First Spring Report

I have only been bonsai-ing since November, and in March have collected many trees and seedlings. My original Bonsai-truck Fukien Tea and Chinese Elm are doing well.

My plan is to grow and propagate a garden to yield trees to select from, practice or share, and year after year buy fewer trees. Seeds to seedlings, seedling & cuttings to saplings, starter trees with early trunk character, and trained branches. Many young pines with early bends for future potential.

My prized Roto-hime and Rough Bark Maples, Trident and Yamadori maple are healthy and in full spring foliage. My proud Itoigawa Juniper is twisted and happy. Ezo Spruce healthy, and half of my Japanese Larch saplings are budding. Half of my Ginkgos are slowly budding. Akebono Cherry saplings are budding out. Due to storms downing mature trees, I salvaged two pine roots about 1-2” in diameter. Without a live branch I grafted homogeneous needle branch in the trunk cambien—with near 0% chance of taking, I am hoping the roots make a new home here. My most recent Quince is beautiful and with great potential.

My attempt at propagating by seeds has its first green peeking out from the sand by a Japanese White Cedar. Hopeful of my 9 Itoigawa cuttings in sand to someday be a tree. My larger Japanese maple has offered cuttings, and long awaited air-layering looks like a strange fruit tree—5 + the main trunk… in the end will trunk chop and transplant the nebari roots.

I have a collection of bonsai tools and pots, soil and grow baskets. I look the part. What I need next are more bench space—with salvaged lumber, I need inspiration and a weekend.