Bonsai is (Usually) Not a Rescue Mission
The phrase “bonsai is not a rescue mission” is sometimes used to discourage eager bonsai enthusiasts from trying to make a bonsai from every plant they find. Instead, we should focus on the best material we can possibly get our hands on, thus increasing our chances of making something we can be proud of.
Sometimes, however, bonsai really is a rescue mission. Story time!
Last August I responded to an online ad where someone was selling their collection. Not knowing what to expect from the vague description and two blurry pictures of some tropicals, I arrived surprised to see a very old and once impressive bonsai collection in its final death throes. This elderly gentleman had been doing bonsai quietly in his backyard for 30-40 years, away from the clubs and shows, and now was in the predicament of having to sell everything due to failing health.
He had (understandably) put off selling them for years, but in those last few years the trees suffered greatly. To make matters worse, everything was planted in pretty much pure topsoil and was weak to begin with, therefore many were unable to handle the stresses of erratic watering.
Some of the tougher species were still hanging in there, but other more finicky ones like this impressive Japanese white pine had no chance.
Imported Japanese white pine.
After much haggling I went home with two larches, a ginkgo, and a Japanese maple – three very tough species that had managed to survive but were now in serious need of rehabilitation. This was August 2014 and some of the trees were already showing fall colours- A sign of definite stress.
I’m happy to report that all four trees survived the winter and were completely barerooted and repotted this spring. They seem to be doing well and I anticipate that they will have recovered their strength by the end of this growing season.
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- American larch, as purchased last summer. This was definitely the strongest of the trees I bought, but still was obviously weak.
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- Budding out nicely this spring. A cool tree that is begging to be planted on a stone slab.
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- Back view.
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- Second larch, as purchased. It is never a good sign to see fall colour in August. However, the tree had set winter buds so I though it was worth a chance.
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- A testament to the strength of larches, the tree is budding out nicely after transplanting. I have a feeling this might be Japanese larch based on the bark and needles. Regardless, it has been grown in a container for a very long time.
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- Ginkgo biloba, as purchased. Again, showing obvious signs of stress. You can clearly see the pure garden soil these trees are potted in.
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- Budding out after transplanting. It is extremely rare to see a ginkgo with any sort of movement in the trunk. While the movement is pretty monotonous and artificial looking, this tree is cool just because it is unusual. Definitely more of a penjing feel to this one.
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- Lastly, the Japanese maple as purchased, clearly extremely weak, already having lost most of the branches. Very, very root bound.
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- Budding out this spring. Fortunately the main trunk is throwing new buds… for a while I though it had completely died back to the first branch. It may be hard to see the value in this tree – certainly it is a long term project. But it has a nice trunkline and is not grafted. That along makes it worthy of some attention.
New Pot for Japanese Maple
This fancy pot is branded Ejiri Taizan, which I learned thanks to Ryan Bell’s very comprehensive Chop, Seal, and Signature Resource.
I overwinter this tree in my insulated garage. It can handle the cold, but keeping it in the garage allows me to appreciate it throughout the winter. The disadvantage is it breaks dormancy about one month early meaning it has to be run in and out of the house throughout most of April, which is probably the most unpredictable month in the Toronto area, weather-wise.
Daily bud-pinching has been underway on this tree for about three days, even though the ground outside is still pretty much frozen.
Japanese Maple
This spring I acquired my first Japanese Maple. After ten years of bonsai, what took so long? Well I suppose it was a combination of finally having safe overwintering conditions and, more importantly, finding a good one that I couldn’t refuse.
It originally came in a lovely textured unglazed John Pitt oval. Great for a larch, but maybe not for this maple. I wanted something a little more flamboyant, so I planted it in a pale blue glazed custom made pot by local potter Geoff Lloyd. Geoff has only been making pots for a couple of years but he is making serious progress. I own several of his pots and he even made me a large custom slab which I will be planting a larch forest on in a couple of weeks.
If you need a bespoke pot and want to support your local artisan, shoot me an email and I will put you in contact with Geoff.
A washed out picture of the tree as purchased March 15th in it’s original John Pitt container.
Besides the repot, only minor work was done. Some branches were wired, pruned, and the moss was brushed from the nebari after killing it with vinegar.
Today in it’s new pot by Geoff Lloyd.
Fellow Ontarians are probably wondering “how the hell is that thing already almost in full leaf?” Everything else around here won’t start moving for at least another two or three weeks. Well, you may have guessed that this tree came from southern Pennsylvania.