here we go, Photos from a great party. Thank you again Karen and Mike. I think a very nice time was had by all.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
About Time
Sorry it took me so long to publish photos from the party. I got swamped with some other things and then I was debating on if I should get people's permission. Anyway,
here we go, Photos from a great party. Thank you again Karen and Mike. I think a very nice time was had by all.
here we go, Photos from a great party. Thank you again Karen and Mike. I think a very nice time was had by all.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Walter Pall at Natures Way
Walter Pall was back at Jim Doyles' Dec. 3-4-5. Several BSSJ folks took advantage and joined in the workshop. Walter discussed all trees brought by attendees, and made some very good recommendations for styling, carving, potting, etc.
Jim Doyle is an expert on Maples, and discussed several "killer" Maples he has been growing.
Here he is sharing comments on this old Rocky Mountain Juniper.
This Rocky Mountain Juniper was collected several years ago, and has been growing nicely at Natures Way. Walter discussed how the foliage could be made more compact, so the beautiful deadwood would be more visible.
Walter discussed removal of scraggly branches on this wonderfully twisted Ponderosa Pine.this one is well over 800 years, and you can see the beautiful twisting deadwood & live vein.
Walter was in middle of explaining one point when one of Jim's dogs wandered into the area. One workshop attendee had a pastry, laying on the bench behind his back, while he listened to Walter. The dog spied the goodie, and you can see the result.
Walter almost burst out laughing, and we who saw it howled!
We worked on this old Spruce, collected up in the Rockies. It is well over 1000 years old, and is loaded with beautiful deadwood.
Walter was in middle of explaining one point when one of Jim's dogs wandered into the area. One workshop attendee had a pastry, laying on the bench behind his back, while he listened to Walter. The dog spied the goodie, and you can see the result.
Walter almost burst out laughing, and we who saw it howled!
We worked on this old Spruce, collected up in the Rockies. It is well over 1000 years old, and is loaded with beautiful deadwood.Walter will be back in Spring 2K11. I have received a number of valuable bits of information from Walter, which have improved my understanding of bonsai, and of my trees.
I highly recommend attendance at Walter's workshops. He is a wealth of knowledge!
Flex
Friday, November 19, 2010
November Meeting
Sorry for the delay. We had an excellent November Meeting at Clover Garden Center on Nov. 10th. Doc Stone brought a beautiful Korean Hornbeam with spectaular fall foliage color which I did not get a good photo of...better luck next year.
The key to the meeting was Flex Houvig's very thorough presentation about winter care for bonsai. Flex gave a very professional presentation covering just about all of the aspects of caring for your trees in winter and I don't think he missed a point. Great questions and answers afterwards too. Here are the photos I took of the presentation.
See you at the Holiday Party folks!!!
Monday, November 1, 2010
New Yew
Thought I would post these photos of a Yew (Taxus) I am working on. I bought it 5 years ago for $10.00 and planted it in my backyard and dug it out this Sept. Just beginning to cut away all of the foliage and clean up. Starting Saturday, I will wire. It won't be repotted until Spring 2012
Thursday, October 21, 2010
October 13th Meeting
Here are some photos we took at the last meeting, Wednesday, October 13th. Alec gave an excellent presentation on Moss and its affects on bonsai, its pluses and minuses, etc. This was a very informative and amusing presentation.
I've also included some of the trees which were on display at our first, informal show. Photos were taken with the painting background and we have to do a better job but here they are. All in all, not bad. But we can make them all better.
I've also included some of the trees which were on display at our first, informal show. Photos were taken with the painting background and we have to do a better job but here they are. All in all, not bad. But we can make them all better.
Schedule for 2010/2011
Good Afternoon Bonsai Enthusiasts,
I am going to post this on our Blog and on our new Website. This is the schedule for the rest of this year and for the first six months of 2011. If you have any questions, please contact me.
November 10, Wednesday Evening
Regular Club Meeting, Clover Garden Center
7 PM to 9 PM
Subject: Winter Care--Flex Houvig
December 8th, Wednesday Evening
Holiday Party, Dr. Karen Harkaway’s House
In Mt. Holly, NJ. Pot Luck Party for members
and significant others, spouses, etc.
January 12th, Wednesday Evening
Regular Club Meeting, Clover Garden Center
7 PM to 9 PM
Subject: Care of Tools, Flex Houvig
February 9th, Wednesday Evening
Regular Club Meeting, Clover Garden Center
7 PM to 9 PM
Subject: Pot Selection, Jay Walter Burton
March 12th, Saturday Workshop
Clover Garden Center
9 AM to 1 PM
Repotting conifers and deciduous trees
March Weekday, Collecting Trip
To Whitesbog Cranberry/Blueberry Farm
In the New Jersey Pine Barrens.
April 9th, Saturday Workshop
Clover Garden Center
9 AM to 1 PM
Air Layering Workshop, Ski Dombrovski
April 16th, Saturday Club Trip
Mid Atlantic Bonsai Conference & Show
Hershey, PA
May 14th, Saturday Workshop
Clover Garden Center
9 AM to 1 PM
Repotting, Pruning, Wiring, etc.
All types of bonsai
June 8th, Wednesday Evening
Regular Club Meeting, Clover Garden Center
7 PM to 9 PM
Subject: Ramification, Dr. Karen Harkaway
July 13th, Wednesday Evening
Regular Club Meeting, Clover Garden Center
7 PM to 9 PM
Subject: Fertilizing Techniques, “Doc” Stone
Print this or save this to your computer. Any changes will be E-Mailed and posted.
Have a wonderful day,
Tom De Simone
President
Bonsai Society of South Jersey
I am going to post this on our Blog and on our new Website. This is the schedule for the rest of this year and for the first six months of 2011. If you have any questions, please contact me.
