Ha! Great 11th reason Dave! I've done this empirically since I'm not home to water during the day. Now that I know it's horticulturally sound, I don't feel guilty. Really appreciate the recap on the other 10 reasons as well. One gets so focused, its easy to forget.
@@sueb1317 Thanks Sue! It's certainly horticulturally sound, especially if you consider that many people defoliate their broadleaf trees in summer. (I only do that on trees that are already refined and I want to slow down their vigour for a month or two). Glad you enjoyed the video, thanks for your great feedback!
@@BackGardenBonsai cheers Ian! Yes all ok here thanks, just rather embarrassed to have been offline and out of touch for so many months. Ah well, getting back into the swing of things again now. Hope things are well with you!
@P.W.Brandenburger sorry to report that I had a potentially costly technical issue today so I have to potpone the announcement - ua-cam.com/users/postUgkx9pnY2vAhKBp2KawtJX_ympzkoGXd9BIb
@@TrishaBonapace thanks Trisha. Calm, know my stuff, nice guy? Hhahaha definitely calm anyway 🧘♂️ Re. Misting and rain forests - yes now I think about it, I bet constant high humidity would also encourage more air roots to grow on my ficuses. I have a humidifier, maybe I should try putting that permanently next to this bonsai. Worth a try?
Aussie Dave here David, again another great video 😊. It's the beginning of spring here in Australia. So I'm busy root pruning my bonsais. I waited until now before root pruning my trident maple ,as you suggested about 3 months ago. I'll be looking forward to more videos from you soon. Thanks again and take care
Great to hear it Dave! I can't remember if I mentioned it before but: take a couple of photos of the roots before and after root pruning. It's always good to see how they were, when they spend the rest of the year buried beneath the soil.
It was about time Dave! And as always you delivered a well thought out and well executed video. 👌👏🏼❤️ A trick that works for me for reducing the sap flow at ficus microcarpa is to spray with water. Unlike what one would expect, when in contact with water the flow reduces a lot, it practically stops. Can’t wait for the announcement!
Thanks Alex! Yes I've heard that misting can reduce the sap flow, I should give it a try next time. Really appreciate your comment! The announcement, not long to wait now... might surprise you but I'm sure you'll like it!
I hated the heat in San Diego. Over 100 days, of 100° weather, 2 years ago. All the deciduous trees go in a cold frame and the conifers are fine with the cold. Our average temps are 35° to 55°, 20° is unusual. We do put them on the ground and use frost protective cloth sometimes though. Nestle the pots in woodchips, bring close to the house.
@TrishaBonapace Sounds like your trees are in good hands. Also having lived on two very different climates it's clear that you're in a better position than most to really understand the horticulture of trees in pots.
Great video! This will really help me as our seasons are opposite (I'm in the southern hemisphere), so now I'll know what to do in the summer ☀️. Once again, great video!!
@@ChillGuyBonsai thanks ChillGuy! I'm always conscious of Australian and South African viewers, so I always think it's important to say In Summer do this or in Winter do that, rather than naming tasks by month, because that clearly wouldn't work in the southern hemisphere if I list them for Europe. Thanks again!
@BlueSkyBonsai I am from South Africa 🇿🇦 (Western Cape). You're really good at guessing 😆. It is actually warming up over here on the coast. I'm starting to repot my trees as some of them are waking up already 😅
@BlueSkyBonsai Thanks for accounting for us Southern hemispherers. That's part of the reason why I watch your videos. Your techniques can be applied to my trees as I also have a quite dry climate (USDA zone 10b)
@@ChillGuyBonsai haha it was quite a safe bet that you're in one of the bigger English-speaking countries down south! And besides probably most of Australia is still asleep now. Good luck with all the repotting!
Dave, You could also set up a poly tent of some kind, with a few bowls of water in there..to keep the moisture in the air. I just parted with a beautiful Ficus Salicaria & a Ficus Retusa. I live in the US, Washington state and it's too cold here, half of the year for ficus.
