I created this channel to post all my bonsai related videos. Bonsai is a hobby that I enjoy, and this channel documents my journey through all the trials and errors that come with it. I have been learning the art and science of growing, and maintaining bonsai trees since about 2013. I am by no means an authority on the subject. It's just something I enjoy doing for fun. I find RU-vid to be the best platform for learning about bonsai. I highly recommend other channels such as Nigel Saunders, Herons bonsai, Backyard Bonsai, Tony's Bonsai, and Graham Potter just to name a few. Enjoy!
Question. Have you tried the hemp cord, may be called jute? Cheap, relatively easy to wrap, and it wouyallownair in and even pressure without obvious wire lines. I think it has just a little give.
I was probably going to watch anyway, but I admit the UFO thumbnail really pulled me in. Yes, please share if you find another UFO. Nice healthy tree, looking good.
Thanks! It looks so obvious on that zoomed in video, but in person it really was weird. The part I didn't mention is that it stayed stationary in that one spot, despite the wind blowing from west to east. Then out of nowhere, it started moving straight up. It went up about 10x the height of where it started, then started moving west very deliberately. Keep in mind, that's moving AGAINST the wind. So I still can't figure that part out. Maybe a wind current or something?
Looking nice and healthy. Maybe let the branches grow to create asymmetrical foliage with that longer side opposite of the tilt and maybe sloping down the bit.
Beautiful mix but I can’t see something growing in it! I’m in south Louisiana where it’s very hot and extremely humid so this mix might be the ticket! Thanks!🙏🙏🙏
You bet! It's been working well for me the last 5 or so years. Only downside is you have to add fertilizer once in awhile since it doesn't have any naturally like organic compost does.
I appreciate your honesty about UFO and yeah sometimes you see things that perplex you for awhile lol. Tree looks great and it seems that species need to take a break now and then and shed leaves 😉
@BonsaiBoise I know ficus likes bigger pots. So your tree had gain much strength to stretched the roots out. And then you can prune all the bar branches off
@BonsaiBoise mine sulked under LED grow lights for almost 2 months without leaves....I kept scratching branches to see if it was alive. Then in mid March, new buds started to appear. I expect it to self defoliate again this winter after it gets moved indoors.
i love maples, you have excellent taste. you always go for classics. which i love. i am so sick of that "rare plant" fantasies. because of those firefly fantasies, we end up neglecting the classics right in front of our eyes.
Where I grew up in a townhouse/terraced house every household had a tree at front and we had an amur maple. They get very nice trunks as old even if not a big tree. We kids took the maple keys and split up the thick end and put it on our noses (was kinda sticky inside). OK enough with my trip on nostalgy road lol. Your trees looks good, cheers.
The growth stopping happens to me in citrus trees too: if you prune while it's extending new growth it basically stops growing for the year, it's best to wait for new growth to harden and then prune before the next push
Thank you! I remember watching bonsai videos when I was first starting off and see how much butchery they can take. Always made me wince a little. But now, I get it.
You have got some great shapes from those trees. It is a species you do not see very often for bonsai. I have several seed grown ones, they grow well here in the UK but mine seem very Apical dominant so will take several more years to get some branching structure developed. Thanks for sharing more about Amur maples. :-)
Thanks! Do you notice them growing in clusters and clumps a lot? I see it in nature and it seems to happen more on these than other maple species. Totally forgot to mention that in the video
@@BonsaiBoise Mine are only in the second year from seed so most of them are just growing straight up with very little branching. Early next year I will pick a few to plant into half seed trays. I like this method as you can spread the roots out in a radial pattern and this helps thicken the trunk near the base. And remember to keep pinching out the growing tips of the leader to force some lateral growth and start getting some lower branches to form. I have some Dawn redwoods and Japanese Elms that display the clusters and clumps from existing branches that you mention, so I always pinch out the new buds as they form. But as you showed in your video you can also use these to make new smaller new branches and remove the older thicker branches.
Good to know, thanks for the video and info. My amur does exactly what you've described: after I prune it in June, it stops growing. Maybe it's potbound? I'm definitely going to be repotting it next spring. I think getting rid of that bar branch was the right move.
@@BonsaiNorthwest thank you! I felt a little weird about it afterwards. Probably just because I hadn't planned on getting quite that brutal with the cuts. It was a bit spontaneous. And I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one who experiences the touchiness with pruning Amurs. I haven't quite figured them out yet.
Not from this but when I went on vacation it didn't get watered for about 10 days. I blame my coworkers. Not saying it's their fault, just saying I blame them. 😜
@BonsaiBoise Sorry to hear brother, you've gained a new subscription, though, I've been doing Bonsai for about 3 years! I'm pretty into now, as you probably know, it can be addictive! Northwest Indiana native. Pretty much the same kind of climate as Idaho.
@@Kevs2tuff Thank you! I appreciate that. And yeah, my small little hobby turned into an obsession pretty quick. I love Indiana! I'm from Ohio originally, (neighbors I guess).
