As a Bonsai man myself, I like your style, technique and calm teaching method. Very English and (dare I say it) a bit posh! Can imagine you working on bonsai all morning then sitting back and admiring them over afternoon tea. You've just got another subscriber.
Thank you! Glad you're enjoying my videos. Haha I must've lost touch with British accents since I've been in Spain for nearly half my life... I thought I had a simpleton West London accent... anyway the dream of bonsai in the morning and tea in the afternoon is a great dream, but still another decade away.... dreaming of my retirement!
I'm totally new to bonsai and sincerely thank you for the help and support you are giving me. Please, please continuing to upload your tutorials, oh and by the way, I think your trees are nothing short of magnificent.
Thanks Dave, the music is fantastic as always. I can notice you are doing mindfulness sessions just listening your peaceful voice jiji. I love your perfect English accent. Take care.
Thanks for the reply Dave in directing me to this playlist, working my way through the videos just what I’ve been looking for Thankyou!! Great videos as well.
Thanks Steven! Long story short I've done loads of flush cuts over the years but in the long run they heal over better if you leave that stub to die back first. Cheers 🎅👍🏻
Thanks Erick for your fabulous feedback! I'm so happy when you say like the music, I love it too, I think it's an important part of the relaxation vibe 😊👍🏻
I love the scientific break down you did on the differences in stub cut vs flush cut. I'd also want to know the science of cutting roots off. Like what are all of the ramifications of cutting off a root or multiple roots. How that effects other roots on the tree, the trunk and overall growth, how the foliage and roots are related to one another. Why do we cut back roots, etc.
Thanks so much! This video is about root pruning, it doesn't answer all your questions but some of them: ua-cam.com/video/eFdWy-MfFrs/v-deo.html Another thing: in general (and with some exceptions) evergreens have a direct connection between roots and branches, while in deciduous trees they tend to not be directly connected. So for example on an azalea, evergreen if you remove a large branch, some of the trunk and roots that were supplying that branch can wither and die. Same for some coniferous trees. But not true for deciduous trees like maples, it seems these somehow re-route their vascular pathways if you remove a big branch so the roots are unaffected. If you really like the scientific side I recommend this book: Modern Bonsai Practice: 501 principles of good bonsai horticulture. The link is in this video's description.
@@BlueSkyBonsai Thank YOU so much! That root pruning video was just the content I needed to see. I love that you explained the reasonings behind which roots to prune, and the energy calendar toward the end. Instead of just pruning, or repotting for the sake of doing it, now I know WHY we do what we do. Thanks again for all the help and info.
Thanks for this, I always learn something new! I really appreciate the effort you put into explaining and showing examples with techniques. Very nice to see your awesome maple again :)
Thanks Karliah, glad you enjoyed it! Next video I have a triple trunk elm which is not as stately as the trident maple, but equally interesting for its twisty trunk movement. Hope you're having a nice Christmas holiday. 🎅🏻
Cheers Ian! Hahaha true in fact I had a clip saying I was so cold I had to put on a jumper... but somehow didn't make the final cut. I will probably even need to wear a coat in the next couple of videos.. can you believe it? Unacceptable lol
Thanks! There are actually two updates on this tree - In 2022: ua-cam.com/video/JoRjIxCbfbk/v-deo.html And 2023: ua-cam.com/video/eglDMHcQDtE/v-deo.html In both videos this tree appears after a few minutes into the videos but hopefully you'll also find the other trees interesting too!
Thanks Rebecca! Although I have to admit my thought process is highly filtered in these videos! I'll repot this trident in spring and will probably do another repot video of it, time allowing. If you're interested you can see this one over the last few years in this Flickr album: www.flickr.com/gp/davidhseymour/62pT62
@@BlueSkyBonsai These photos are a fab record! I particularly love www.flickr.com/photos/davidhseymour/49625301228/in/album-72157690604985673/ It looks like a ballet dancer in arabesque
Thanks, I like that comparison! With this trunk base I wondered if the tree would suit a rectangular pot, but now you've made the analogy to a ballet dancer, I-m certain this oval pot is the right curved shape for it. Btw Flickr is free up to 1000 photos - I really recommend it for recording tree development. You can create as many albums as you have trees, or more.
With our Christmas plans almost in tatters, you've cheered me right up Dave, with a well timed video to take my mind of it 🤗 Sending you and the family warm wishes this Christmas 🌲🥂
Cheers Kate! wishing you and yours a happy Christmas!🎅🍻 (hope the lockdown doesn't cause you too much chaos. But hey, zoom is our friend in these strange times!)
Thanks for the detailed explanation. I've got a Trident with a very heavy limb that looks a bit out of scale with the rest, and it's straight for about 4". Now I'll have an idea of what to do with it! Thanks from Australia
@@BlueSkyBonsai it's very different to the pruning I've done all my life, in apple trees. A lot of things need to be done differently on Bonsai. I need to stop cutting things to buds that will grow but not look natural at all!
@@greasylimpet3323 Also it's interesting to consider, if you make a pruning mistake on a deciduous tree, it'll back bud and grow more branches in time. So when you think of cultivating trees as a matter of time and patience, there aren't really any pruning mistakes you can make. (Not so true for conifers though!) In any case, enjoy it.. that's the most important thing.
Amazing informative, well edited video. Subbed! There's only a handful of good bonsai channels, but I think this would be a fine guide for me. Just got 2 trident maples as a gift from a friend. Can't wait to work on them. Thanks for the tips.
Maples do seem to grow very fast. Both my yearling (4-5 months), and the slightly older one I found (probably a year and a half by now) have grown a lot this summer, and the bigger one already has a very nice looking and fairly thick trunk. :) I love it! I just hope it'll survive the winter (my biggest concern right now). My elms grow super fast too. They're kind of thin sticks right now, but very tall. The tallest is almost a meter. XD
Maples are indeed very special! Yep in winter like all deciduous trees you will need to let them stay cold enough but not so cold that the roots freeze. Maybe colder than -8 or so would be my trigger temperature for putting seedlings into the garage. This winter we had a cold spell of about 2 weeks with temperatures of between -3° and -8°. They all stayed outside and none died. I guess it gets a lot colder than that in Sweden though...
@@BlueSkyBonsai Oooh, I thought I'd have to save them a lot earlier. lol. I'm afraid they'll root-freeze. We can sometimes have around -5 for weeks. But colder than that is usually no more 1-2 weeks per winter. It can get down to minus 20-25, but that's usually very short. Most of the time it sticks to around 5 to minus 5 degrees. If it's like -5 for several weeks, would that cause for concern? Or is it fine, even if it'd be for a month or more?
Once again nice video, top quality content and nice music. My only problem with you Dave is that i need more videos, more often, at least once a week, jaja.
