Bonsai...MacGyver style

I may be dating myself with that title. Remember the MacGyver TV show? Richard Dean Anderson played a government agent type who seemed to solve problems in a nick of time by using ordinary objects in extraordinary ways. The spirit of MacGyver-using everyday items in a special way can certainly transfer to bonsai.

On the left duct sealant putty, $3.20 tax
included, on the left imported cut paste
$14.95 shipping extra.

There are many tools and supplies needed for the pursuit of bonsai. With some items, no ssubstituteis acceptable. Case in point: concave cutters. No western style pruning tool does quite what this one does.  Scissors are scissors and your bonsai wont know if what you are snipping with came from Kyoto or Kmart, but a real bonsai pruner cutting in a manner that other trimmers don't. You have to have one.

Duct sealant putty in the package,
according to the label the unit of sale is a 'pug'
this is a 1 pound pug.

But does every item you use for this Japanese hobby have to come from Japan. Obvious answer: NO! In fact a little imagination will help you find items that are easier to come by and cost less besides. A great example-cut paste.
  There is always lively debate about the ultimate need for cut paste-from a horticultural stand point, is it a must? Partisans can make their arguments for and against, but one thing is sure, and that is that imported from Japan cut paste is expensive.  If you are like me, the thought of how much this little jar cost inhibits using enough, my inner cheap skate makes me skimp!

My  solution is a cut paste substitute that is much less expensive and as easy to obtain as going to any hardware store.  It is called duct sealant and is used in construction and home repair. If you were to look around your home, the most likely place to see it 'in action' is where electrical lines or A/C lines enter the building. It is stiff, slightly tacky putty that never gets hard and lasts just as long as cut paste from Japan. Other cut paste subs as regular modeling clay, school glue and mud.

Bonsai tool or personal care
implement? You make the call.

Speaking of bonsai tools, have you ever been at work with the concave cutter on rather branch congested shohin or mame and found it hard to maneuver the full size tool in the tight confines of the tiny tree? If you are like me you want a shohin sized trimmer, but hesitated at paying the full size prize for a pee wee size tool, I mean how often will I really use it any way? You may already have an item that will do the job, and it is as close as the drawer  in the bathroom.  A nice set of toenail trimmers looks almost exactly like a tiny size bonsai tool, and even if the better half objects and make you buy a brand new one for yourself, they are at least half the price of the specialty tool.

Most of this copper wire was salvaged
when a new air conditioner was
installed at my home. After the plastic
insulation was peeled off, the fine strands of copper
could be separated.  It is amazing how much
holding power such thin bits of metal have-
aluminum wire would have to be much thicker to
do the same job.

Japanese apricot (Prunus mume)
wired with blue and yellow telephone
wire. This was a lucky snag at work.
A repair crew had a huge relay panel
and had a large bundle of this stuff
on the floor. Its what attorneys call an
attractive nuisance-it came home with me.

Never pass up free wire. You’ll have to buy some wire, of course. But keep your eyes open.  Wire is another item that does not have to be labeled “For bonsai use” to do the job.  Copper and aluminum are the materials in common use, and it is best to stick with them. Steel wire tends to rust. When appearance is not an issue there is no need to remove the insulation-consider it a form of padding for delicate bark. Side note-the wood surface the copper wire is photographed on is a bar stool, one of two that where trash picked  will driving home from some family errands. Bar stool height is ideal for a bonsai stylist seated in a folding type lawn chair. The other member of the pair as a spot at the potting bench. Very useful item-total cost-A few momets to toss them in the trunk, and 15 minutes listening to my wife fume about it the est of the way home.

I have been a Turface user from the start of my bonsai career. It was certainly a hard commodity to find in the early days, though even though it’s easier to locate now those big bags can add up cost wise, and lugging them around and storing them is a strain as well.  A very similar material that behaves in the same predictable manner when used in container growing mixes is a product called Floor Dry sold by the Napa autocare chain.  It is physically lighter than Turface-it was a surprise to me when I bought my first bags-and has a lighter color when dry that some may object to.  But in my tests it absorbs  somewhat more water and hold onto it longer than does Truface.  Poking around in online forums shows that container growers have been using the material for some time with good results. It retains its integrity and does not break down over time or when exposed to extremes of temperature.  Google ‘gritty mix’ if you want to jump down that particular rabbit hole. A word of warning-I buy and use part#8822 from Napa, not because I get a kick back from that store but because that’s the item that has been tested.  There are other products sold as absorbents/cleaning aids.  Their performance in a horticultural setting is unknown, at least to me.