I’ve wanted to blog about my growing collection of bonsai trees for quite some time and it’s just kept skipping my mind, that is until now. Here are the 4 trees that I’m currently working on. They’re really hardy, but it does take quite a bit of work to get them to shape how you might want them to shape.
This was my first bonsai, it’s the only bonsai I’m actively shaping with wires. Towards the end of last year I removed some wiring and added it to a new place, I’m trying to create a full feel to the tree on the left, whereas on the right it’s more “barky”. The top of the tree gets thinned out quite often and I’ll try to replicate the lower levels at the top once it’s grown more.
1995 J Procumbens Nana Juniper
This is an interesting tree. There’s not too much to do at the moment, but there’s not too important, the focus on this tree is the interesting root, which is growing over the rock as you’ll see below. In time, the trunk of the tree will grow right up against the rock so as to look like it’s leaning against the rock, and from there upwards, the tree then grows in the opposite direction.
2000 Wild Fig
This is my least favourite tree, it grows incredibly slowly and there’s very little that I can do with it. What’s worse is that there’s very little information available about this specific tree, so I’m struggling to do much with it.
1999 Sie-Ju Elm
This is my most recent tree. The other three trees grow well in direct sunlight, whereas this one needs shade in the morning. Without shade in the morning, the leaves start going yellow – it literally takes one day for the leaves to go yellow and another day for them to start falling off! So, it’s been interesting to create shade for it and get the hours of sunlight correct. The tree grows incredibly fast and the idea is to maintain a triangular shape, which is what I’m doing. I added some rocks on the left for extra visual appeal – I think it works.
2000 Rhus Cremata
So yeh, those are my bonsai’s, bonsai keeping has been absolutely fascinating and if you have any interest, do take the time to get yourself one. Oh, and before you say it – not all bonsai trees cost a fortune! At your local nursery, they might be several thousand rand, but you can get cheaper ones, trust me.
1999 Bel Hombre Bonsai
I picked this beauty up last weekend and there’s actually a little bit of a story to it. Most people who start looking into bonsai’s will have heard of the ever popular Baobab, but the problem with this tree is that it takes a number of years to grow before it looks great and when it’s ready, it’s anything but cheap. So, the lady who runs Bishopsford Bonsai Nursery was driving home one evening and as she went past Silverhurst Estate in Constantia (the tree is still there!), she saw a huge Bel Hombre outside and the first thing she noticed was the incredibly thick trunk and the first thing that came to her mind was that most people interested in the Baobab were so because of it’s thick trunk. This recognition lead her to finding an off-cut from the Bel Hombre and planting it back in 1999. Now, 12 years later it’s grown into a beauty, well I think so at least.
The tree wasn’t expensive and I was attracted to it for a couple reasons, from the thick trunk to the flowering to the split trunk with potential for some great wiring and shaping. The lady was sad when I walked in with the tree as she’d watched it grow for all these years and because it was unique. I offered to leave it there, but she insisted that I buy it, but that I keep her posted on its progress. She even asked if I would take it back at the beginning of Spring, so that together we could look at how to shape it.
Awesome to purchase a tree that has a bit of a story to it, I can’t wait to watch this one grow over the years.
1984 Chinese Hackberry
This one’s all about the split trunk! I brought the tree into my environment and a week later every single leaf started going brown and falling off, within 4 days the tree looked dead – I picked off every leaf until the tree was bare and then proceeded not to water it for 5 days, on the 5th day, as I walked out my apartment to go to work, I noticed 1 tiny little green leaf, a week later the tree was covered in leaves and looking better than ever. It was a scary ride though!
A new addition to my collection is the Flowering Quinze:
1994 Flowering Quinze
This is the latest addition to my collection, a flowering Quinze. I was most interested in this tree because of the stunning little red flowers and the interesting twisted root system. The root system isn’t as crazy as the Bottle Brush, but it’s not far from it.
I was at WoolWorths the other day when I noticed they were selling bonsai tree’s. The bonsai’s didn’t look in good condition at all and I was furious – nevertheless, I bought a Black Monkey Thorn and decided to nurture it. It’s doing incredibly well now, loves a ton of sun! Please note: the leaves hang like that in the evening when the sun has gone, during the day it looks right as rain:
2008 Black Monkey Thorn Bonsai
Awesome mate.
Thanks Siraj! :)
Hey they look very cool…
You must try to get a Baobab tree…
It was my dads hobby and he had a blast with all his Bushveld bonsai’s…
Have a nive day… :)
Very cool Hestie, I’ll definitely look for a Baobab tree! Your father still have his trees?
Lekka hobby. Bonsai (and their care) can be almost spiritual. Tres Zen.
Absolutely Andre. There’s a bit of a story to this if you care to listen:
Many many moons ago I watched a movie called Waterworld, you’ve probably seen it, if not, watch it! During the movie, the main guy had a bonsai on his ship and the minute I saw it, I was intrigued. Now, years later I’m in a position where I can cater for a couple bonsai’s, location wise and financially, so I went forward.
I did a lot of research about types, lighting, watering, food and all of that as well as scouted out some places to buy bonsai’s. Local nursery’s are incredibly expensive, I see bonsai’s for several thousand Rand and it’s because they never have young ones, just 20-30 year old ones, which ramps the cost up. The problem with that though is that most of the fun is taken out of it, because the tree’s already established and already shaped.
Never the less, Beresford Bonsai Nursery in Hout Bay was a dead winner, I bought all 4 trees there and couldn’t be happier. They have cheap ones and expensive ones, and their range is massive, so you really can choose what will suite you. 3 of the ones I have were around R300 and one was quite a bit more, but that shows that it’s not over the top. The Nursery is stunning, it’s worth taking a look even if you aren’t interested in buying!
Anyway, I’ve got the 4 trees, carefully positioned on my patio and each evening I water them and prune when required. There’s a sense of calm that they give off as well as something that makes them that little bit more interesting than normal plants/trees.
I’d recommend owning one, a Juniper or Fig are incredibly easy to keep :)