Thanks so much Sabik! I wish I could do them more often... time is always so scarce. maybe I should just aim for 5-minute videos, then editing would take half the time! 😊🌲👍🏻
Dave, you are such a calm and composed bonsaist! My trees are dying here but when I watch your videos I feel so peaceful, relaxed and much more confident that someday I will also be able to train my plants into such beautiful trees 😊 btw, have you ever considered making a tropical bonsai? Just curious why you wouldn't make one...
OH nooo.. how come your trees are dying? where are you in the world and what trees do you have? One hint: give an ailing tree one year on the bench until you're really certain it's gone. Life sometimes finds a way months after you think it's a gonner. Thanks for your kind words! 🌲🎅👍
Bad pots, maybe even bad soil and lots of root rot in my way. My trees unfurl new leaves and drop them before they can even mature completely. I don't know what is causing them to drop so early... I diagnosed it as root rot but still unaware. I primarily grow tropical trees as I live in India 😁
@@clipngrowbonsai6946 try to make sure the soil is draining well but never completely dry. Also look closely for tiny scale insects on the bark and leaves. And have patience & hope 🧘♂️ I do have a few tropicals but not many. Ficus retusa, carmona fukien tea, portulacaria afra, many Sageretia Theezans. Do they count as tropicals? I have done 1 video on sageretias, but none on the others so far. I recently filmed some work on the ficus r. but it's not very good quality video. Maybe in 2021 I'll do some more...
Thank you Dave for the tips. I hope you make an in-depth video on such plant issues, specifically pertaining to bonsai just so that we can keep our trees healthy and disease free for years to come. Please make some content for tropical plants as well if you wish to. Cheers!
Thanks! Yes I really love this trident. I bought it about 6 years ago, I had been looking for a good one for a couple of years and my nearest bonsai dealer imported this from Japan along with a dozen similar specimens. Naturally I chose the best one in my opinion! I would estimate its age to be 30-35 years but it's impossible to be certain while I'm keeping it alive!
@ thank you! I’m looking for one and much I look for, much my opinion become “buying an older one” is probably a best option than a young plant.. as old tridents become really impressive … your message reinforced that opinion… even if more expense, a 30 years old tree will offer more potential in a lifetime…
The best brief (and illustrated!) explanation of how to prune thick branches I have come across! Thanks! BTW, sort of irrelevant to this video, how do you water those leafless deciduous bonsai in winter (those not in small bonsai pots)? Do you let them dry completely between watering? I am in Oz where winter is +10~15C similar to Spain I guess. Cheers
Thanks Sergy, I really appreciate that! It does get cold here in winter, for 3 to 4 weeks or so in January. It snowed heavily this year - you can see that in another video (the one about trunk movement without wiring). So where you are in Oz, I guess doesn't get that cold. Personally I take the view that when most of the top soil is dry then it should be watered. Even deciduous trees in winter. The roots should never get really dry, even when dormant. Of course there are some days in winter when the soil just stays wet for a week or more. But ultimately if you have good draining soil you never have to let your soil go dry between waterings because the water won't stagnate and the roots won't rot. The exception is, if there is a freeze or snow forecast, I don't water them. Excess water in a pot during a freeze can cause root injury while the ice expands as it freezes. HTH!
Dave,love your videos,I’m new to bonsai and learning a lot from watching them. Could you tell me when leaving a stub do you put wound sealant on as well,I would have thought it would prevent die back,thanks again,great videos.
Thanks! In winter, yes I put some wound sealant on the bigger stubs to stop fungal spores from entering into the phloem or xylem. But not in summer because the tree's own sap is the best (and cheapest) wound sealant! In winter most trees don't produce sap when they're dormant so cut paste is better than a bare wound.
Thanks again for the phenomenal video Dave. I love the diagrams for explaining these concepts! You must be some graphic designer or something haha. Cheers
Cheers Garrett! Not a graphics designer, but I am very visually oriented, to understand a concept I need to picture it in my mind. I think the powerful image of a tree is what motivates me in this hobby.... what motivates you??
@@BlueSkyBonsai Appreciating the power and age of trees is definitely one aspect that motivates me to pursue this hobby. I love that I could also recreate a miniature landscape by just training and adequately caring for living plants. I found the knowledge, techniques, and skills of horticulture and bonsai to be incredibly interesting and fun to learn. Its totally given me a newfound appreciate for the trees and plants that I see in my neighborhood and city.
@@garretttrang7998 I'm totally with you on that my friend. And it's awe-inspiring to think these tree species were here way before mankind. I will soon do a short video on Gingko Biloba, they are truly awesome. Fossils have been found dating back to early dinosaurs, way before any other current tree species. 🌳👍🏻
Dave. Really enjoying your guides. I have been looking for anything you have done about the composition of your soil but haven't been able to find one. Have you done one. If so where can I find it. John
Thanks John. I haven't done a video specifically about soil, but I've mentioned the mix I use in a couple of different videos. In this video for example about repotting: ua-cam.com/video/tDIRz2YFhfw/v-deo.html from about 10m 27s. The composition should change depending on the climate and the tree species. The warmer and dryer your climate, the more retentive should be the soil, (more akadama and pine bark). But for cooler or wetter locations, you need more drainage (more pumice or lava rock). Use large particles for larger trees; smaller particles for smaller trees. I live in a hot dry climate so I need more water retention, and for deeper pots I layer the soil particle sizes to raise the water table in the pot for longer, as in this video from about 4m 35s: ua-cam.com/video/xJFa-dsNO9I/v-deo.html And to explain more about pot depth and water retention, I recommend this video: ua-cam.com/video/Ij5jLgU-ZxY/v-deo.html HTH
Nice video dude.👌 really appreciate the time and effort you put in to these videos. could not look then you cut that branch off, can never bring my self to do major cuts just slight pruning is my thing. 😎 Will you be able to get that branch to root this time of year ?
Cheers SB! As Peter Chan once said, you need to be prepared to chop a few branches if you do bonsai! Actually it's easier if you think of long branches that don't get thinner, just chop them a third or half way along so they don't look like a fat worm! Tridents and Japanese maples don't root from hardwood cuttings. I've tried a few times .. the cuttings leaf out in spring then wither and die. To root them you need to take softwood cuttings while they're still soft in late autumn, but after leaf drop. That works with about 50% success in my experience. But in the end it's easier to buy a 1 year old maple seedling from a garden centre.. much quicker! Happy Christmas! 🎅🌲👍🏻
@@BlueSkyBonsai merry Christmas my friend !! Eventually I’ll get the courage to make these big choices with my trees. Any chance I could make some video requests for the new year ? Peter chans videos are good but personally, I like the detail and information from my mate bonsai Dave 😉😎 🍻
@@askgbk yeah for defo. On xmas eve I'll publish one of those "Community" posts asking everyone for their video requests. That'll give you a couple of days to write your christmas list!! Lol.🎅 I do have a few vid ideas in the grey matter that I just haven't had the time to flesh out. I'm hoping your suggestions are close to my ideas which should give me the kick I need to get off my ass and film them! Feel free to suggest here if you already know what you're looking for 🍻👍🏻
Nice bro! Big move at the 8:35 mark, very bold and I’m sure the tree will be better for it. I need to get one of these trident maples. How common are they over there? Are they available at nurseries or just bonsai specific outlets?