Hey Mike, it's Kevin. It looks like this benjamina is coming along great, such a cool clump 😎 How much sun do you typically provide your ficus in the summer, as much as possible or part shade? Also I've been wondering how the benjamina 'Natasja' cutting I sent you is doing...did it root for you? If so I hope it"s doing well for you so far. Mine are growing good, starting to get aerial roots a few inches high.
Hey Kevin, thanks! I usually put most my ficus in full sun. I have a few that are in partial shade because of space, but they seem to grow at or around the same rate as the others. Unfortunately that Natasja didn't survive. Bummer. The rest are doing great though! And glad to hear that yours is growing along too. And even has aerial roots?! That's awesome
@@BonsaiBoise Well, my 'natasjas' are getting little aerial roots. The regular Benjamina and Willow leaf ficus from you are doing well. The amur maple seedling died, which is a shame since it had a cool curve. If I can get a cutting of 'natasja' fully rooted this time, would you like to give it another try? They are better than 'too little leaf' in my opinion.
@@DeciduousSnurb Sure, I'd love that. And I found my bag of Amur Maple seeds too so I can send you back a bunch of those. They grow super easy from seed.
Sounds good. I just now clipped another piece of my Natasja and put in water. Once I see signs of rooting I'll put in soil. I will contact you when I think it's ready. @@BonsaiBoise
Mighty fine tree to work on😃. Good potential and growth too. The potato roots has to be dealt with sooner or later, either remove or split/carve them like Nigel Saunders do. Cheers
I've been making root over rocks a lot this year, awesome. I've put a ficus from you over a really nice rock. i got in the upper peninsula of Michigan. Can you find good rocks there? All i can find around me are rounded rocks
Oh that sounds cool! And yeah there are some really cool rocks once you get out of town. In town it's a lot of roundish rocks too. But there is a granite mountain about 2 hours from here that has millions of little granite pieces all over
@@BonsaiBoise no problem, learned it on reddit its apparently how people encourage their ficus houseplants to branch particularly ones that are known to be difficult like the fiddle leaf fig, ficus Elastica, and ficus benghalensis.
Great video my friend and just when I am designing my own system. Some questions and comments if I may. 1. Have you tried 3/4 inch instead of 1/2 inch for the main lines? 2. Since you have 3 active faucets, are you using a 1/2 inch line for each of your 3 stations? 3. Roughly how many trees are you covering with each 1/2 inch line? 4. Word of advice - spraying the foliage all the time may lead to fungus. Try to direct the spray towards the soil as much as possible. 5. You are not using a back flow preventer in the spigot? Loved your setup and will share my design when I am done. Cheers, Deep
@@deepanjanbanerjee3491 thank you! 1. I don't believe I have, but I'm sure if I needed more flow that would be the way to do it. 2. Yes. Each station has the 1/2 line feeding out to the trees with the 1/2 spray nozzles coming off of it. 3. Good question!? If I had to guess, probably 25-40ish per station? For what it's worth, I have turned on all 3 stations at once a few times and it's a little slow to build up pressure, (maybe 30 seconds or so), but ends up doing just as well as 1 station would. 4. Yeah, I have heard that and I think last year my elms might have been effected by it, (they were effected by something, not 100% sure what). I try to aim for the soil as much as possible but it's tricky to pull off. 5. Nope, not familiar with it actually? I'll do some googling and see if it's needed in my case or not. Thanks for the comments!
I just worked on a ficus Benjamina this morning. About 2 hours from now, and I got your video . That's great work and patience . The tree is quite robust.
Growing strong! Perhaps on future repottings, you could bury it deeper and cut a few potato roots each time, to slowly replace them with better roots with proper subdivisions without having to cut them all back at once. Also, most scars heal pretty quickly if you let it grow wild like you're doing this year, same for backbudding. It's going to look amazing sooner than you think!
That's a great idea! I actually completely forgot to mention what a hard time I had finding a pot that it would fit into. I think I'll end up making a cement pot this fall and then doing exactly like you mentioned.
Yes and no. It did survive everything I did to it. But it did not survive me taking a 10 day vacation and not getting watered. It was in my office and I either forgot to ask someone or they forgot to do it. Bummer because it was growing like crazy!
Very helpful! A problem I have is that on a hot day the water sitting in the hose gets very hot. Is there a way to purge the hot water from the lines before watering, so that the plants get cooler water?
@@mattygroves Funny you mention that because I've noticed the same thing. I just let it happen now. It gets cold after about 30 seconds or so, (at least on mine, a longer hose might take longer).
I've seen that, too. I'm not aware of any easy way to purge it without more automation or tools. Seems like most folks just set the timer to water before it heats up or after it cools down naturally. Don't want the hot water to scald any roots though!
Thank you! I've actually ran all 3 stations at once a few times and it's a little slow at first but it ends up putting the same amount of pressure to all of them as it would just one.