Thanks, Trisha. interestingly, I kind of did that with this ficus a few years ago, using clingfilm wrap around the pot to just over the first branch. Then it developed just one air root - the big front one you saw in this video. I do have a poly tent like a small plastic greenhouse, so might be worth a try this autumn as soon as I bring it indoors. Sorry to hear about your ficus trees. Each year I keep an eye on the nighttime temperatures - as soon as they forecast a low of 10ºC / 50ºF or close, I bring all of the tropicals indoors. Do you have other trees?
Oh yes!!! WAY TOO MANY TREES! Haha I moved from San Diego, weather there is probably similar to yours. I left all my tropicals, olives, bouganvillas, pomegranates and others there when I moved to Washingtin. We get down to 20° for weeks at a time. I decided I didn't want my house or bonsai shed covered in trees this winter, so bye bye they went. I'm learning to enjoy and work on more conifers. Spruces, cedars, cypress, larches & junipers all love our weather.
Wow that sounds toooo cold, you must pine for the warmer climate?! It's definitely safer to grow trees that thrive in your local climate. Larch and juniper also thrive here. Do you have any dawn redwood? They do well here (with some shade over the summer months).
I've heard his name..but will check him out today. Yes, Ryan Neil is everyones guru around here. We all are paid subscribers to his channel, and see him frequently. Truly a lovely man. In all ways. I live 30 minutes from his garden. It would be nice to communicate, send photos, ask each other questions... etc to you privately. Any way we could do that? :) Trisha
@@TrishaBonapace my email is dave@blueskybonsai.com - feel free to contact me whenever you want! I can give you a heads up on the big news that I'm soon going to announce ;)
Thanks! Yes, same soil as the rest of my trees. In very approx proportions 50% akadama, 25% kiryuzuna or pumice, 25% chopped pine bark, all sieved to remove the dust and fines. about 4-5mm granule size. The pine bark is for extra water retention as it's very hot and dry here. In a cooler wetter climate I guess I'd use 50/50 akadama/kiryu.
Where else did you live? How many trees do you have? I hover at about 50. What kinds of trees do you grow? You have some good teachers , Mentors over there? I find the conifers to be a lot more work than deciduous trees.
@@TrishaBonapace i lived in UK, in sevaral regions from cloudy to rainy! London is a fantastic city for young adults living between offices and pubs, but if you like the outdoors you need to cope with totally unpredictable weather, usually bad. Months of dark clouds. By contrast Madrid is hot and dry, too hot sometimes, but the stability and predictability of the weather is really good. Oh and the breathtaking blue skies are to die for. Here nearby we have David Benevente - if you don't know him take a look. He's like Spain's version of Ryan Neil.
@@papa-bonsai yes partial defoliation in summer is an excellent alternative to pruning, especially if your branches don't need much work. A refined ficus that's growing too vigorously can be fully defoliated to takw away some of its energy for a month or so.
@@adharvakarthi6878 this is a very valid and fair question. The simplest way to look at it is by considering that pain happens in animals through nerve impulses (which are electrical) to the brain. You need a nervous system and a brain to feel pain. There is a more complex answer which suggests that trees let out certain chemicals when they are "under attack", for example by insect infestations, and transmit these chemicals through their roots to let other nearby trees know that there is a pedator insect, so they can all release their own repellant substances. (All this has been studied and well explained in "the Hidden Life of Trees" by Peter Wohlleben). But consuder this: pruning is just like nature - wind or heavy snow, or animals chewing off branches - and wiring branches is just like gravity pulling the branches in a certain directions. They don't feel pain. Also if you love trees as I do, consider this: pretty much all trees will still be alive for decades after you or I die, as long as they receive water, air and light. Or centuries longer for some species.
@@BlueSkyBonsai thank you sir 🍁for sharing your knowledge to us .And I just started bonsai and also gathering information about them . Its very fabulous to see videos of bonsai and also having them in real life . I hope that I heirloom the bonsai for my generations .
Yes I think sk. The label said Retusa when I bought it in 2018 but in botany Retusa has significantly bigger leaves and I think the label was wrong. Tiger bark is more accurate for the leaf size, and the bark.
Nice video and tree Dave with a cliff hanger ending!!
Thanks Nigel! You'll know the answer sooner than you think!
Lovely video....relaxing, educational, and well produced. Thanks for posting!