Cheers bro! Gotta be honest they're not that common here. I bought this from Laos Garden nursery here two years ago and they had imported it from Japan earlier that year. One thing to consider, my colleagues in Brexitland tell me that tridents don't survive a deep freeze like a field maple or a sycamore would. We don't get deep freezes here in Madrid below say 25F for any significant length of time so I keep it outside all winter. Other than that, it's a brilliant species for bonsai. Happy holidays!! 🎅🌲👍🏻
@@BlueSkyBonsai I never would have realized that. I just discovered that there’s is what I think is a hedge maple as a street tree around the corner from me, so I’ve got a bunch of seeds from that stratifying in the fridge as we speak. As for sycamores, I actually get tons of those sprouting up in my yard all the time. No idea where the mama tree is, but it’s productive! Cheers and happy holidays man.
@@BostonBonsaiIdiot the field maples are great for bonsai, and if it's growing in your neighborhood it must be well adapted to the climate there. Sycamores.. I guess you're overloaded with them so don't feel the need to grow them in pots?
@@BlueSkyBonsai yeah they’ve clearly been there for quite a while. I’m going to ask the ignorant neighbors if I can dig up the seedlings in the spring! And woa woa, EVERY tree goes into a pot eventually, dincha know that David?? DINCHA??!?
@@BostonBonsaiIdiot so true, so true. NO SEEDLING can be left unpotted. It's the law of the garden. I have one sycamore dug up -not by me but by a friend who gave it to me in a swap for 3 younger oak seedlings in 2019. No videos yet but I'll repot it in Spring. You can see it here, www.flickr.com/gp/davidhseymour/7985Pi - Gargantuan leaves but that's good while I'm fattening up the trunk. Like fattening up the turkey ready for Christmas 🤭 (Uh-oh I hope I didn't just offend a vegan!)
Thanks Joel. Great question! Junipers, you can tell because after the growing season when it starts to get cold the foliage takes on a brownish colour. Pines are harder to tell but in autumn they shed their older needles, then after that they stop shedding because all the water and glucose are replaced by a natural antifreeze. But spruce, I don't know. I don't really see a difference! Maybe that's why they are traditionally used as Christmas trees... happy holidays 🌲🎅👍🏻
Thank you for the great videos! - I have 1 question in terms of seasonal pruning - If the Bonsai is inside and warm all the year - is there any changes to the pruning seasons?
Thanks! It depends on the species. Inside all year, tropical trees like ficus, sageretia, serissa, carmona, indoors they behave like in the tropics so you're right you can prune these any time of year. The last two, serissa and carmona are quite sensitive so limit pruning to once or twice a year only. But ficus and Sageretia you can prune frequently, even monthly if you really want to keep them small. Other evergreen broadleaf trees like olives, chinese elm, think of these more like outdoor trees, and respect the energy calendar for those. They don't lose their leaves but they *do* have this energy cycle and go dormant for winter. Did you see this video: ua-cam.com/video/a_vYCvQL5iE/v-deo.html
beautiful tree! Do you have any experience with Acer Japonicum 'Aconitifolium'? I have one with an ugly graft. I'm wondering if this variety will stand well on its own roots.
Thanks Matthew! I don't have experience of the Aconitifolium but I find them extremely beautiful. The closest I have is two butterfly maples which are more like variegated JMs. So I can't advise you about the fernleaf maple roots. But what I would recommend, take an air layer of a longer branch, then treat that as a new mame or shohin bonsai. That might give you the answer you need to decide whether to layer the mother tree?? Keep in touch, would love to hear how it goes! 🎅👍🏻
Thank you for the overview on branch trimming, i did not know this and will be changing my ways! You have a lovely Trident Maple. Question, do you find the owl and the mirrors around your trees help with birds / squirrels? While I sometimes appreciate the random seedlings ( this year I spy two oak seedlings in my asparagus bed) the damage from mockingbirds, blue jays, grackles and squirrels has me pulling my hair out and looking for ideas. I use large stones but they end up being pushed out of the way on most trees. Ps. Your new benches look fabulous!
Thanks so much! I've had two trees die after flush cuts (admittedly both were within a couple of months of root pruning) so, if you learn from my experiences, it makes me experienced, but it makes you wise! The owl and the discs have been working well. When I first placed the trees on the new benches, I left them without any deterrents and the birds shredded up the moss in several pots. So I put the owl and discs (they were previously on the other side where the trees were before) and since then, no more bird attacks. I've seen a robin and a few other small birds hanging out there but they don't seem to do any damage. I think the blackbirds and magpies are the worst offenders here. Btw I love finding surprise seedlings,, and especially oaks. I should do another oak video soon, I have dozens of them, five different species. None mature trees yet but it's a really nice genus. Cheers 🎅👍🏻
@@BlueSkyBonsai I’ll take wise any day! I looked at a few of my trees tonight and see a mix of flush and stump, no more flush cuts for me. I’ve watched so many videos and no one explained it the way you did. Thanks for the confirmation on the owl and mirrors. Seems I’ve got some decorating to do! I found another oak tree tonight! I own an empty lot next to my house and was picking up trash in after a few windy days and found one that is about 3 ft tall and about the thickness of two fingers. I have no idea how I missed it before. Funny how you can see new thing just by looking. I don’t know much about oaks, but I seem to remember someone saying they don’t make good bonsai trees? Looks like I ahve more research to do. And yes, you should do one on oaks 👍🏻
@@cduff4505 wow that 3 foot oak sounds like a great find! One thing to note, oaks seem to shoot down a massive tap root so uprooting them as "urbandori" can kill them. But, if you are successful, they make wonderful bonsai. Such lovely bark and beautiful leaves. I think I'll probably do a video in early spring when I repot all of last year's seedlings. Thanks again!
@@BlueSkyBonsai I see that, did research last night and they are beautiful. I will wait till the last of the leaves fall off and dig deep to see what find. It sits right on the fence line so I need to cut back or dig up. I’ll also dig up the seedlings as they are only 8 inches or so. Thank you for the info! Happy Holidays!
Hi! Not really, Several years ago I scraped a small amount of moss from the wood at the base of the shaded side of the olive tree in my garden. I put it on one bonsai. Since then, the moss just seems to move from tree to tree. Sometimes I just put a couple of bits from one pot to the corner of another pot, and it just keeps growing. I usually regret it though between february to march, because the hungry birds keep attacking the moss, since it harbours tiny grubs and insects. Besides making a moss mess in the garden it is also potentially bad for the surface roots in the parts of the pots that the birds attacked. I want to do a video about moss sometime this year!
love the videos and how you explain each cut, only thing is I find the music too loud. I have kids and trying to listen to your voice when there is music on is hard with them talking in the background...
