Get paid to work with bonsai?

You might call it a dream

job-what’s it like spending your work day around bonsai?

Getting paid to do

what many of us do for free. Carmen Leskoviansky knows just what that’s

like!

 She earned her Bachelor of Science in Horticulture

from Michigan State University,

and began working at Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nichols

Arboretum in 2009.

Carmen oversees the care of the orchid and bonsai 

collections as well as the

Gateway and Medicinal Gardens.  

Here are her responses to a few 

questions:

1. Is your educational background plant related? Where you a "plant person" prior to getting your education?
 Yes and yes! I have a bachelors degree in horticulture from Michigan State University, and I've always been a plant person.  My parents had a little garden near the chicken coop that they split between me and my brother.  Each year, we'd go to the greenhouse and were allowed to buy a flat of whatever we wanted to grow.  It helped that we had some acreage and that my parents were avid gardeners.  I had lots of time to play outside in the woods, help in the garden, and learn about plants and nature.

2. Before you came to Ann Arbor, had you any experience with bonsai?

I had no experience with bonsai when I started here besides seeing them on display at a few botanical gardens.  At first, my role with the trees was keeping them healthy and alive - fertilizing, watering - and managing the volunteers who did most of the design work.  Over time, I began learning more about styling and got more involved with all the aspects of bonsai.  My official job has shifted over that time from caring for many collections and garden spaces to now focusing on the bonsai collection. 

3. Who is the bonsai person who you've found most interesting or helpful?

There are so many people who have influenced me!  Connie Crancer, the horticulturist who took care of the bonsai before me, was my first teacher.  She taught me watering, fertilizing, and helped me through some of my first pruning and wiring exercises.  Since then, a number of the volunteers I work with here at the gardens have been very influential in my bonsai education - Jack Wikle, Paul Kulesa, and Cyril Grum - to name a few.  This year, I started studying with Michael Hagedorn, and I will say that his teaching has very much influenced how I look at trees as well as the quality of my work.  He is a thoughtful teacher, and I really connect with the way he styles his trees.  

4. Do you have a favorite species to work with? Or a species you dread?

This is a really tricky question.  Each species offers something different.  I tend to gravitate towards deciduous and flowering species.  I think it comes from all the time I've spent in the woods.  I'm familiar with these trees, and they remind me of my childhood.  Here in Michigan, we don't have a lot of the same dramatic conifers you see out west.  Though, I do really enjoy working on white cedar and larch - two conifers native to Michigan

Finally getting down to business.

 This is a juniper of unknown variety and origin that has been knocking around my benches for a little while. I honestly don't know where it came from. From size and age, it looks like an old cutting, but I rarely even try with junipers-they just take so long to strike roots!

Last year it was massaged out of a training plastic and into this small Chinese pot.  Many times my inspiration for how to style a tree takes a while to form up, and that means trees can evolve into a final form rather than just make a magical transformation.  This little plant has been growing and needed one of two thing-cut back to lessen the long shoots and get more compact, OR some wire to make the long shoots more interesting.




Here is the "other" side of the plant, compared to what is shown in the first image. This view really emphasizes how long and lank the foliage is. The decision was made to wire everything and add some curves to all the straight growth. Pinching took places at the same time, and all growth shortened. Any verticals were removed.

 Notice the light level. It didn't take all that long to do this work, but by the time it was wrapped up, the sun had set.
Two branches were made into jin, and new soil worked into the pot to help add a bit more lean to the trunk.
The jin will need cleaned up for shape, but one was wired so that it would hold it's curve. It adds some visual interest on that side and also mirrors an exposed root's curve, that doesn't show well in this photo.

A photo in daylight shows the amount of wire used. Well shaped, truly refined bonsai means wire.
This little fellow has a ways to go-the foliage masses need to fill in-but it looks alot more lie a bonsai than it did 24 hours ago.

SURVIVABILITY

Those who are regular readers of these online jottings will know that Elephant bush-sometimes called dwarf jade or baby jade (Portulacaria afra) is one of my favorite species for bonsai. One if it's chief recommendations is hardiness. That quality is demonstrated in these two photos, taken about a month apart.  

The first photo shows the morning after a rabbit came calling in my back yard. My neighbors spend lots of money on those sprays and treatments, so there is a green,grassy smorgasbord all around, but still the bunnies come to my back yard to sample twigs and berries. 

