Watering is merely done to cool trees off right now, any drying of pots is a result of evaporation and the sun simply baking the moisture out of the pots.  It seems all the trees need is a cooling off several times a day...but they’re lucky to get it twice in a day, never at the hottest times.  Feeding was off for a few weeks, and just hit them last night with fish emulsion as a foliar spray to let it sit on the leaves all night.  The temperatures are finally resting at 70 overnight, and this week it’s supposed to be in the lower 90s...actually a break!

I’m playing with videos of the trees (click here), or http://www.nebaribonsai.com/Nebari_Bonsai_112109/Video.html, and hope to incorporate them into some of the presentations I’m working on (or vice-versa).  Sounds like a great winter project, so for now, I’m shooting everything I can so I’ll have plenty of material to work with this winter when they’re all tucked away.

I’ve started turning my attention to junipers a little lately.  Since the collecting trip in May, they’ve kind of been on the top of the study pile.  2 of the 3 I collected are doing well; the best of the three (this one) is still quite green, I’m told.  I styled a shimpaku with Kathy Shaner, it’s a work in progress, and recently got a GREAT Itoigawa juniper from Brent Walston at www.evergreengardenworks.com.    I decided long ago that if I was going to have junipers or trident maples, they had to be great; since they’re far too common to have mediocre ones.

Finally, I’m working on 2 new documents, one chronicle of a black pine I started at a club workshop with Guy Guidry and continued last fall.  It’s coming along and will be dynamic after this fall’s work.  The other document is summer pruning and fall work of corkbark black pines...it’s going to be the most comprehensive information you’ll find out there...

Stay cool!

Brian Van Fleet