Hi, yes you can chop a field maple trunk in early winter, and yes it will bud out new shoots in spring. Are you in Northern hemisphere? If the tree is still winter dormant, you can chop it and it shouldn't bleed too much sap. But if it's starting to wake up for spring, you've left it too late because it'll lose tons of energy by bleeding sap. If you're in the southern hemisphere, late summer is a bad time to chop - you'll need to wait until after it loses all its leaves in late autumn).
Hi Dan, I only just saw this question now - I would have answered earlier if I'd seen it. YT comments are a bit weird sometimes. When you chop a maple's trunk in winter, there's no need to put a bag over it (assuming you're not repotting it) because as soon as it perceives springtime with longer daylight hours, all the starch in the roots will covert back to glucose and the sap will start to push out new buds. On the other hand, a bag over it won't actually do any harm, as long as it doesn't start collecting mould inside. Also, If you trunk chop in summer, a bag is not strictly necessary as long the tree was in good health when you chopped it. If you do decide to use a bag to keep it humid in summer, don't keep it in direct sunlight, you don't want to fry those new leaves as they unfurl. If it gets really hot where you are, it's probably better to use a misting system nearby (like in your other comment) rather than using a plastic bag.
Prune it now, because all the energy is stored away as starch in the trunk base and roots. Then repot in spring as you see the buds swelling and nearly ready to pop. Because that means the starch has turned back to sap (glucose) and is pushing back up the trunk and branches. HTH
Very interesting and useful and I have so many videos to catch up on yer channel. You have became a new favourite bonsai youtuber with professional tips but not on a snobby elitist level. You and Nigel Saunders are awesome and make alot to current and future enhusiast and amateurs. Keep it up
Yes! But in winter you need to let them get cooler so that they can stay dormant for 2 or more months. If you keep a deciduous tree warm over winter, it will be fine for the first or even second year, but it suffers because it needs its rest period... after a few years it will start to wither. So, if you have a cool darkish basement or garage of around 10 degrees that would be sufficient for a couple of months each winter.
Great! For a first book I would recommend Peter Chan's "Bonsai: The Art of Growing and Keeping Miniature Trees". Please also watch this video where I show the fundamental health elements of all bonsai: ua-cam.com/video/a_vYCvQL5iE/v-deo.html - in that video I recommend a book that you might want to consider as your second book. It's very horticultural, and heavy reading, but it will make you a bonsai scientist after that!
BONSAI ACEH it's great to have you on board! Bonsai is a wonderful hobby. Please take a look at this video about pruning: ua-cam.com/video/cOGAJ5iqWfk/v-deo.html Then please also see this video about the most important health elements your bonsai needs. ua-cam.com/video/a_vYCvQL5iE/v-deo.html I hope they help!
@@AnimationFilms101 the JMs are also vigorous rooters, perhaps not quite as vigorous as the tridents. I have two JMs in tiny pots, and yes I have to repot them every year. I also have several JMs in larger pots that are not every year. Root pruning slows the development somewhat so if you're trying to fatten up the trunk, put it in a deep pot for a few years and don't repot or prune!
@@AnimationFilms101 crab apples are massively fast rooters, as are ligustrum (privet). Elms are quite fast so an elm in a very small pot should be yearly, but you can get away with every second year if you are pruning the canopy regularly so less energy is sent down for root growth. Other deciduous trees with larger leaves tend to develop roots quicker in general.
Yes! Because ultimately you are preventing "die back" from each cut damaging the parent stem. Basically the die back only happens in the stub. If you get it right, the next year you only remove dead wood. But it's most common to do this if you are chopping off a large branch or trunk top. On tiny branches at the apex it is not so necessary.
Thanks so much for your kind words! Please share my videos with your friends and bonsai colleagues, that might help the youtube algorithm to offer them to more people! 🌳👍🏻
@@BlueSkyBonsai subtitles is so past. And the sound is not loud or I can't hear you. I'm a nederland. I only understand English by speaking. Thank you for your attention.
As a Bonsai man myself, I like your style, technique and calm teaching method. Very English and (dare I say it) a bit posh! Can imagine you working on bonsai all morning then sitting back and admiring them over afternoon tea. You've just got another subscriber.
Thank you! Glad you're enjoying my videos.
Haha I must've lost touch with British accents since I've been in Spain for nearly half my life... I thought I had a simpleton West London accent...
anyway the dream of bonsai in the morning and tea in the afternoon is a great dream, but still another decade away.... dreaming of my retirement!
That Trident looks like a servant bowing to its master. Love the content. Thanks
Thanks Matt. That's curious, I never saw it that way, but now you say it...
I sometimes feel like I'm bowing to nature with this tree! Cheers 🎅👍🏻
I'm totally new to bonsai and sincerely thank you for the help and support you are giving me. Please, please continuing to upload your tutorials, oh and by the way, I think your trees are nothing short of magnificent.
Thank you for your kind words! Glad you're finding my videos helpful!
Thanks for the quick reply. I have just read them now.
Thanks Dave, the music is fantastic as always. I can notice you are doing mindfulness sessions just listening your peaceful voice jiji. I love your perfect English accent. Take care.
Thanks Isa 😊😍
Thanks for the reply Dave in directing me to this playlist, working my way through the videos just what I’ve been looking for Thankyou!! Great videos as well.
Thanks - happy to hear these videos are useful!
Thanks for showing how but also why! I love the detailed explanations with diagrams.
Welcome, thanks for your kind comments!
I am a beginner and so enjoy watching ur pruning technique. Thanku for explaining what u r doing and why.
Glad you're enjoying! 🌳👍
Thank you Dave, your a wonderful pocket of Bonsai knowledge my trees will be forever grateful. No more flush cuts from here on in you have my word. ✂️
Thanks Steven! Long story short I've done loads of flush cuts over the years but in the long run they heal over better if you leave that stub to die back first. Cheers 🎅👍🏻
I just love your videos Dave! And your soft sense of speaking and your MUSIC!!!!! Thanks for sharing
Thanks Erick for your fabulous feedback! I'm so happy when you say like the music, I love it too, I think it's an important part of the relaxation vibe 😊👍🏻
I love the scientific break down you did on the differences in stub cut vs flush cut. I'd also want to know the science of cutting roots off. Like what are all of the ramifications of cutting off a root or multiple roots. How that effects other roots on the tree, the trunk and overall growth, how the foliage and roots are related to one another. Why do we cut back roots, etc.
Thanks so much!