This plant is called elephant bush, because in the plant's native range, elephants eat it in large quantities. Goats and other live stock also use it for fodder. Apparently the rabbit didn't like it much-he bit the leaves and then spit it out. Result-one  decapitated plant.

But just a few short weeks later-look-the plant has pushed forth a bunch of new leaves and is going strong and hardly missed a beat. Also, check out the snipped off portion-the leaves are still fresh and moist. This would root easily if I simply pushed the stem into the soil.

If the name cast iron plant wasn't already being used, maybe that would be a good moniker for this plant, too!

Always say yes to the free tree

 Always say yes to the free tree! This was a free hand out promotional item given away by a vendor set up at the recent International Tree Climbing Completion recently held in Columbus, Ohio. You didnt know there was such a thing? Neither did I until I walked out of Franklin Park Conservatory, having taught a class about a much smaller tree -based activity, and took a look at the various vendors. I cam away with a nice tote bag, filled with other fine "swag"-work gloves, magnifying lenses,temporary tattoos and a bumper sticker.
And of course, trees! This is a variety of Rocky Mountain Juniper (J. scopulorum) called 'Moonglow'. New growth is such a light blue green it is almost grey and seems to glow, hence the name.
Rocky Mountain Junipers are most famous in bonsai for the amazing deadwood that ancient collected specimens can develop. This little fellow is a LONG way from dead wood glory, but you got to start some where.
Top photo is the cutting pulled out if its plastic pot. it was growing a in a loose fairly sandy soil which is a pretty good sign for a juniper. Its what they prefer. The attached label told me this was produced by Musser Forests, a nursery company in Western Pennsylvania that you may have heard of. They grow good stuff. They are located in Indiana , PA, the home town of Jimmy Stewart.










Second photo is the same viewing angle, with loose soil removed. Another inch or two of trunk is exposed and the start of a root base is revealed












In the third photo we see the tree in a training container. Steel recycles! I did this work in Mid-August, which is not time to do root work on a Juniper, so this was basically a "pot-hop" working what had been a tight, upright root ball into a flatter, less deep shape. A few root high up the trunk were removed, as well as some dead tip, but no real trimming of the roots was done. All the active root tips were left intact. Getting this into the pot simply involved some chop-stick action, working good bonsai soil into the roots.

Some wire adds much needed  shape. The photo at right is from the Musser website and shows the strong upright growth pattern of this variety. Wire is needed for curves, and this will be left on till it really starts to cut in. All foliage was shortened, and the tree given a dose of "repotting tonic": some liquid kelp, a crushed aspirin and some fish emulsion. The aspirin is not for any aches and pains, but because the chemical in the drug is the same stuff in willows that acts like rooting hormone. The other tonic ingredients, used at low strength will help give a jump start to the last flush of summer growth.

Ten years from now, this may look like a decent bonsai!

A Maple Make Over

 Amur maple-Acer ginnala is a populare subject for bonsai. It's leaves resemble Trident maple (A. buergerium), and though it's growth habit is a bit more coarse and unrefined compared to tridents, it is very cold hardy. A vigorous grower, it can be used in any style and any size classification of bonsai.

I got hold of a bundle of Amur seedlings somewhere along the line. They went into individual pots and got grown on for a while. Having a big bunch of them may have meant they didn't get the individual attention they needed They grow some gnarled root, twisty trunk little trees that looked like the belong in a Hobbit movie, but never ramified enough for my taste.
I potted up a few to use as mame, more like little trees as accent plants, and sold the majority at a club meeting.


A few seedlings got left behind. These got jammed rather hastily into a forest pot with the thought of making something out of them-sometime. The where allowed to grow wild, getting hacked back once in while. The method here was benign neglect. The trunks thickened, the trees got taller as they did their thing and I did mine.
This is how the planting looks some years later, the third week of May, out of winter storage for a month and a half and growing vigorously.









I realize I've  used the word vigorous to describe this species twice now, but they earn it. The abuse that this planting has taken is amazing. There is a nest of ants in the pot, and their activity, plus some sloppy potting when the thing was assembled means that there are empty holes in the soil ball above each drain hole. The plant doesn't seem to notice. The roots are so tangled and congested that water doesn't penetrate well and the root ball feels like a Brillo pad-the trees don't care!














