Bonsai Watering: Another Perspective

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Bonsai, Michael James, museum, NVBS, water, watering

As an educator, I have always held a deep appreciation for a new or different perspective to understand an idea. I admit, when faced with a student who didn’t understand what was going on, I have repeated the exact same words I said a moment before (no doubt with more sarcasm than belongs in a classroom). I hope this was only at times when the student just wasn’t paying attention, because if the student didn’t understand something because of the way I explained it, they deserve an opportunity to hear it in a different way.

Virginia Pine Angle

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angle, Bonsai, design, pine, Virginia

In the spring of 2017 I collected the Virginia pine, Pinus virginiana, pictured multiple times, below. I love the bends and curves in the trunk but have, to date, focused on its health and recovery and have not decided how to take advantage of those curves to make a nice bonsai. It has been doing exceptionally well so I thought I would give some consideration to the future design starting with the planting angle.

The Hottest Day

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benjamina, Bonsai, defoliate, ficus, pot, pots, prune, pruning, repot, styling, wiring

Have you heard the suggestion to “repot your ficus on the hottest day of the year”? Well, it was cooler today than the last few (only the low 90s F), but it was so brutally hot AND HUMID the last few days, I was not about to work in the garden.