Czech Yamadori

Being strict with its height of 22 cm above the rim this little mahaleb should not qualify into the shohin category.  With some more needed development I think that  the final height is somewhere around the 25 cm mark.    Repoted, some root work and back into the wooden box.  Covered with shredded sphagnum moss and plastic mesh to keep blackbirds away.   Some females love to use this moss for bedding in their nests...That's above their rutine digging activity.   They make life harder but I do like them.   Nice to watch them taking regular bath in the pond in the early morning regadless the weather.  Winter? who cares...  Lovely to see the young birdies - little downy balls - sitting somewhere in the undergrowth demanding more worms from their parents.   And their parents trying to keep away faddy cats and plundering magpies.  Well yes,  they are a pain in the butt with all that mess they create in the garden looking for food.   But if I look around in the Nature - using slightly di

It would make more sense to solely focus on the ramification as the Chinese flowering quince  Ch. speciosa is known for its reluctance to ramify.   But I cannot resist to keep the blossoms buds on the tree.   At least for this year.    To deal with this clash_ramification x blossom_ I have three blossoming quinces in pots  so maybe I will keep only one to bloom next year.      

 

 ... repotted this spring into new pot from Martin Ašenbrenner.   A bit burned but that is something that may happen in wood fired kiln.    And yes, the pot is a bit oversized in length and height but it was still the best fit from those readily available.  I have something like another 2-3 years to get some more pots to find the right one.   As " my portfolio " of shohin is growing  nicely I need to shop for more pots anyway.     

 The spring is about the joy of new life.  Blossoms on our trees are  cherries on a cake of  the new season.    Blossoms on larches are something special you do not take for granted.   They may come every single year on some trees while on some others it is a kind of special treat if they appear.    Female blossoms & a cone from the last year.  No male blossoms there yet.

There were few days with temps well over 22°C.   Nice sunny spring days.   The weather fcast for next fortnight has looked quite nice - so I could not resist to take trees from their winter shelter and place them on the shelves.   With the Easterns on their way the temperatures went down.   We may get some snow again and temps may go slightly to the red zone.  No major problem for most of my plants. Nevertheless I will move some of them to the non frost area anyway.  Freshly repotted shohins etc.  Physical activity is supposed to extend your life so I do not complain... 2nd April From this angle the lower part looks like a typical masculine feature.  The picture below is from the 24th March 2020.    

 Pears are  one of the best trees for bonsai in temperate zones.   And for me the P. pyraster ( European wild pear ) is really on the top.   Cracked bark, tiny fruit and small leaves with spectacular colours in the autumn.   That really makes them hard to match.   Yes, Prunus mahaleb or blackthorns  are great. Aged bark,  blossoms, tiny fruits - in all these characteristics they are similar.  But when it comes to the autumn color festivity - no match for pears.   Unfortunately, there are not many of them on the benches or even shows.   Is it because of the fear of the pear rust ( Gymnosporangium sabinae ) killing  pampered junipers ?  Difficulty to find /collect one?    The rust might be a problem for sure.   But I do not agree with the basic recommendation you may find - if you grow junipers do not grow pears ( and vice versa ).   OK, it may sound good, but what about trees grown by your neigbours?  The spores may spread hundred of meters from their place of origin by wind or insects.