Ok, maybe some of the trees noticed. You can see that most of the back row is dead. I am sorry they are gone, but this may be the cosmos telling me that I need to be more careful, and also telling me this should be a smaller planting. This is a damn handsome pot, and it will be a shame not to have something growing in it, but it is far two big for just two trees. By the way, the pot may look like terra cotta, but it is high fired. It is actually Italian, so while not a traditional bonsai region they do know from ceramics.

 Here is the pot I'd like to get the living trees into. It's a very sweet round made here in Columbus by my friend Tom Holcomb. It's an almost black brown color with grooving on the sides.

 Remember the ants nests? If plants could cry out, maybe these poor guys where calling out "New Shoes, Please!"

 Looks like I was over-optimistic about the size of the root ball, and how it could be reduced.

That looks better. Size and depth are very good. It's a stiff and formal pot for these trees, but will do for now. Could change later.

Root ball cut way back, fresh new soil tucked into the nooks and crannies, now its time to think about size and shape. The sharp eyed readers in the crowd will notice that both trees have been shortened, and a few low branches have been removed

Also, I made the choice that this would become a two tree planting, and the odd little fellow in the back has been removed to his own training pot.

Now that basic height has been decided, its time to cut back all the shoots. Besides taking some load off the reduced root system, this will encourage some back budding.The trees are a bit leggy  and need to fill in. The tree on the right has a few empty spaces that could do with whole new branches. It was tempting to cut it down even shorter, but that wastes some good trunk texture, and I think the height and width suit the pot they are in.

Here is the new duo as it stands now. It is in the shadow under a bench, in a spot between my house and my neighbor's that gets mostly eastern sun and than shade the rest of the day. For a few weeks I'd like to pamper it to help it bounce back.

More photo updates coming later in the summer!

Neat and Tidy

This apron was a Father's Day gift. My wife got to a point where she was frustrated with soil, bark or lime sulfur on good clothes. I thought the idea of an apron was a bit much when she mentioned it, but that didn't stop a determined woman from doing some internet shopping-her favorite hobby-and that lead to the package on Father's day.

It's a very handsome piece of work, even if it is a bit over done and hipster-ish. Heavy, waxed fabric, leather straps and bronze tone metal hardware.
I feel like I should be breaking done an organic, locally fed hog into house made smoked meat-or perhaps carving some wood into a real boy!



I was hesitant to wear it, but once I tried, I really took to it. Its very convenient to have all those pockets, to hold the things you need-shears, tweezers, chops stick, Ipod, pipe lighter, all there where you need them.

But it didn't take long to enjoy putting on this "uniform". There is obvious precedent for a bonsai artist working in an apron. The books and websites are full of illustrations such as the one below.
The apron is practical, but seems to me to be part of the Japanese cultural imperative  to keep orderly and neat.

The flowers that bloom in the spring

Always a gorgeous show when the

 Quince and Crabapple start putting on the colors.

SEEDY, Part 2

This is a follow up to a post from last year.

 That post was about collecting Elm seeds from some landscape trees on the campus of Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. Collected in the Fall of 2016, the seeds were stratified in the back of the refrigerator, then planted in a large tray


Germination rate was excellent, and the seedlings were allowed to grow with no real training or limits. They were kept well watered and had regular doses of fertilizer.






Mid-way through summer the most vigorous seedling were picked out of the mass planting and put into this cell pack. They has been started in a sand and coir fiber starter mixture. Roots were lightly trimmed and the baby trees placed into individual cells, each cell filled with a standard bonsai mix ( pine bark, haydite, turface, pool filter sand).

Here is a view of the cell back in late April 2018, on year after initial planting and germination.
The the variety of heights is due to (unsolicited) assistance with pruning given by the locate rabbit population during the winter. These were part of a large group of untrained stock that got overwintered on the ground in a vegetable patch. Despite plenty of available grass, the rabbits feel the need for some twigs-usually twigs attached to living trees.






When pulled out of the cell packs, the different layers of soil are very apparent. The trees rooted well into the bonsai soil, and have developed trunks more than 1/8th of an inch-not large but these will grow quickly.