This video is about root pruning, it doesn't answer all your questions but some of them: ua-cam.com/video/eFdWy-MfFrs/v-deo.html
Another thing: in general (and with some exceptions) evergreens have a direct connection between roots and branches, while in deciduous trees they tend to not be directly connected. So for example on an azalea, evergreen if you remove a large branch, some of the trunk and roots that were supplying that branch can wither and die. Same for some coniferous trees. But not true for deciduous trees like maples, it seems these somehow re-route their vascular pathways if you remove a big branch so the roots are unaffected.
If you really like the scientific side I recommend this book: Modern Bonsai Practice: 501 principles of good bonsai horticulture. The link is in this video's description.
@@BlueSkyBonsai Thank YOU so much! That root pruning video was just the content I needed to see. I love that you explained the reasonings behind which roots to prune, and the energy calendar toward the end. Instead of just pruning, or repotting for the sake of doing it, now I know WHY we do what we do. Thanks again for all the help and info.
@@shirayasha you're welcome! thanks for your great comments.
Thanks for this, I always learn something new! I really appreciate the effort you put into explaining and showing examples with techniques.
Very nice to see your awesome maple again :)
Thanks Karliah, glad you enjoyed it!
Next video I have a triple trunk elm which is not as stately as the trident maple, but equally interesting for its twisty trunk movement.
Hope you're having a nice Christmas holiday. 🎅🏻
great video. lovely little trident as well. ...i can tell its winter. youve got a jumper on. lol
Cheers Ian!
Hahaha true in fact I had a clip saying I was so cold I had to put on a jumper... but somehow didn't make the final cut.
I will probably even need to wear a coat in the next couple of videos.. can you believe it? Unacceptable lol
Amazing!
Thank you for sharing techniques! Looks beautiful and cannot wait to see progress.
Thanks! There are actually two updates on this tree -
In 2022: ua-cam.com/video/JoRjIxCbfbk/v-deo.html
And 2023: ua-cam.com/video/eglDMHcQDtE/v-deo.html
In both videos this tree appears after a few minutes into the videos but hopefully you'll also find the other trees interesting too!
Also, I do love listening to your videos, because they're very calming and nice as well as educational. :)
Thank you!! So glad you're enjoying them.
I love hearing your thought process Dave, I look forward to seeing this one all leafed out xx
Thanks Rebecca! Although I have to admit my thought process is highly filtered in these videos! I'll repot this trident in spring and will probably do another repot video of it, time allowing. If you're interested you can see this one over the last few years in this Flickr album: www.flickr.com/gp/davidhseymour/62pT62
@@BlueSkyBonsai These photos are a fab record! I particularly love www.flickr.com/photos/davidhseymour/49625301228/in/album-72157690604985673/ It looks like a ballet dancer in arabesque
Thanks, I like that comparison! With this trunk base I wondered if the tree would suit a rectangular pot, but now you've made the analogy to a ballet dancer, I-m certain this oval pot is the right curved shape for it. Btw Flickr is free up to 1000 photos - I really recommend it for recording tree development. You can create as many albums as you have trees, or more.
With our Christmas plans almost in tatters, you've cheered me right up Dave, with a well timed video to take my mind of it 🤗 Sending you and the family warm wishes this Christmas 🌲🥂
Cheers Kate! wishing you and yours a happy Christmas!🎅🍻
(hope the lockdown doesn't cause you too much chaos. But hey, zoom is our friend in these strange times!)
Lovely surprise popping up n my suggested videos list. Thank you for the effort you put in the videos!
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it 😊
Thank you so much for this. I have been looking for this explanation of branch cutting for a while.
You're welcome, thanks for your comment!
I've learned a lot, now I understand why, thank you
You're welcome! Glad you found it helpful.
Great work Dave !!muy bien! 👌🏻
Muchas gracias Isidro! 😊👍🏻
Excellent video! I am new to Bonsai and really like your teaching style. The explanations and graphics make this so easy to understand. Thank you!
Thanks! It's a beautiful hobby- I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
Great video!
Thank you so much! 🎅👍🏻
Great content as always!
Thanks! Great tips. I really love that trident maple!
Cheers Herb! Happy holidays! 🎅🌲👍🏻
Stub cuts very informative. Thank You
Thanks for the detailed explanation. I've got a Trident with a very heavy limb that looks a bit out of scale with the rest, and it's straight for about 4".
Now I'll have an idea of what to do with it! Thanks from Australia
Great! I recommend you take photos before and after so you can refer back to them in one or two years when you tidy the dead branch stub.
@@BlueSkyBonsai it's very different to the pruning I've done all my life, in apple trees.
A lot of things need to be done differently on Bonsai. I need to stop cutting things to buds that will grow but not look natural at all!
@@greasylimpet3323 Also it's interesting to consider, if you make a pruning mistake on a deciduous tree, it'll back bud and grow more branches in time. So when you think of cultivating trees as a matter of time and patience, there aren't really any pruning mistakes you can make. (Not so true for conifers though!) In any case, enjoy it.. that's the most important thing.
Amazing informative, well edited video.
Subbed! There's only a handful of good bonsai channels, but I think this would be a fine guide for me. Just got 2 trident maples as a gift from a friend. Can't wait to work on them.
Thanks for the tips.
Thanks for your kind words! Congrats on the new tridents, they make great bonsai 🌳👍🏻
Maples do seem to grow very fast. Both my yearling (4-5 months), and the slightly older one I found (probably a year and a half by now) have grown a lot this summer, and the bigger one already has a very nice looking and fairly thick trunk. :) I love it! I just hope it'll survive the winter (my biggest concern right now). My elms grow super fast too. They're kind of thin sticks right now, but very tall. The tallest is almost a meter. XD
Maples are indeed very special! Yep in winter like all deciduous trees you will need to let them stay cold enough but not so cold that the roots freeze. Maybe colder than -8 or so would be my trigger temperature for putting seedlings into the garage. This winter we had a cold spell of about 2 weeks with temperatures of between -3° and -8°. They all stayed outside and none died. I guess it gets a lot colder than that in Sweden though...
@@BlueSkyBonsai Oooh, I thought I'd have to save them a lot earlier. lol. I'm afraid they'll root-freeze. We can sometimes have around -5 for weeks. But colder than that is usually no more 1-2 weeks per winter. It can get down to minus 20-25, but that's usually very short. Most of the time it sticks to around 5 to minus 5 degrees. If it's like -5 for several weeks, would that cause for concern? Or is it fine, even if it'd be for a month or more?
Nice video! Your graphics help a lot
Thank you! Glad to have helped!
Alot of good tips, Thanks!
Thanks, I hope you found it helpful!
Once again nice video, top quality content and nice music. My only problem with you Dave is that i need more videos, more often, at least once a week, jaja.
Thanks so much Sabik! I wish I could do them more often... time is always so scarce. maybe I should just aim for 5-minute videos, then editing would take half the time! 😊🌲👍🏻
Dave, you are such a calm and composed bonsaist! My trees are dying here but when I watch your videos I feel so peaceful, relaxed and much more confident that someday I will also be able to train my plants into such beautiful trees 😊 btw, have you ever considered making a tropical bonsai? Just curious why you wouldn't make one...
