my trident maples died due to me planting them at the wrong time of year and most of the sturt desert peas

Hope that clears up that people thinking it can take two year for seeds to germinate(that only happens if you use old or poorly look after seed or bypass the cold stratification)

regards,
Ben

Thanks for sharing the info, but can I ask what medium you use for cold stratification? I have read to use damp paper towel, but Ive also read to use propagating sand, and also I read to use a mix of peat and prop sand. how much do you put in your ziplock bags, and how many seed in each?
Thanks for your help
Luke

Luke it doesn't really matter what medium or how much as long as the seeds are staying damp while they're in the fridge.

In my climate I find it much easier to stratify seed outside - just sow them in the autumn and put the pots where they will get frost and get watered if its not raining. Obviously wont work in more tropical areas but works well in areas that get some frosty nights in winter.

There's plenty of seed on the tridents and Japanese maples here and you'd be welcome to get some fresh seed when you're here or I can post seed to those who can't get here.

There all in Melbourne
Regards john m

In the interest of absolute accuracy John, they are not all in Melbourne - there's a couple at Yackandandah as well!

i use damp paper towel, but only just damp, if its too wet the seeds rot and fungi and bacteria etc begin to grow. I normally space them just apart from one another so they can get enough of the moisture from the towel. Its also important to keep them away from light and check them weekly for any signs of growth.

regards,
Ben

John,

Where's Melbourne?

Here in the Natural Capital, we have the National Museum for Odd Socks, and the Australian Centre for Excellence in Dog Walking. We also have some very fine Trident bonsai.

And then we have these... Not by any means finished, but you get the idea.
And before you say anything, the shari is because the damn thing tried to die on me.
They're tough. And grow like weeds from cuttings.
And the moral of the story is, always seal after you cut thick roots. I didn't, and 5-10 years after, this is what happens.

So where are the rest of the Tridents? (And John, is your 4th one an elm? ...)

Gavin

GavinG wrote:(And John, is your 4th one an elm? ...)

Surely not a trident.

GavinG wrote:Where's Melbourne?

About 800k's from Canberra. Its the SECOND largest city,err what is Canberra

Looks like trident to me...

Well I finally got my hands on one.

Doesn't have as much movement in the trunk as I'd like but I'm sure I can get something out of it. It currently stands at over 9 foot tall, so with an air layer or two I can probably get a few trees out of it.

I'm open to advise and opinions for styling if anyone has some.

Reddragon wrote:Well I finally got my hands on one.

Doesn't have as much movement in the trunk as I'd like but I'm sure I can get something out of it. It currently stands at over 9 foot tall, so with an air layer or two I can probably get a few trees out of it.

I'm open to advise and opinions for styling if anyone has some.

Looks like someone has been to Glenberry nursery?!? What did you think, nice selection of maples hey?

Reddragon wrote:I'm open to advice and opinions for styling if anyone has some.

Fertilise it heavy and then chop it back to the lowest growth. You'll get heaps of buds to choose from and then we can talk styling

Sure did Luke, picked it up from Glenberry nursery. What a fantastic little place, I've never seen that many maples in the one nursery. Many other varieties and species which I've got my eye on too.

I'll be sure to visit again.