@@barryauguste9734 thanks so much, glad you enjoyed it!
Thoroughly and elaborately explained.
@@jaiprakashpathak8974 thanks!
Brilliant video Dave! Beautiful Ficus too!
Thanks Adam! You might be surprised that this was my first ever ficus video.
Ha! Great 11th reason Dave! I've done this empirically since I'm not home to water during the day. Now that I know it's horticulturally sound, I don't feel guilty. Really appreciate the recap on the other 10 reasons as well. One gets so focused, its easy to forget.
@@sueb1317 Thanks Sue! It's certainly horticulturally sound, especially if you consider that many people defoliate their broadleaf trees in summer. (I only do that on trees that are already refined and I want to slow down their vigour for a month or two). Glad you enjoyed the video, thanks for your great feedback!
Great video as always Dave. Trees are looking good even with all that heat. I’m hope your keeping well 👍
@@BackGardenBonsai cheers Ian! Yes all ok here thanks, just rather embarrassed to have been offline and out of touch for so many months. Ah well, getting back into the swing of things again now. Hope things are well with you!
Рад видеть Ваши работы снова.Очень давно не было ваших видео.Я с удовольствием наблюдаю за Вашими работами.
@@user-wg6fh4op3s Spasibo my friend. Yes I left it too long to publish this video.. Thanks for your kind words.
The perfect way to end a Monday! Great vid as always ✅
Thanks! I really appreciate your great feedback!
it's nice to see you again
@@MrSoft85 thanks! Hope you enjoyed the video! 😊
Great video, as always!
I wonder what’ll happen on the 28th… you just turned up my fomo to the max!
@@sbragaglia hehehe it might surprise you but I'm sure you'll like it!
@@sbragaglia thanks Stefano!
Can't wait to see that surprise!!😍😍😯😯
@@Laura-fn7dq won't have to wait much longer 😊
@@BlueSkyBonsai Still waiting for your announcement!!
@P.W.Brandenburger sorry to report that I had a potentially costly technical issue today so I have to potpone the announcement - ua-cam.com/users/postUgkx9pnY2vAhKBp2KawtJX_ympzkoGXd9BIb
@@BlueSkyBonsai All good! Looking forward to it!!
We all need to mist more. Think of the rain forests!!
Love your channel.
You seem like a really nice guy, calm and know your stuff.
@@TrishaBonapace thanks Trisha. Calm, know my stuff, nice guy? Hhahaha definitely calm anyway 🧘♂️
Re. Misting and rain forests - yes now I think about it, I bet constant high humidity would also encourage more air roots to grow on my ficuses. I have a humidifier, maybe I should try putting that permanently next to this bonsai. Worth a try?
Thanks Dave. Great information. Thanks, keep growing
@@mattbrennan647 thanks Matt! Glad you like it.
Aussie Dave here David, again another great video 😊. It's the beginning of spring here in Australia. So I'm busy root pruning my bonsais. I waited until now before root pruning my trident maple ,as you suggested about 3 months ago. I'll be looking forward to more videos from you soon. Thanks again and take care
Great to hear it Dave! I can't remember if I mentioned it before but: take a couple of photos of the roots before and after root pruning. It's always good to see how they were, when they spend the rest of the year buried beneath the soil.
@BlueSkyBonsai thanks David, I'll take photos next year
Good to see you again
@@williammallender8391 thanks! Will try not to take so long next time!
Great video, great to see you again 👍
@@howardmckeown7187 thanks Howard! I won't leave it so long next time 🤞
It was about time Dave!
And as always you delivered a well thought out and well executed video. 👌👏🏼❤️
A trick that works for me for reducing the sap flow at ficus microcarpa is to spray with water. Unlike what one would expect, when in contact with water the flow reduces a lot, it practically stops.
Can’t wait for the announcement!
Thanks Alex! Yes I've heard that misting can reduce the sap flow, I should give it a try next time.
Really appreciate your comment!
The announcement, not long to wait now... might surprise you but I'm sure you'll like it!
Perfect!
Thanks do much
Thank you very much for the Information! Great video as usual
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!