OH nooo.. how come your trees are dying? where are you in the world and what trees do you have? One hint: give an ailing tree one year on the bench until you're really certain it's gone. Life sometimes finds a way months after you think it's a gonner. Thanks for your kind words! 🌲🎅👍
Bad pots, maybe even bad soil and lots of root rot in my way. My trees unfurl new leaves and drop them before they can even mature completely. I don't know what is causing them to drop so early... I diagnosed it as root rot but still unaware. I primarily grow tropical trees as I live in India 😁
@@clipngrowbonsai6946 try to make sure the soil is draining well but never completely dry. Also look closely for tiny scale insects on the bark and leaves. And have patience & hope 🧘♂️
I do have a few tropicals but not many. Ficus retusa, carmona fukien tea, portulacaria afra, many Sageretia Theezans. Do they count as tropicals? I have done 1 video on sageretias, but none on the others so far. I recently filmed some work on the ficus r. but it's not very good quality video. Maybe in 2021 I'll do some more...
Thank you Dave for the tips. I hope you make an in-depth video on such plant issues, specifically pertaining to bonsai just so that we can keep our trees healthy and disease free for years to come. Please make some content for tropical plants as well if you wish to. Cheers!
Thanks again CnG 👍
Really good and clear info
Thanks! Really glad you found it helpful.
Awesome tree Dave! How old is it? Did you cultivate it from a very young plant or was it a certain size when you got it? Awesome as each video !
Thanks! Yes I really love this trident. I bought it about 6 years ago, I had been looking for a good one for a couple of years and my nearest bonsai dealer imported this from Japan along with a dozen similar specimens. Naturally I chose the best one in my opinion! I would estimate its age to be 30-35 years but it's impossible to be certain while I'm keeping it alive!
@ thank you! I’m looking for one and much I look for, much my opinion become “buying an older one” is probably a best option than a young plant.. as old tridents become really impressive … your message reinforced that opinion… even if more expense, a 30 years old tree will offer more potential in a lifetime…
Interesting video 🌲 very useful going to do some later 🌲🌲🌲🌲👍🌱
Thanks Shaun, enjoy it! 🌳👍🏻
Great video by the way very interesting
Thank you Nick! Glad you enjoyed it 👍🏻
Thank you so much, I totally subscribed ♥
Totally thanks for subscribing!! 😊
@@BlueSkyBonsai Thanks for the great content 🙂
The best brief (and illustrated!) explanation of how to prune thick branches I have come across! Thanks!
BTW, sort of irrelevant to this video, how do you water those leafless deciduous bonsai in winter (those not in small bonsai pots)? Do you let them dry completely between watering? I am in Oz where winter is +10~15C similar to Spain I guess. Cheers
Thanks Sergy, I really appreciate that!
It does get cold here in winter, for 3 to 4 weeks or so in January. It snowed heavily this year - you can see that in another video (the one about trunk movement without wiring). So where you are in Oz, I guess doesn't get that cold.
Personally I take the view that when most of the top soil is dry then it should be watered. Even deciduous trees in winter. The roots should never get really dry, even when dormant. Of course there are some days in winter when the soil just stays wet for a week or more. But ultimately if you have good draining soil you never have to let your soil go dry between waterings because the water won't stagnate and the roots won't rot.
The exception is, if there is a freeze or snow forecast, I don't water them. Excess water in a pot during a freeze can cause root injury while the ice expands as it freezes. HTH!
Dave,love your videos,I’m new to bonsai and learning a lot from watching them.
Could you tell me when leaving a stub do you put wound sealant on as well,I would have thought it would prevent die back,thanks again,great videos.
Thanks!
In winter, yes I put some wound sealant on the bigger stubs to stop fungal spores from entering into the phloem or xylem. But not in summer because the tree's own sap is the best (and cheapest) wound sealant!
In winter most trees don't produce sap when they're dormant so cut paste is better than a bare wound.
Wowwww beautiful
Thank you 😊
Thanks again for the phenomenal video Dave. I love the diagrams for explaining these concepts! You must be some graphic designer or something haha. Cheers
Cheers Garrett! Not a graphics designer, but I am very visually oriented, to understand a concept I need to picture it in my mind. I think the powerful image of a tree is what motivates me in this hobby.... what motivates you??
@@BlueSkyBonsai Appreciating the power and age of trees is definitely one aspect that motivates me to pursue this hobby. I love that I could also recreate a miniature landscape by just training and adequately caring for living plants. I found the knowledge, techniques, and skills of horticulture and bonsai to be incredibly interesting and fun to learn. Its totally given me a newfound appreciate for the trees and plants that I see in my neighborhood and city.
@@garretttrang7998 I'm totally with you on that my friend. And it's awe-inspiring to think these tree species were here way before mankind. I will soon do a short video on Gingko Biloba, they are truly awesome. Fossils have been found dating back to early dinosaurs, way before any other current tree species. 🌳👍🏻
Thanks for this.
Dave. Really enjoying your guides. I have been looking for anything you have done about the composition of your soil but haven't been able to find one. Have you done one. If so where can I find it. John
Thanks John. I haven't done a video specifically about soil, but I've mentioned the mix I use in a couple of different videos. In this video for example about repotting: ua-cam.com/video/tDIRz2YFhfw/v-deo.html
from about 10m 27s.
The composition should change depending on the climate and the tree species. The warmer and dryer your climate, the more retentive should be the soil, (more akadama and pine bark). But for cooler or wetter locations, you need more drainage (more pumice or lava rock). Use large particles for larger trees; smaller particles for smaller trees.
I live in a hot dry climate so I need more water retention, and for deeper pots I layer the soil particle sizes to raise the water table in the pot for longer, as in this video from about 4m 35s: ua-cam.com/video/xJFa-dsNO9I/v-deo.html
And to explain more about pot depth and water retention, I recommend this video:
ua-cam.com/video/Ij5jLgU-ZxY/v-deo.html
HTH
Nice video dude.👌 really appreciate the time and effort you put in to these videos.
could not look then you cut that branch off, can never bring my self to do major cuts just slight pruning is my thing. 😎
Will you be able to get that branch to root this time of year ?
Cheers SB! As Peter Chan once said, you need to be prepared to chop a few branches if you do bonsai! Actually it's easier if you think of long branches that don't get thinner, just chop them a third or half way along so they don't look like a fat worm!
Tridents and Japanese maples don't root from hardwood cuttings. I've tried a few times .. the cuttings leaf out in spring then wither and die. To root them you need to take softwood cuttings while they're still soft in late autumn, but after leaf drop. That works with about 50% success in my experience. But in the end it's easier to buy a 1 year old maple seedling from a garden centre.. much quicker!
