Dead Wood Stock

Isn't it just wow! A dear student of mine gifted me this dead wood she had picked up some 5 years back from a village. It was lying ideal as a show piece & had started to rot. I convinced her to share the same with me and this is how it looks post drying, cleaning.

Height: The height of the trees is approx 3.5 -4 Ft.

The Beautify Front Side.

I can only imagine the tree's beauty when was alive. I don't think i can give this kind of shape to any tree on my own, which nature has perfected.

The Groovy Back Side.

A channel has been dug out in back side to attach a tree. I plan to work on Ficus or Juniper depending on the stock i get. I still need to carve out more, such that the plant can be set in easily. Further carving will be done once i get the plant.

Update as on 13th Sep, 2009

I have shifted this dead wood to a large Tray along, and have planted Kachnar tree alongside to make a beautifu Kachnar Bonsai. To project the base, i firsted applied favicol & than covered it with a plastic sheet. The Kashnar I had was slender but 5 Feet tall plant. I have set the plant in the grooves with the help of wire.

I plan to unwire the tree and rewire again such that the treee is set in proper position. By month time, it should take the rough shape as per the movement of the tree. As of now because the branches & leaves have been chopped, what one gets to see is just a Dead wook in a pot and hence the pic is not available.

Jade Formal upright

Specification:

Age - Approx 7-9 Years

Trunk Width - 8 Inches+

Height - 1.2 Ft

Span - 1. 5 Ft

Style - Formal Upright

Ownership Since - April 09

Last Wiring - April 09

This plant was kept on a lentil & forgotten by the owner. It took a lot to convince him to share the same with me. As you can see top 3 Inches of Pot has been removed to show the Beautiful trunk, which obviously the original owner had no idea of.

The original Pot size was roughly 1.2 Ft. In phase 1 the Bottom 3 Inches of the pot was chopped along with top 3 Inches of the Pot. The remaining pot - roughly 8 inches in height was put in a shallow tray as seen in the picture.

The plant has sustained the operation & has started to bloom again. This monsoon, it has not enjoyed a single shower, for I fear trunk rot. I lost a similar Jade when the same was re potted because of moisture.

In preparation of phase 2, I have further separated the bottom 3/4 Inches of the pot (seen as a circular mark above the tray) such that the final height of the pot will be roughly 5 inches. I am yet to slice the Mud to remove the bottom 3/4 inches of the mud.

Post Wiring as on August 09 this is how the plant looks. To view the picture click on the image below.

I am looking for a good oval tray to re pot the same. Suggestions are invited.

Jade Full Cascade

Key Demensions:

Pot Size - 8 Inch, rectangular ceramic cascade pot from Pandit Ceramics

Fall - 24 Inches from Apex to Bottom. The Trunk lengths is almost 32 Inches.

Age - 3 Years Approx, Under training for last 6 months

I bought this Jade Bonsai in Feb 09 from a nursery in Ahmedabad for just Rs. 100. Initially this Jade was very lean, semi twisted & was placed against the wall. It was first wired in March 09 to its present shape while conducting Training at Ahmedabad Bonsai Club.

This jade was than shifted to present pot in Late July 09. I had to literally beg Preetiben to give me this pot, which i think is ideal match. However, I am open to pot suggestions.

To develop the crown, a branch from the backside of the trunk is used. Now the focus is on ramification of branches & to develop crown for which re wiring was done in July 09. This Jade was allowed to enjoy 2/3 showers of monsoon and than it inside the house. It can now enjoy next monsoon.

To support the fall, a wire pedestal is kept, which you can notice if you view the larger image. To view the larger image, click on the image below.

Jade Semi Cascade

Jade Bonsai - Semi Cascade Style

Pics as on January, 2009 post re-potting

Front View

Top View:

for earlier picture to view the progression, click here

Pic as on October 2009:

The branches on the left side, which are falling below the rim has been straightened. The crown has been pruned & now 5 alternate branches are more clearly visible. (Will be visible in next pic I upload in March 2010). 2 branches have been developed in back side to balance the tree.

I bought this Jade plant a year back in Aug 08 from Ahmedabad Nursery. This used to be a tree that was horizantally spread as seen in original image at the bottom of this page. Initially I had planned to be develop it into a informal upright style, for which for few months i had even wired & made it upright. My bonsai teacher wanted it to be developed into a slanting style, but on my insistence he shaped it into an semi cascade. That was six month back. With couple of rounds of pruning & rewiring, this is how it looks as of now August 09.

Top View: Click on the picture to view large image in new window

View from Bottom: Click on the picture to view large image in new window

I think in next one year, it will be a ready bonsai. The last branch on the cascading branch will be lifted up gradually so as to arrest the fall. The crown is being developed from a branch which is lifted from one behind the trunk.

A stone is kept under the cascading branch to support the weight. It need to be rewired now, will do it post monsoon. To anchor the tree, I have wired it to the base of the mud pot. Initially it was planted in a full size 1.5 feet tall mud pot.

I am open to suggestion as to which shape of ceramic pot I should shift this bonsai into.

Ramesh Sinha, Ahmedabad Bonsai Club, 9924332267 ramesh.jsinha@gmail.com

Original Jade Plant as on August 2008

My Bonsai Diary July 2009

14th July, 09

For last 10 odd days i was more busy than usual and hence could not update the blog. It had rained once and hope it catches up for the shortfall. I have more space at my place, so plan to bring my bonsai home . Delayed monsoon & loss of my penthouse were responsible for loosing some of my bonsai collection but the good thing is next year i will have an opportunity to grow 250 bonsai & make biggest bonsai collection in Ahmedabad. Looking forward to it.

Right now at my Place I have 10 odd jades of different style & shape under training. All of a sudden Piple, a variety of Ficus has caught my attention. I will sure want to give some time in studying this play as i have done in case of Jade.

The ones i had placed at ramdevnagar 4 died, 3 survived. They are back at my place, are being taken care of. Gulmohor peter umbrella style , Ficus harrington raft style & Jade cascade survived (these are one of my favourites). Jade, Bamboo, Champa & one more died, don't recollect which one.

The ones that were at pangrapole - Jade semi cascade, jade informal, jade formal, adenium, ficus, jathropa survived. Bougainvillea, Shoe flower, Grass, Mayurpankh, ficus triple trunk died.

The once at manekbaug - Jade harrington, jade umbrella, neem, , rayan slanting, adenium, survived. ficus (died), grass (died), champa (will die). Guess 2/3 more plants are there which i do not recollect.

5th July, 09

Me & Parag had been to a members palce & to Abad Nursery. We spent some 2/3 hours in all, but it was worth it. Nursery guys are selling good stock at throw away price becuase of delayed monsoon. Those of you who are interested in buying bonsai, this is the right time.

2nd July

My new experiment in Jade Bonsai.

When planting a jade cutting, plant it in totally dry soil. Do not water it for first week or so. Than start with Once a week & in subsequent weeks try decreasing the frequency by a day till you do no reach level of 2 times a week if jade bonsai is kept in shaded place or thrice a week if kept under full sun.

Excess watering will rot Jade bonsai, so occasionally keep checking the trunk. If bark peels off or if the trunk is soft, than the rot has set in. Remove the rotted part with fresh blade till you do not see pale yellow/white or green trunk. let is try for few day & re-pot in fresh dry soil., Remember while the trunk is rotting, jade will still be green & flourishing at the top. So best thing is to keep checking the bast occasionally. For Bonsai club of Ahmedabad, Ramesh Sinha