Hemlock

This post is going to be about trimming one of my hemlocks.  I got this tree in the spring and just let it grow throughout the summer.  During that period, it grew a lot!  Here are the before pictures.

So what I did was pinch the new growth and trim some of the branches.  I tried to make the top branches shorter than the bottom branches.

Pinch the new growth off to avoid dead ends.

I also removed branches that went straight up.  Here are the after pictures.

The trimmings.

My cat Bo was very intrigued by the hemlock.

There you have it!  Make sure to subscribe, follow, and post about this!  Have fun and bonsai!

Chinese Elm

Hey guys sorry I haven't posted in forever I didn't have a working camera and wanted to post pictures...

So today's post is going to be about a Chinese Elm I got in the spring. Here are the pictures before trimming.

OUCH.

So these aren't all of the pictures I took but they show what the tree looked like before well enough.
If you couldn't tell from the pictures there was a lot of dead leaves and some branches.  Also there were quite a few branches going straight up. So I stripped the tree of dead branches leaves.  I also got rid of the branches that went straight up.  I exposed the trunk and tried to show space between the branches.

Here are the pictures after trimming.

Notice the space between the branches.

Ta da!

The trimmings.

 Well there you have it.  I know I missed some branches but I got the better part of the ones that needed to be removed.
Random information:  I don't know why but my cat couldn't stop trying eat the leaves. hmmm...

Soil Mix

Yo!  So this post Imma be blogging about soil mix, aaaiiight?!  Just kidding I don't really talk like that.  So for any bonsai mix you are going to want course, fast draining soil.  I use lots of pumice,humus, and various aggregates.  That is for a basic mix.  there are different types of mixes for different trees.  Some trees life acidic soil, others like an alkaline mix.  Good luck with the bonsai!

Pruning

Hey this post I will blog about pruning.  Since there are many different types of trees for bonsai, sometimes the amount of pruning can vary.  This post I'm just going to be writing about pruning in general, I will talk about different trees in later blogs.  Pruning is good for bonsai, it encourages new growth and can make the tree look nice ( if done correctly).  When pruning, always leave some "stubs" on the branches.  This helps with die back.  For most trees, you will have multiple new growths or "buds" in the same spot.  Remove all but one or two of those.  Remove any crossing branches, or branches that go straight up or down.  try not to make the branches go straight across, but staggered.  Also, you want to try and make a front of the tree for displaying purposes.  When you prune, try to think of what you want to happen.  For example, I had a cotoneaster that when I got it, it was just a shrub, but I pruned it to kind of look like a fruit tree.  Also, I didn't realize it at the time, but little white flowers grew where I pruned.  Kind of cool!  Good luck!

Fertilizing

Alright this post I'm going to be talking about fertilizing, which you will need to do this time of season for growth.  Right now I'm using Miracle-Grow all purpose plant food, and my bonsai are doing well.  However, I know that most people use pellets, such as Osmocote.  If you are going to fertilize, try to balance the amount of nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium (potash).  You should fertilize them every week or two.  Good luck, hope this helped!
                                       

HEY,HEY,HEY!

Hello my name is Roger I have been doing bonsai for a couple years now.  I will be posting how-to lessons and hopefully some photos.  This is my first blog, please feel free to follow (REALLY!) hope you like it!