Happy Christmas! 🎅🌲👍🏻
@@BlueSkyBonsai merry Christmas my friend !! Eventually I’ll get the courage to make these big choices with my trees.
Any chance I could make some video requests for the new year ? Peter chans videos are good but personally, I like the detail and information from my mate bonsai Dave 😉😎 🍻
@@askgbk yeah for defo. On xmas eve I'll publish one of those "Community" posts asking everyone for their video requests. That'll give you a couple of days to write your christmas list!! Lol.🎅
I do have a few vid ideas in the grey matter that I just haven't had the time to flesh out. I'm hoping your suggestions are close to my ideas which should give me the kick I need to get off my ass and film them!
Feel free to suggest here if you already know what you're looking for 🍻👍🏻
Great content,
Thank you! 😊
Nice bro! Big move at the 8:35 mark, very bold and I’m sure the tree will be better for it. I need to get one of these trident maples. How common are they over there? Are they available at nurseries or just bonsai specific outlets?
Cheers bro! Gotta be honest they're not that common here. I bought this from Laos Garden nursery here two years ago and they had imported it from Japan earlier that year. One thing to consider, my colleagues in Brexitland tell me that tridents don't survive a deep freeze like a field maple or a sycamore would. We don't get deep freezes here in Madrid below say 25F for any significant length of time so I keep it outside all winter. Other than that, it's a brilliant species for bonsai. Happy holidays!! 🎅🌲👍🏻
@@BlueSkyBonsai I never would have realized that. I just discovered that there’s is what I think is a hedge maple as a street tree around the corner from me, so I’ve got a bunch of seeds from that stratifying in the fridge as we speak. As for sycamores, I actually get tons of those sprouting up in my yard all the time. No idea where the mama tree is, but it’s productive! Cheers and happy holidays man.
@@BostonBonsaiIdiot the field maples are great for bonsai, and if it's growing in your neighborhood it must be well adapted to the climate there. Sycamores.. I guess you're overloaded with them so don't feel the need to grow them in pots?
@@BlueSkyBonsai yeah they’ve clearly been there for quite a while. I’m going to ask the ignorant neighbors if I can dig up the seedlings in the spring! And woa woa, EVERY tree goes into a pot eventually, dincha know that David?? DINCHA??!?
@@BostonBonsaiIdiot so true, so true. NO SEEDLING can be left unpotted. It's the law of the garden.
I have one sycamore dug up -not by me but by a friend who gave it to me in a swap for 3 younger oak seedlings in 2019. No videos yet but I'll repot it in Spring. You can see it here, www.flickr.com/gp/davidhseymour/7985Pi - Gargantuan leaves but that's good while I'm fattening up the trunk. Like fattening up the turkey ready for Christmas 🤭 (Uh-oh I hope I didn't just offend a vegan!)
I second the prior comment, love the graphics in your videos! I’m curious if there is an easy way to tell if a conifer has reached dormancy?
Thanks Joel. Great question! Junipers, you can tell because after the growing season when it starts to get cold the foliage takes on a brownish colour. Pines are harder to tell but in autumn they shed their older needles, then after that they stop shedding because all the water and glucose are replaced by a natural antifreeze. But spruce, I don't know. I don't really see a difference! Maybe that's why they are traditionally used as Christmas trees... happy holidays 🌲🎅👍🏻
Thank you, great video
Thanks Joanne! Happy holidays 🎅👍🏻
Thank you for the great videos! - I have 1 question in terms of seasonal pruning - If the Bonsai is inside and warm all the year - is there any changes to the pruning seasons?
Thanks! It depends on the species. Inside all year, tropical trees like ficus, sageretia, serissa, carmona, indoors they behave like in the tropics so you're right you can prune these any time of year. The last two, serissa and carmona are quite sensitive so limit pruning to once or twice a year only. But ficus and Sageretia you can prune frequently, even monthly if you really want to keep them small.
Other evergreen broadleaf trees like olives, chinese elm, think of these more like outdoor trees, and respect the energy calendar for those. They don't lose their leaves but they *do* have this energy cycle and go dormant for winter. Did you see this video:
ua-cam.com/video/a_vYCvQL5iE/v-deo.html
beautiful tree! Do you have any experience with Acer Japonicum 'Aconitifolium'? I have one with an ugly graft. I'm wondering if this variety will stand well on its own roots.
Thanks Matthew! I don't have experience of the Aconitifolium but I find them extremely beautiful. The closest I have is two butterfly maples which are more like variegated JMs.
So I can't advise you about the fernleaf maple roots. But what I would recommend, take an air layer of a longer branch, then treat that as a new mame or shohin bonsai. That might give you the answer you need to decide whether to layer the mother tree?? Keep in touch, would love to hear how it goes! 🎅👍🏻
Thank you for the overview on branch trimming, i did not know this and will be changing my ways! You have a lovely Trident Maple. Question, do you find the owl and the mirrors around your trees help with birds / squirrels? While I sometimes appreciate the random seedlings ( this year I spy two oak seedlings in my asparagus bed) the damage from mockingbirds, blue jays, grackles and squirrels has me pulling my hair out and looking for ideas. I use large stones but they end up being pushed out of the way on most trees. Ps. Your new benches look fabulous!
Thanks so much! I've had two trees die after flush cuts (admittedly both were within a couple of months of root pruning) so, if you learn from my experiences, it makes me experienced, but it makes you wise!
The owl and the discs have been working well. When I first placed the trees on the new benches, I left them without any deterrents and the birds shredded up the moss in several pots. So I put the owl and discs (they were previously on the other side where the trees were before) and since then, no more bird attacks. I've seen a robin and a few other small birds hanging out there but they don't seem to do any damage. I think the blackbirds and magpies are the worst offenders here.
Btw I love finding surprise seedlings,, and especially oaks. I should do another oak video soon, I have dozens of them, five different species. None mature trees yet but it's a really nice genus. Cheers 🎅👍🏻
@@BlueSkyBonsai I’ll take wise any day! I looked at a few of my trees tonight and see a mix of flush and stump, no more flush cuts for me. I’ve watched so many videos and no one explained it the way you did. Thanks for the confirmation on the owl and mirrors. Seems I’ve got some decorating to do! I found another oak tree tonight! I own an empty lot next to my house and was picking up trash in after a few windy days and found one that is about 3 ft tall and about the thickness of two fingers. I have no idea how I missed it before. Funny how you can see new thing just by looking. I don’t know much about oaks, but I seem to remember someone saying they don’t make good bonsai trees? Looks like I ahve more research to do.
And yes, you should do one on oaks 👍🏻
@@cduff4505 wow that 3 foot oak sounds like a great find! One thing to note, oaks seem to shoot down a massive tap root so uprooting them as "urbandori" can kill them.
But, if you are successful, they make wonderful bonsai. Such lovely bark and beautiful leaves. I think I'll probably do a video in early spring when I repot all of last year's seedlings.
Thanks again!