 Here is how the tree looks with soil cleared away. Though this was one of the most interesting trunks, you can see there is lots more going on below soil level. These trees have no developed any real roots yet, so it is perfectly acceptable to trim of some hair roots and expose more of the curves. The roots toward the bottom will take over, and this will help create a better nebari














Some of the most appealing-i.e. curved seedling planted into individual pots to work on nebari.
After a week or two of pampering, they will go in full sun for another summer of rampant prowth to thicken roots and trunk. No real thought to branches will happen this summer. Most likely any branches grown this year will come off next spring.


New bonsai growers often ask "How do you know what to do with new stock like this?"
starting from tiny seedling, or very new cuttings, gives lots of choices, and many ways to proceed.

First decision is how large a bonsai would I like to end up with?
Obviously aiming for a large bonsai from a new seedling will mean some growing to develop a suitable trunk mass. On the other hand, these elm will be nice mame materiel in just a few years.
I always lean towards smaller bonsai, so these wont get much taller, but much thicker!


Once the size question is set, remember good bonsai are made from the ground up: grow good healthy roots then trunk , then scaffold branches, then fine shoots. Foliage is last!

Willow

The graceful form of willow, as well as its
exotic Asian origin, make it popular in decorative arts.

Willow is a species of tree that I see often mention in bonsai books, but not nearly as often as an actual bonsai. In all the time Ive been involved in the CBS annual show, I’ve only seen one willow, the lovely example the Jose Cueto displayed last year.

Although the genus Salix-what are commonly known as willows-has about 400 member species, the word willow evokes images of the Weeping Willow. Originating in China, Salix babylonica spread rapidly through human traffic through out Asia and into the Near Eat and Europe via Silk Road trade. Willows  readily hybridize,"promiscuously and indiscriminately" in the scientific literature,so the tree we know as Weeping willow may or not be S. baylonica-botanists are unsure, even to the point of believing the pure species is extinct in the wild.

Willow is well regarded as an ornamental plant, especially for siting near water. It also provides a tough though pliant lumber that is ideal for many uses, including cricket  bats and rustic furniture. The modern pharmaceutical aspirin is a laboratory produced version of a chemical derived from willow. This is the same chemical that makes a tea made from willow bark both an effective pain reliever and an excellent root simulator when propagating plants.

A willow bonsai, just leafing out in spring.

But what about willow as bonsai? Easy to find gorgeous pictures of lush, graceful willow bonsai by searching the internet, but what if you want one in your back yard?  Willows grow at a prodigious rate, and are not shy about abandoning entire branches if they feel stressed. This means that you may put lots of time and effort into planning a good looking bonsai only to have the tree react to your pruning by shutting down those branches and putting out a crop of new buds all over.

Ironically weeping willows don’t weep much. That is, the amount of weep and hang in the branches looks right on a full size tree, but is not proportional for a bonsai. This means that every branch you can convince to keep alive and growing will need to be either wired or weighted. Wiring the branch to get a nice tight down ward curve, and then weighting it to get a nice downward drop if especially effective, and saves on wire.

Willows are also host to several nasty diseases, most of which kill branches and prior to the killing make the leaves and bark look like a splotchy mess. So given the tree’s apparent reluctance to either look nice or stay alive, why are all those photos of willow bonsai clogging up the interweb?

My personal experience with willow, backed up by some research tells me that willows when stressed are much more likely to get a disease and to drop branches. From what Ive seen in my back yard willows are very susceptible to water stress.  The willow in the photo was one that I worked on at a Club workshop at  least six or more years ago. Id repot it every spring and wire branches into place, and it would reward me by dying back with some sort of willow blight that never seemed to respond to the stuff I sprayed on it.  I had the same results with some interestingly shaped cutting from some local willow. I thought that perhaps the trees from ‘the wild’ brought some cooties with them, and these sought out the nursery raised willow from the workshop.

After a few years of getting nowhere with the wild cuttings, they went in the yard waste bin. The workshop willow hung on well enough to stay alive, but never looked good. The entire top canopy of the tree died back, and I had to start all over with essentially on branch and a trunk. Luckily, willows will pop new buds like crazy.