November 10, Wednesday Evening
Regular Club Meeting, Clover Garden Center
7 PM to 9 PM
Subject: Winter Care--Flex Houvig
December 8th, Wednesday Evening
Holiday Party, Dr. Karen Harkaway’s House
In Mt. Holly, NJ. Pot Luck Party for members
and significant others, spouses, etc.
January 12th, Wednesday Evening
Regular Club Meeting, Clover Garden Center
7 PM to 9 PM
Subject: Care of Tools, Flex Houvig
February 9th, Wednesday Evening
Regular Club Meeting, Clover Garden Center
7 PM to 9 PM
Subject: Pot Selection, Jay Walter Burton
March 12th, Saturday Workshop
Clover Garden Center
9 AM to 1 PM
Repotting conifers and deciduous trees
March Weekday, Collecting Trip
To Whitesbog Cranberry/Blueberry Farm
In the New Jersey Pine Barrens.
April 9th, Saturday Workshop
Clover Garden Center
9 AM to 1 PM
Air Layering Workshop, Ski Dombrovski
April 16th, Saturday Club Trip
Mid Atlantic Bonsai Conference & Show
Hershey, PA
May 14th, Saturday Workshop
Clover Garden Center
9 AM to 1 PM
Repotting, Pruning, Wiring, etc.
All types of bonsai
June 8th, Wednesday Evening
Regular Club Meeting, Clover Garden Center
7 PM to 9 PM
Subject: Ramification, Dr. Karen Harkaway
July 13th, Wednesday Evening
Regular Club Meeting, Clover Garden Center
7 PM to 9 PM
Subject: Fertilizing Techniques, “Doc” Stone
Print this or save this to your computer. Any changes will be E-Mailed and posted.
Have a wonderful day,
Tom De Simone
President
Bonsai Society of South Jersey
Friday, October 1, 2010
Critique by Robert Steven
Recently, BonsaiBark blog offered critiques by Robert Steven. The blog editor would receive pictures of your tree and forward them to Mr. Steven. Robert Steven is a world renowned and published bonsai artist.
After little thought, I decided to send a picture of my Ficus salicifolia "89" to BonsaiBark to be critiqued. This is the picture I sent.
This picture was taken soon after I pruned away the summer growth which I had allowed to grow wild. So what we see is the weak, messy foliage which was shaded by the wild growth above. Also, this trimming exposed much of the upper front of the tree which was previously hidden by foliage. In this view, the pot appears too large and the finish is marred by hard water deposits. The stick in front of the trunk is for moisture monitoring and should have been removed,etc.. Obviously, I should have thought this out better. Lesson learned.
The next picture is the virtual that Mr. Steven sent to BonsaiBark to be posted along with his critique.
The most obvious change is the pot. It is smaller and looks nicer to me. I don't like the color, tho. Moving up, the soil color was changed. I agree with Mr. Steven that the soil color now looks more natural. We don't see many trees in nature growing in red lava. He also added a little moss to the soil surface. This is a nice touch.
Looking at the nebari, notice that it is more powerful on the left side. And there is less space between the edge of the pot and the surface roots. Generally speaking, a tree in nature grows more strongly toward the side with stronger rootage. With this in mind, Mr. Steven shortened the right side of the canopy. I like this change because it makes the tree look more natural and less symmetrical. This leaves the size of the leaves. Mr. Steven thought the leaves were too big. The fact of the matter is that in 1989, there was a sudden freeze in Florida. At the nursery owned by Jim Smith, the famous tropical bonsai grower, his Ficus salicifolia froze that night. All foliage and small branches were lost. However, the tree survived. When the new leaves matured, they were strangely larger than before. Somehow the tree had changed. Jim named it Ficus "1989". Anyway, I did not qualify this tree as a "1989". This may or may not have changed Mr. Steven's assessment of my tree's leaf size as being too large.
So, what do you think???
After little thought, I decided to send a picture of my Ficus salicifolia "89" to BonsaiBark to be critiqued. This is the picture I sent.
This picture was taken soon after I pruned away the summer growth which I had allowed to grow wild. So what we see is the weak, messy foliage which was shaded by the wild growth above. Also, this trimming exposed much of the upper front of the tree which was previously hidden by foliage. In this view, the pot appears too large and the finish is marred by hard water deposits. The stick in front of the trunk is for moisture monitoring and should have been removed,etc.. Obviously, I should have thought this out better. Lesson learned.
The next picture is the virtual that Mr. Steven sent to BonsaiBark to be posted along with his critique.
The most obvious change is the pot. It is smaller and looks nicer to me. I don't like the color, tho. Moving up, the soil color was changed. I agree with Mr. Steven that the soil color now looks more natural. We don't see many trees in nature growing in red lava. He also added a little moss to the soil surface. This is a nice touch.
Looking at the nebari, notice that it is more powerful on the left side. And there is less space between the edge of the pot and the surface roots. Generally speaking, a tree in nature grows more strongly toward the side with stronger rootage. With this in mind, Mr. Steven shortened the right side of the canopy. I like this change because it makes the tree look more natural and less symmetrical. This leaves the size of the leaves. Mr. Steven thought the leaves were too big. The fact of the matter is that in 1989, there was a sudden freeze in Florida. At the nursery owned by Jim Smith, the famous tropical bonsai grower, his Ficus salicifolia froze that night. All foliage and small branches were lost. However, the tree survived. When the new leaves matured, they were strangely larger than before. Somehow the tree had changed. Jim named it Ficus "1989". Anyway, I did not qualify this tree as a "1989". This may or may not have changed Mr. Steven's assessment of my tree's leaf size as being too large.
So, what do you think???
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