Home

Five weeks ago I pruned and defoliated the chojubai below (see “Cutback on a white chojubai” for details). The tree produced buds right away, and within a few weeks, it was covered with flower buds.

Last summer I did some major cutback on a Rocky Mountain juniper (see “Initial styling” for details).

GardenScape 2020 is the annual garden show in Rochester, New York, which runs from March 12-15, 2020. It is held at The Dome in Henrietta, New York, a suburb of Rochester only five miles from my garden. Landscape companies from around the area transform the Dome, over one acre in size, into a living garden paradise in 2.5 days. GardenScape 2020 showcases the most unique designs, display, plants and products for the attendees.

Last week I participated in GardenScape 2020, Rochester’s premier garden show. We forced many Azaleas, Pears, Cherries and two Wisteria to blossom in March, rather than in May.

It is spring and my garden is beginning to display brilliant colors, so what am I doing sharing information on chrysanthemums now? There is an active thread on the Bonsai Nut Bonsai Forum discussing chrysanthemums for bonsai. I began to write a response but developed “diarrhea of the mouth” and my reply became too long, so decided to share it here.

While most bonsai fanciers in our great country are finished with transplanting and now defoliating and trimming deciduous bonsai, we in the frigid Upstate New York area are still dancing with moving trees inside and out, daily to avoid frost and freezing temperatures. We are still transplanting and have over a month before we can even think about defoliating deciduous bonsai. In fact, we are expecting SNOW tonight and tomorrow.

Full Moon Japanese maple
Well, “Spring” has finally arrived in Rochester, NY, although the official safe frost free date is May 30! All the bonsai are now outside and the indoor tropical species are also being moved outside, all of them.

Everyone is invited to visit this year’s Spring Open House & Sale on Saturday-Sunday, June 6-7, 2020, at the International Bonsai Arboretum in Rochester, New York. Please be safe and wear a mask.

Although defoliation is “generally” recommended as a bonsai training technique it actually requires considerable thought and it’s necessary to contemplate each specific tree and the purpose of removing foliage. Today I’ve been told that Ryan Neil and others do not recommend total defoliation of healthy maples. Unfortunately, I did not study with Ryan, whom I respect, and others. I must have skipped the defoliation chapters in the books studied. I’ve learned through intense study (both in the US and Japan) and actual practice for well over 50 years that plants, especially Japanese maple cultivars have diverse growth habits and respond differently to bonsai training techniques.

 
Every summer our Bonsai Society of Upstate New York has a garden tour. In the past we have visited excellent and interesting collections of Hosta, Dwarf Conifers and even a top Dwarf Conifer & Rare Plant Nursery.