What really changed was the way the will was taken care of. I had been using a standard deciduous bonsai mix, and keeping the tree in the same general area as elms and ficus. Last year after repotting, I watered it by immersion-  pot and all in a plastic oil change pan. It sat there soaking up water while I did other things. I got distracted, left it alone and long story short, that willow sat in that water filled pan all summer.That tree acted like a totally different willow from the one I had been acquainted with! IT grew like crazy, and never showed a sign of the blight or canker or heebie-jeebie that had plagued before.  This spring at repotting, I put it into it’s own blend of soil-75% bark/25% Turface. There were a few dead twigs to remove, but nothing like the usual die off over late summer/winter. Overwintering was different, as well: it had spent all other winters in the garage with the azaleas, pomegranates and Chinese elms. It spent the winter of 17/18 outside on the grass with no mulch!  I cant say that the change in winter care had any effect on the overall health of the tree, other than to prove these guys are really tough.

With care, patience and luck, willow makes a lovely bonsai.

We are used to the idea of bonsai as the art that is never really finished. Keeping a willow bonsai is  pretty vivid proof of that idea. This is a tree that will likely have a different profile from year to year. Success seems to come from keeping it moist to the point of wetness, and accepting that it will not fit into the cookie cutter bonsai styles but will be it’s own thing
 

"Willow Water Recipe" There are two substances found in the willow tree that enhance root growth, Salicylic acid and Indolebutyric acid. When you make willow water, both these acids leach into the water and provide beneficial effects for your cuttings. They help your cuttings fight off bacteria, fungi and infections – giving them a better chance to survive. They also help speed up the rooting process.

Gather about two cups of pencil-thin willow branches cut to 1-3 inch lengths. Steep twigs in a half-gallon of boiling water overnight. Refrigerated liquid kept in a jar with a tight-fitting lid will remain effective up to two months. (Label jar so you won’t confuse it with your homemade moonshine.) Overnight, soak cuttings you wish to root. Or water soil into which you have planted your cuttings with the willow water. Two applications should be sufficient. Some cuttings root directly in a jar of willow water. Make a fresh batch for each use. You can also use lukewarm water and let twigs soak for 24-48 hours. Another way to make willow water is to let a handfull of willow twigs root in clean wa

Why Bonsai?

Why do we do bonsai?

I had a light bulb moment during the recent beginner’s class sponsored by the Columbus Bonsai Society. Tom, Dan and myself have been leading this class for a number of years ( we think this was the sixth edition, but we are not sure). It is always a great way to spend a Saturday, and this year was no exception.

Pen-ching, the Chinese forerunner of Bonsai 

Tons of Blue and White pottery was
produced for the export market.

Each instructor has certain topics that they are assigned to present, and Dan is leadoff batter, getting the day started each year with an over-view of bonsai history.  Dan asked the rhetorical question “Why do we do bonsai, rather than pen-ching?” That’s an interesting point that until that moment had not really considered-why did the Japanese version of miniature trees gain popularity in this country and around the world, when the Chinese variant-from which the Japanese grew-is much less familiar ( and is often called Chinese bonsai).

The light bulb moment was Dan considering that at the end of the 19^th century, these two countries were in very different positions. Japan was increasingly open to the west and was actively modernizing its social, political and economic systems, while China in the same period was doing the exact reverse.

Its never easy to be a new immigrant, but Chinese in this country had an especially hard time. It certainly seems possible that Japanese immigrants occupied a different , somewhat higher social position; where it was more ‘acceptable’ to the general population to be aware of and even take in interest in facets of Japanese culture.  Considering the fact that the nation was forced to accept trade and diplomacy with the west, Japan embraced the situation whole heatedly. When American and European consumers expressed an interest in Japanese goods, and wanted to buy them, Japanese manufacturers ramped up production of everything from fabric to ceramics especially for these new markets.

The mania for all things Japanese is recorded in Impressionist art of the time. Gilbert & Sullivan wrapped a thoroughly English story in a Japanese mask and created The Mikado, a piece of musical theatre that is still popular today. Every fashionable lady bought imported silks and would have had a display of blue and white “willowware” in her parlour. Reminders of Japanese arts and culture where literally everywhere.

Japanese Pavilion at the 1878 Paris World's Fair

And this was the era when the west was introduced to bonsai. World’s Fairs in London and Paris features bonsai amongst the Japanese pavilions, and America’s Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia is likely the first ‘ bonsai show’ on this continent. Contrast that with the low social status of Chinese at the time, and  the adoption of bonsai over pen-ching may be ore apparent.

