Whats Your Best Bonsai

josh1812@live.com · Mon Nov 30, 2009 6:53 pm

I wanted to send out a post to see everyones favorite bonsai they own.

bonsaiboy · Mon Nov 30, 2009 7:21 pm

This was my favorite bonsai. It has since died. I currently have no other bonsais worthy of display. Here is al ink to a thread with its pictures https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=10451

Gnome · Mon Nov 30, 2009 7:24 pm

Josh,

Your timing leaves something to be desired. I just mulched most of my plants in yesterday.

Most of my material is still very much under development. I do have a Boxwood that does not look too bad; I don't think that I have ever shown it here yet. I'll try to get a few pictures tomorrow.

Norm

JTred · Mon Nov 30, 2009 7:56 pm

This one is my favorite. It's also the most developed. It still has a long way to go, but it's come a long way in the time I've had it.

[img]https://img84.imageshack.us/img84/6219/ficus11309003.jpg[/img]

Marsman · Tue Dec 01, 2009 9:04 am

All mine are works in progress. I don't even have any in traditional pots at this point. I have a number that will be going into pots this spring.

Here are a few I'm excited about:

Barberry (Berberis thunbergii)
[img]https://i956.photobucket.com/albums/ae50/marsman61/Bonsai/Barberry/Barberry_10-29-09.jpg[/img]

Shimpaku Juniper root-over-rock in training
[img]https://i956.photobucket.com/albums/ae50/marsman61/Bonsai/Root%20Over%20Rock/ca0406d1.jpg[/img]

Bald Cypress - can't wait to work on this one.
[img]https://i956.photobucket.com/albums/ae50/marsman61/Bonsai/82f20034.jpg[/img]

Cryptomeria Japonica 'Black Dragon' (Japanese Cedar)
[img]https://i956.photobucket.com/albums/ae50/marsman61/Bonsai/Black%20Dragon%20Workshop/Black-Dragon.jpg[/img]

Gnome · Tue Dec 01, 2009 8:28 pm

Boxwood collected from the urban landscape.

[url=https://img22.imageshack.us/I/boxwood.jpg/][img]https://img22.imageshack.us/img22/2736/boxwood.th.jpg[/img][/url]

Norm

Gnome · Tue Dec 01, 2009 9:00 pm

Marsman,

I really like the Barberry, I think it has potential. It seems like it's time to remove one of the main trunks though. Both trunks, as well as the lower branch on the left, are beginning to develop an area of reverse taper. If allowed to grow unchecked the problem will be hard to correct in the future.

Norm

Marsman · Tue Dec 01, 2009 10:14 pm

Beautiful boxwood, Norm. And I agree, this spring, I'll have to tackle the barberry. I appreciate your suggestions.

Gnome · Tue Dec 01, 2009 11:47 pm

Marsman wrote:Beautiful boxwood, Norm. And I agree, this spring, I'll have to tackle the barberry. I appreciate your suggestions.

Thanks, you should have seen it before, it had a chunk of deadwood the size of a Basketball, I had to take a chainsaw to it. Now I'm beginning to think I took too much off.

There's a lesson there!

About the Barberry, I just looked back and saw I already commented on the knot, sorry I forgot.

From the picture it's hard to tell if the left branch is helping or hurting the reverse taper. You can tell better than I, if it's located at the knot it probably should go, if below, it could help lessen the bulge. Either way one of the main trunks should go, I feel. My preference would be to keep the center one, it has better taper. The other has that large wound and then the 'stovepipe' section just above that.

Norm

moulman · Tue Dec 29, 2009 1:23 pm

This little shimp is 5 inches tall. It has not had any refinement pruning yet. I expect to begin ramification this spring.

[img]https://img3.imageshack.us/img3/941/shimp1.jpg[/img]

Victrinia Ridgeway · Wed Dec 30, 2009 1:52 pm

Some personal favorites of mine... Some more in development than others. All of these photos were from earlier this year. It's hard to narrow it down to just one... so I didn't try...

To put the tree sizes into perspective... the round table the trees are on in the photo is 18 inches wide.

[img]https://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j192/theladysabine/Yew-gotta-love-it.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j192/theladysabine/satsuki09_sm.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j192/theladysabine/grape09sm.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j192/theladysabine/lilbox.jpg[/img]

Rosaelyn · Wed Dec 30, 2009 1:55 pm

I would have to say that my absolute favorite of my trees is my Fukien Tea. She was my first bonsai tree and I got bold enough to take her to one of my bonsai meetings about a month ago for a drastic trimming. She is recovering very nicely and I plan to repot her with her new "front" come spring.

When I get home, I'll try and remember to post a few pics.

Now, being that I have many projects once the snow recedes, that may change. But my Fukien Tea is certainly tops at the moment. Mallsai to Bonsai.

Marsman · Thu Dec 31, 2009 10:17 am

Victrinia, your work is gorgeous! I love that Azalea. I have [url=https://s956.photobucket.com/albums/ae50/marsman61/Bonsai/Azalea/]one in the ground[/url] that I picked up late in the fall and can't wait to start working on it. How did you get the two pink blossoms? Did you graft them in or did they come naturally?

Victrinia Ridgeway · Thu Dec 31, 2009 12:51 pm

The Satsuki is by it's very nature a verigated flower species. So this one's habit is to produce mostly white flowers with occasional pinks, and a lot of pink stripes and splashes that are harder to see in the photo. It's a genetic mutation that is random to each branchlet. So I may not get the same coloration from the newer growth around it... though the chances are higher.

That tree was not quite at its peek of bloom when I took that photo. Sadly I did not get it when it was completely bloomed out... there wasn't a scrap of green to be seen on it when it was in full bloom. Next year promises to be as heavy, though I think I'll be more selective next year as I experianced bloom crowding last year.

Glad you enjoyed them...

Kindest regards,

Victrinia