@@BlueSkyBonsai I see that, did research last night and they are beautiful. I will wait till the last of the leaves fall off and dig deep to see what find. It sits right on the fence line so I need to cut back or dig up. I’ll also dig up the seedlings as they are only 8 inches or so. Thank you for the info! Happy Holidays!
@@cduff4505 good luck, let me k ow how it goes! Happy holidays too 🍺👍🏻
Nice chanel you have. New subscriber.
Thanks so much! Nice to have you here 😊👍🏻
A suggestion, make videos speaking of conifers and broaleaf evergreens!!
Good suggestion. Thanks again!!
Hey Dave! Is there any technique to grow moss around the base of the trunk? It looks awesome....
Hi! Not really, Several years ago I scraped a small amount of moss from the wood at the base of the shaded side of the olive tree in my garden. I put it on one bonsai. Since then, the moss just seems to move from tree to tree. Sometimes I just put a couple of bits from one pot to the corner of another pot, and it just keeps growing. I usually regret it though between february to march, because the hungry birds keep attacking the moss, since it harbours tiny grubs and insects. Besides making a moss mess in the garden it is also potentially bad for the surface roots in the parts of the pots that the birds attacked. I want to do a video about moss sometime this year!
Good job sir
Thank you @WAD Madhusan. 🎅👍🏻
love the videos and how you explain each cut, only thing is I find the music too loud. I have kids and trying to listen to your voice when there is music on is hard with them talking in the background...
Hehehe I also have kids and I turn up the misic volume to drown out their noise! 😂 Thanks Cheryl, glad you're enjoying the explanations anyway.
Thanks
Thanks very much!!
Hello. Is it possible to briefly remove the trunk of a field maple? will it sprout?
Hi, yes you can chop a field maple trunk in early winter, and yes it will bud out new shoots in spring. Are you in Northern hemisphere? If the tree is still winter dormant, you can chop it and it shouldn't bleed too much sap. But if it's starting to wake up for spring, you've left it too late because it'll lose tons of energy by bleeding sap.
If you're in the southern hemisphere, late summer is a bad time to chop - you'll need to wait until after it loses all its leaves in late autumn).
@@BlueSkyBonsai Thanks, should I cover it with a bag until the buds open?
Hi Dan, I only just saw this question now - I would have answered earlier if I'd seen it. YT comments are a bit weird sometimes.
When you chop a maple's trunk in winter, there's no need to put a bag over it (assuming you're not repotting it) because as soon as it perceives springtime with longer daylight hours, all the starch in the roots will covert back to glucose and the sap will start to push out new buds. On the other hand, a bag over it won't actually do any harm, as long as it doesn't start collecting mould inside.
Also, If you trunk chop in summer, a bag is not strictly necessary as long the tree was in good health when you chopped it.
If you do decide to use a bag to keep it humid in summer, don't keep it in direct sunlight, you don't want to fry those new leaves as they unfurl. If it gets really hot where you are, it's probably better to use a misting system nearby (like in your other comment) rather than using a plastic bag.
It’s late December right now and planned on reporting my trident maple in early spring. Should I prune before repotting?
Prune it now, because all the energy is stored away as starch in the trunk base and roots. Then repot in spring as you see the buds swelling and nearly ready to pop. Because that means the starch has turned back to sap (glucose) and is pushing back up the trunk and branches. HTH
Very interesting and useful and I have so many videos to catch up on yer channel. You have became a new favourite bonsai youtuber with professional tips but not on a snobby elitist level. You and Nigel Saunders are awesome and make alot to current and future enhusiast and amateurs. Keep it up
Is it possible to grow trident maple at a temperature of 20-30 degree celsius....
Yes! But in winter you need to let them get cooler so that they can stay dormant for 2 or more months. If you keep a deciduous tree warm over winter, it will be fine for the first or even second year, but it suffers because it needs its rest period... after a few years it will start to wither. So, if you have a cool darkish basement or garage of around 10 degrees that would be sufficient for a couple of months each winter.
What brand is the concave cutter Masakuni or Kaneshin?
Thanks.
It's Ryuga brand.
@@BlueSkyBonsai thank you.
I have a mound juniper and I am learning from you. Do you have a recomendable book on all bonsai and what I need to know?
Great! For a first book I would recommend Peter Chan's "Bonsai: The Art of Growing and Keeping Miniature Trees". Please also watch this video where I show the fundamental health elements of all bonsai: ua-cam.com/video/a_vYCvQL5iE/v-deo.html - in that video I recommend a book that you might want to consider as your second book. It's very horticultural, and heavy reading, but it will make you a bonsai scientist after that!
@@BlueSkyBonsai this one
“Peter Chan
Bonsai: The Art of Growing and Keeping Miniature Trees”?
@@fauxyeahjandy yes, that one!
Allow me learn to prune a bonsai...newcomer from Indonesia
BONSAI ACEH it's great to have you on board! Bonsai is a wonderful hobby. Please take a look at this video about pruning: ua-cam.com/video/cOGAJ5iqWfk/v-deo.html
Then please also see this video about the most important health elements your bonsai needs. ua-cam.com/video/a_vYCvQL5iE/v-deo.html
I hope they help!
You say it's good to prune trident maples every year. Does the same go for acer palmatum maple?
sorry not prune, I meant repot
@@AnimationFilms101 the JMs are also vigorous rooters, perhaps not quite as vigorous as the tridents. I have two JMs in tiny pots, and yes I have to repot them every year. I also have several JMs in larger pots that are not every year. Root pruning slows the development somewhat so if you're trying to fatten up the trunk, put it in a deep pot for a few years and don't repot or prune!
@@BlueSkyBonsai I appreciate the info! Very interesting. Are there any other types of trees that strive on root pruning like the maples?
@@AnimationFilms101 crab apples are massively fast rooters, as are ligustrum (privet). Elms are quite fast so an elm in a very small pot should be yearly, but you can get away with every second year if you are pruning the canopy regularly so less energy is sent down for root growth. Other deciduous trees with larger leaves tend to develop roots quicker in general.
This Method could work also in apex pruning ? Thanks!!
Yes! Because ultimately you are preventing "die back" from each cut damaging the parent stem. Basically the die back only happens in the stub. If you get it right, the next year you only remove dead wood.
But it's most common to do this if you are chopping off a large branch or trunk top. On tiny branches at the apex it is not so necessary.
You have very nice videos on this channel..but y the sub count is so less?🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔
Thanks so much for your kind words! Please share my videos with your friends and bonsai colleagues, that might help the youtube algorithm to offer them to more people! 🌳👍🏻
😘
😊👍🏻
It's on English. No
Volume. To pass to read!
Hi Rosana, I didn't understand. Do you mean you watched with subtitles?
@@BlueSkyBonsai subtitles is so past. And the sound is not loud or I can't hear you. I'm a nederland. I only understand English by speaking. Thank you for your attention.