Snow in April, and life under glass

By this time of year my indoor trees always look a bit  tired. I am deeply envious of a grower like Jerry Mieslik, who has a big, beautifully set up grow room with lights and plumbing. Google photos-you will see that his trees look wonderful.  Mine sure don’t . They are just treading water, waiting for better times outdoors.

I am writing this on April 7^th, and there is a substantial dusting of snow on the ground. Substantial means the grass doesn’t show through.  Forecast is for night time temperatures to be below freezing for the rest of the week. It may be Spring on the calendar, but in practical fact it hasn’t shown up yet. The majority of my collection is still packed away. This really is the latest  I have ever taken things out of winter storage, but I’m feeling lazy, and the plants know what they want. Even the early riser like the quince, crab apples and Ume are only now just popping discreet buds.

When I say things are packed away, I mean the ‘good’ stuff in real pots. This material gets the best location, fully sheltered from any sun light, so takes its time awakening.  Because I’m running out of room, the rough stock and recent cuttings are in another part of the back yard that gets more sun. As far as plants go, it’s a whole nother world, and they wake up earlier. On the days it’s not freezing, I ‘ve been sorting through this material and getting it into new pots. Training has to be constant and ongoing or you get no results.

I am probably over cautious  with this newly work stuff, so it comes into the garage when temps will be below freezing overnight.  My kids are now teen agers and off living  a glamourous life of their own now, but when they were younger were usually around to help with the Bonsai Shuffle. This year I’m doing it myself. This means that I don’t have to hear one of them snarl “why do you have so many plants?”  or the worse example” Why do you NEED so many plants?”

Many of us let our collection grow past the point of practicality.  What we need and what is easy to manage often are two different things. But it’s not a bad thing to consider the size of our collection now and again. I often advise new growers to get more than one bonsai-it helps spread out the ‘love’ and may mean one solitary bonsai doesn’t get killed with kindness. But the other end of the spectrum is worth avoiding too. Having so many trees they cant be properly taken care of is a circumstance to avoid. Far better to have a moderate of bonsai that get proper attention and can be kept styled, rather than a backyard full of un-attended junk.

And that is just a consideration of number of trees.  What about stock that, for whatever reason, isn’t now a good bonsai and may never be one? The well-known bonsai author Colin Lewis is a big advocate of ruthless culling of a bonsai collection, thinking that bonsai take so much time, especially to get them to a high level, that ‘wasting’ time on inferior stock that will never go anywhere is not the best use of resources. That’s a tough line to take. Most of use have a few-or more than a few- items that  we tuck in the back and hope of a bolt of inspiration to hit us. Myself, I tend to think the statement “Some trees will just never make good bonsai” is usually false. Most trees will make a bonsai, if given enough time, effort and inspiration. It’s just a matter of can you provide all three?

By this time of year my indoor trees always look a bit  tired. I am deeply envious of a grower like Jerry Mieslik, who has a big, beautifully set up grow room with lights and plumbing. Google photos-you will see that his trees look wonderful.  Mine sure don’t . They are just treading water, waiting for better times outdoors. 

How different it would be with a greenhouse! I have written in these pages, previously, about my appreciation for the detective stories that feature Nero Wolfe.  Wolfe lived in a New York brownstone, and atop the brownstone was a three zone greenhouse to house his collection of ten thousand orchids. Wouldn’t it be fabulous to have such a facility as your own?

But perhaps Wolfe’s set up might prove a bit confining?  Why limit yourself? The great English plantsman and garden designer  Joseph Paxton created a massive green house for his employer the Duke of Devonshire that was 270 feet long by 120 feet wide. To give you a sense of just how large that is, when Queen Victoria and Prince Albert came to take a tour, they drove from end to end in a carriage. The massive structure could hold full size trees in tropical comfort and stood for more than 70 years, until a lack of coal and manpower brought about by the First World War made it impossible to keep up.