Great video Dave. I can’t wait to see your news😊
@@isabelcubria370 not long now!
Brilliant to see you on the big screen again Dave - well presented as always. 12 Reasons to prune...I need more subscribers and views :)
Thanks Xav! appreciate your comments. 13th reason to prune? It's the most enjoyable part of bonsai... 😊
@@BlueSkyBonsai You win :)
Nice work, as always!
@@HoundStuff thank you 😊
I hated the heat in San Diego. Over 100 days, of 100° weather, 2 years ago.
All the deciduous trees go in a cold frame and the conifers are fine with the cold. Our average temps are 35° to 55°, 20° is unusual. We do put them on the ground and use frost protective cloth sometimes though.
Nestle the pots in woodchips, bring close to the house.
@TrishaBonapace Sounds like your trees are in good hands. Also having lived on two very different climates it's clear that you're in a better position than most to really understand the horticulture of trees in pots.
Nice one, thanks Dave 👌
@@living_sculptures_za thanks 😊 👍
Wouldn’t be a BlueSky video without the whiteboard of knowledge! I’m diggin it, good sir.
@@baldyeti cheers Billy! Hope you're doing okay and your trees have all thrived over summer!
Great video! This will really help me as our seasons are opposite (I'm in the southern hemisphere), so now I'll know what to do in the summer ☀️. Once again, great video!!
@@ChillGuyBonsai thanks ChillGuy! I'm always conscious of Australian and South African viewers, so I always think it's important to say In Summer do this or in Winter do that, rather than naming tasks by month, because that clearly wouldn't work in the southern hemisphere if I list them for Europe. Thanks again!
Oh yeah, I assumed you're in Australia or S.Africa but maybe you're somewhere completely different??
@BlueSkyBonsai I am from South Africa 🇿🇦 (Western Cape). You're really good at guessing 😆. It is actually warming up over here on the coast. I'm starting to repot my trees as some of them are waking up already 😅
@BlueSkyBonsai Thanks for accounting for us Southern hemispherers. That's part of the reason why I watch your videos. Your techniques can be applied to my trees as I also have a quite dry climate (USDA zone 10b)
@@ChillGuyBonsai haha it was quite a safe bet that you're in one of the bigger English-speaking countries down south! And besides probably most of Australia is still asleep now.
Good luck with all the repotting!
Very nice 😉👍
I thought it was about that when you mentioned the temperature 😜
Hope i get to see my Ficus get that big 👍
@@random_rodent it will if you keep watering it for years!!
Ps. New video coming out nowwith a big announcement!!
@@BlueSkyBonsai I was already waiting but it's a hour later here 😜
But about the Ficus was also a little nudge hint to fate for my hospital scan 🤞😉
Dave,
You could also set up a poly tent of some kind, with a few bowls of water in there..to keep the moisture in the air.
I just parted with a beautiful Ficus Salicaria & a Ficus Retusa. I live in the US, Washington state and it's too cold here, half of the year for ficus.
Thanks, Trisha. interestingly, I kind of did that with this ficus a few years ago, using clingfilm wrap around the pot to just over the first branch. Then it developed just one air root - the big front one you saw in this video. I do have a poly tent like a small plastic greenhouse, so might be worth a try this autumn as soon as I bring it indoors.
Sorry to hear about your ficus trees. Each year I keep an eye on the nighttime temperatures - as soon as they forecast a low of 10ºC / 50ºF or close, I bring all of the tropicals indoors. Do you have other trees?
Very inspiring thank you.. 👍❤
@@jejakbonsai95 thanks, glad you liked it!
Oh yes!!! WAY TOO MANY TREES! Haha
I moved from San Diego, weather there is probably similar to yours. I left all my tropicals, olives, bouganvillas, pomegranates and others there when I moved to Washingtin.
We get down to 20° for weeks at a time.
I decided I didn't want my house or bonsai shed covered in trees this winter, so bye bye they went.
I'm learning to enjoy and work on more conifers. Spruces, cedars, cypress, larches & junipers all love our weather.
Wow that sounds toooo cold, you must pine for the warmer climate?! It's definitely safer to grow trees that thrive in your local climate. Larch and juniper also thrive here. Do you have any dawn redwood? They do well here (with some shade over the summer months).
