Defoliating, Repotting & Other Tricks

This time I took the liberty of cropping and adjusting the contrast just a bit to attempt to better show the details on this remarkable tree. Here’s our original caption: Trident Maple (Kaede) at the Kokufu-ten in 1972. It now lives in Washington D.C. at the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum. The photo is from Capital Bonsai. It’s still mid-summer semi-vacation time, so I’m taking the easy way out once again. This post originally appeared just over a year ago. Because I’m such a big fan of the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum (and Peter Tea’s excellent blog) and because … Continue reading Defoliating, Repotting & Other Tricks

Developing Ramification on Deciduous Bonsai: 2

Two plus zero (plus one later) makes three installments These illustrations represent tw0 pages from Bonsai Today issue 66 (out of stock, see previous post). It’s the second installment (here’s the first) of a five page series on ramification (branching) that we are running over three posts (I originally said two posts, but have decided to expand to three).

Energy Balancing #7: More Defoliation Tips

Defoliating to move energy down These illustrations show a few very simple points. In both methods we are trying to strengthen the the two weak secondary branches (the first two branches). These need help as energy tends to flow past them towards the tips of the primary branch. This movement of energy towards the outer tips of branches is natural and occurs in virtually all plants.

Energy Balancing #6: Defoliation Tips

Cut… Use sharp scissors to defoliate. Cut in the center of the petiole (leaf stem). If you cut too close to the base of the leaf stem, you may damage the buds that form there. …don’t pull Don’t use you fingers to pinch or pull leaves off. This is a recipe for damage (the unreadable text with the illustration above says: Don’t pull, it could damage the buds).

Energy Balancing #5: Defoliation

This Japanese maple (Acer palmatum) has been partially defoliated. The first branch is too small relative to the rest of the tree, so the purpose of the defoliation is to speed up the development of the first branch while slowing down the development of the rest of the tree. This works because energy flow decreases in areas that have been defoliated. Conversely, because the energy from the roots has to go somewhere, energy flow increases where leaves are left on. The photos in this post are from Bonsai Today issue 103 (out of print). The article that the photos are … Continue reading Energy Balancing #5: Defoliation