If  the Duke’s greenhouse still wouldn’t give you enough room, Paxton’s magnum opus was an iron and glass building of prodigious size, large enough to hold a whole world’s worth of innovation and invention. The Great Exhibition held in Britain in 1851 was a celebration of all the things human endeavor could accomplish, and this world’s fair of technology and culture was held in a magnificent structure called the Crystal Palace. More than 1800 feet long and containing nearly a million square feet of space under it’s glass roof, the Palace was nearly 130 feet tall at it’s tallest point. Paxton actually raised the height so that several elm trees growing on the sight would not have to be cut down.

New year, new topics

More thoughts on winter protection

This article is getting put together on the first  weekend of January 2018. Central Ohio, like a great deal of the country has been experiencing record-breaking weather extremes. Extreme low temperatures have a hit the Eastern 1/3 of the country, and heavy snow fall has been piling up in places that are used to snow, and plenty of snow if falling in places where it almost never does so.

If you’re reading this newsletter, Im certain you’re concerned about the outdoor pets and the kids waiting at the bus stop, but reports of severe weather   probably elicit one response: What about my trees? It a natural question, and even though I’ve been in the bonsai game for a good long while, I still get that gut reaction.

The good news is that the trees will be alright…probably.  Trees have been dealing with extreme weather for millennia, so they know what they’re doing.  We as growers usually just have to get out of their way and let them do what they do. However, we can make the job easier by  giving a proper environment and a moderate amount of preparation.

I say the trees will PROBABLY be alright because a tree that has had the opportunity to prepare itself for dormancy and is growing in an area where it can cope with the climate. Problems crop up  if the tree has not been able to prepare, or if its outside it’s usually growing zone..

A distinction has to be made about temperatures, specifically air temperature and soil temperature. In general, trees can tolerate quite low air temperatures but their limit for soil temps is not as extensive. This information is posted on The Morton Arboretum’s website:

ROOT DAMAGE

Root tissues apparently do not acclimate to temperatures much below freezing and can be killed or severely injured by soil temperature below 15°F. This is especially true for shallow rooted plants. Fortunately, the presence of mulch, leaf litter, or snow cover insulates most soils sufficiently to prevent soil temperatures from falling much below freezing. Plants with frozen roots may wilt and decline after growth resumes in the spring.

This hardiness difference between roots and trunks/branches is the most important reason that all trees should be heeled in and properly mulched. A bonsai left on a porch railing or deck bench will experience every fluctuation of air temperature-an almost certain death sentence. Heeled into a mulch bed, and shaded from sun light, the temperature around the roots will stay much more steady.

Since temperatures have been at or near zero for at least two weeks at this point, the root zone of most bonsai will be fairly close to the danger range. This is a circumstance that calls for patience-there is little to be done once the trees are in the situation. Frozen in place bonsai are tough to move, and  extra blankets and quilts won’t work.

Only thing to be done is grit your teeth, cross your fingers and hope. The most frustrating part of the process is that there is really no human intervention that will be effective. If for what ever reason the Frost Gods claim a tree, there’s no way the grower can reverse the ‘damage’.

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One word…Plastics

Among my many admirable qualities (among them, modesty) is a real sense of frugality.  Although my family uses a different term, I am devoted to getting value for the money I spend. Part of that value for money is recognizing that I spent money not just for a product, but the container it came in.  Once the product is gone, that container is not trash. I’m green enough that Id like to keep plastic out of a land fill, but when I think of plastic recycling, I’m not considering sending bales of plastic to be processed into other things, the recycling is more immediate.

In one photo you can see three ways that I have taken plastic items out of the recycle bin and made use of them in a bonsai or horticultural way. The plastic bottle formerly held dish washing soap. When it was empty, I unscrewed the cap and drained the last bit into the new bottle. Once drained as much as it could be, it was filled with a teaspoon of MIracleGro and plain water-no rinse required. Any residual soap acts like a wetting agent and makes the water penetrate soil more easily. The squeeze bottle is easier to direct and use that a standard watering can, and as a bonus the snap lid on the detergent bottle will prevent spills-an important safe guard in homes with young children or inquisitive pets.

The name tags are cut from plastic bottles. The example is from a milk jug but any other container would work.  Written on with a permanent Sharpie type marker, they last as long as purpose made name tags.  At the bottom right of the photo a small Erodium is being immersion watered in a small plastic container. It originally held mushrooms. These are surprisingly durable and can be used for training pots and cutting starters.  Ive used them to portion out soil ingredients in workshops and of course, if you have small bonsai they make great basin for watering