Great video.
@@billz.3444 thanks!
I've heard his name..but will check him out today.
Yes, Ryan Neil is everyones guru around here. We all are paid subscribers to his channel, and see him frequently. Truly a lovely man. In all ways.
I live 30 minutes from his garden.
It would be nice to communicate, send photos, ask each other questions... etc to you privately.
Any way we could do that?
:)
Trisha
@@TrishaBonapace my email is dave@blueskybonsai.com - feel free to contact me whenever you want! I can give you a heads up on the big news that I'm soon going to announce ;)
I wish I had your editing skills! Great video as always! Hope my channel will be like yours one day!
Thanks! And good luck with your channel!
GREAT
Thanks!
The foliage looks nice and healthy on this ficus. What's your soil mixture for this tree? Or is it the same as the rest of your trees?
Thanks! Yes, same soil as the rest of my trees. In very approx proportions 50% akadama, 25% kiryuzuna or pumice, 25% chopped pine bark, all sieved to remove the dust and fines. about 4-5mm granule size. The pine bark is for extra water retention as it's very hot and dry here. In a cooler wetter climate I guess I'd use 50/50 akadama/kiryu.
👍👌
Where else did you live?
How many trees do you have? I hover at about 50. What kinds of trees do you grow?
You have some good teachers , Mentors over there?
I find the conifers to be a lot more work than deciduous trees.
@@TrishaBonapace i lived in UK, in sevaral regions from cloudy to rainy! London is a fantastic city for young adults living between offices and pubs, but if you like the outdoors you need to cope with totally unpredictable weather, usually bad. Months of dark clouds. By contrast Madrid is hot and dry, too hot sometimes, but the stability and predictability of the weather is really good. Oh and the breathtaking blue skies are to die for.
Here nearby we have David Benevente - if you don't know him take a look. He's like Spain's version of Ryan Neil.
You might already know this, but if you lightly mist your tree with water when you're done, it stops the white sap from flowing.
@@TrishaBonapace great tip - thanks! Actually I should mist it a lot more in the heat with or without pruning...
What about partial canopy defoliation in summer? Do you find it plausible?
@@papa-bonsai yes partial defoliation in summer is an excellent alternative to pruning, especially if your branches don't need much work.
A refined ficus that's growing too vigorously can be fully defoliated to takw away some of its energy for a month or so.
I have a question which lot of people ask , is that the tree actual ly feel pain while we cutting them and wiring them .
@@adharvakarthi6878 this is a very valid and fair question.
The simplest way to look at it is by considering that pain happens in animals through nerve impulses (which are electrical) to the brain. You need a nervous system and a brain to feel pain.
There is a more complex answer which suggests that trees let out certain chemicals when they are "under attack", for example by insect infestations, and transmit these chemicals through their roots to let other nearby trees know that there is a pedator insect, so they can all release their own repellant substances. (All this has been studied and well explained in "the Hidden Life of Trees" by Peter Wohlleben).
But consuder this: pruning is just like nature - wind or heavy snow, or animals chewing off branches - and wiring branches is just like gravity pulling the branches in a certain directions. They don't feel pain.
Also if you love trees as I do, consider this: pretty much all trees will still be alive for decades after you or I die, as long as they receive water, air and light. Or centuries longer for some species.
@@BlueSkyBonsai thank you sir 🍁for sharing your knowledge to us .And I just started bonsai and also gathering information about them . Its very fabulous to see videos of bonsai and also having them in real life . I hope that I heirloom the bonsai for my generations .
Microcarpa Tiger bark look to me .
Yes I think sk. The label said Retusa when I bought it in 2018 but in botany Retusa has significantly bigger leaves and I think the label was wrong. Tiger bark is more accurate for the leaf size, and the bark.
@BlueSkyBonsai Trust me, it is not Retusa. I have 1500 trees of Ficus Tiger bark
@@bonsai_life_style wow that is a ot of ficus trees! I'm guessing where you live it doesn't get cold in winter?
Finally!!!!!!!
@@edinborogh haha sorry, I know I left it too long 😊