Be absolutely honest. - I'm digging up trees for bonsai. 'What's that?' - Those little trees that are often seen in Japanese culture. "Oh! Those are neat. I know what you're talking about. You do that?!" - Yup, and you can create them from local materials, not just Japanese trees. "Wow. Sure, dig them all up."
Appalachian Bonsai i don’t get the fuzz about people getting mad at you taking a tree trunk here or there. Honestly, it is of little value unless you go through the hassle of making it a bonsai. It’s not like people are regularly caught „stealing“ trees from public forests....cause it has no value to them. Quite the opposite, the state pays people to cut down a certain portion of trees so it doesn’t get out of control and each individual tree has more light. These weeded out trees are often just discarded as they are too small to use in the wood industry. You are doing just that for free the way i see it (unless it’s private ground)
Just dug up a tree in my woods out back. The area was pretty rocky, took me forever. I was thoroughly wiped after. Then I just found your Chanel this morning, subscribed. Keep up the good work. 👍
Sweet, and thanks for subscribing! I hope the tree does well. Keep an eye on it - summertime digging can be extremely stressful on the tree. If you've got others in mind, I'd wait until spring. Until then, keep studying up and checking on that new collection! Good luck, DB!
Appalachian Bonsai yeah I did have another couple in mind. Good to know, I'll wait till spring. Going to give the one I gathered yesterday some compost tea after work.
Hi there, very nice video, thank you for sharing. Can you elaborate a bit on what was wrong with all those pines that you examined? Some of them looked quite nice, so I would like to know the thought process behind leaving them there. Thanks. Radek
They were definitely beautiful, but there were a few things that kept me from collecting them. First, there wasn't anything really interesting about them. They were very pretty, but not stellar. I determined they would look better on the mountainside where they were than in a pot at my home. Second, the nodes between branches were long. For bonsai, they need to be closer and more compact. It's easy to correct this issue in deciduous trees, but pines & junipers have limitations on breaking adventitious buds from old wood. Lastly, creating a bonsai out of these particular trees would take an extreme amount of time. Assuming I collected it and it lived and I was able to get it to bud back, the time involved to create a nice bonsai could take decades. Yes, this is bonsai and that means a lifetime of work, but starting with good material first means my decades are spent refining an amazing tree, not correcting and hoping it works out with a okay tree. All that said, I collected a pine this year that has the potential to become an incredible bonsai. I think you'll see the difference, and why it pays to be picky & choosy about what you collect or purchase. Maybe I should do a video about what I'm seeing when it comes to selecting material, both in the woods and in the nursery. What do you think?
Thank you very much for a structured and informative answer. Indeed, it would be very nice to see this thinking process both on the nursery plants and on the wild trees, I will definitely enjoy such a video as it is a great way to learn something from someone who has more experience than I have. And looking forward to seeing that pine you wrote about.
Some of it is experience from trial and error. Trees with large leaves are harder to make smaller. Some trees grow straight as an arrow, which can be difficult to make the bottom limbs look proportional to the supposed age of the bonsai.
I can definitely go more in depth about it, and should. I'm working up ideas on collection techniques vid and will put that in there. If it runs too long, I'll do a stand-alone.
thank you for your amazing videos , i could watch them all day without getting bored :) great content great videos ...keep up the good work :) have a nice day
can't wait ...im a complete beginner would you please do some videos for complete beginners like me in which you explain the basics of bonsai , the root structures (what to cut and why) soil maybe a hommemade soil /substrate for bonsai ...and please keep sharing . thank you
Nice video, question, is it ok to completely cut oak, or birch back say to about 3 inchs from the ground, so nothing is left at all, I have some oak & birch in the ground, I want to cut back nearly to the ground.
You can, but if it's large you want to cover the wound with some kind of paste so that it doesn't dry out. Otherwise, if it lives, it will send shoots from the base. No guarantees, but it's a possibility.
i wanna go get my first yamadori this year, but i'm in canada ,the weather aint the same, what signe i should be looking for to tell me it's time to get it out. should 'nt i keep some branches to help restore the tree?
The signs you should look for is the swelling of buds in the tree. The water & sugars have been pushed into the trunk of the tree in preparation for growing, which means it's ready to come out of dormancy. I can't say when that will happen in your area, but it occurs with all trees. You just need to keep an eye out for it. The more you watch over the coming years, the more you'll see when the time is right. Some branches are okay, but you don't need them all. Leave as many roots as you can. As said before, the nutrients that have been pushed into the trunk should help sustain the new growth for some time. Check out Nigel Saunders' channel. He's over in BC and may give you some more insights about collecting in Canada from his collection videos. I wish you luck, and hope this is helpful for you!
Hey Ben, I'd really like to see a recent update on that honeysuckle you collected in spring of '17. I have one that I bought from the tlc section of a nursery. I just want to see how you're styling yours to get some ideas for mine from what you're doing.
I haven't kept tropicals for a number of years, but I do have friends that continue to keep ficus, serissas, and others. They generally use a little finer mix with more organic media in it. One uses the same mixture as I do (Turface, diatom earth & pine bark), but also peat moss and coconut coir with some coarse sand in the mix. Check out Nigel Saunders' RUclips channel. He has loads of ficus, serissas, and tropicals, with plenty of tutorials about tropical bonsai care. Whatever you use, make sure water can reach all areas of the root ball and that it drains well. If you're still uncertain, contact a bonsai nursery in your area. If there isn't one, there are several in Florida that could answer better. Wish I could help you better on this one.
by the way i have here some of your videos collection from spring time those hawthorn, hornbeam, dogwood etc. collecting videos kept in my pc. its a little funny though 'm collecting your videos collecting bonsai... 'm a fan of appalachian bonsai for a year now and I've found some of your work inspiring...hope you didnt stop uploading these kind of collecting videos... more power!
I don't put it in full sun for the first several weeks after collection. Once it starts growing new leaves, I gradually move it from partial to full sun depending on the species. This honeysuckle is now in full sun & growing very vigorously! Some species like dogwood and maple can handle full sun, but they're also understory trees, so they see to do best in partial sun here. I have them in a spot that gets morning and evening sun, but not midday.
Depends on the species of seed & time of year. For instance, tomatoes we usually start indoors during the late winter/early spring, because they don't prefer the cold. Then we transfer to the garden in mid-May after last frost. But, we put beans, beets, and squash directly in the ground late spring/early summer. For trees, I'd put them outdoors if they're cold tolerant. Many temperate tree seeds won't even take unless they've had at least one cold spell (chestnut & paw paw are good examples). If they're hardy-zoned for your area, then, like temperate bonsai, they belong outside.
I usually give it two to four weeks, depending on how severe the cuts were and when it starts to grow. Once it starts growing, I gradually start giving the trees more light. Morning and/or evening sun are excellent, because the light isn't very intense. And, depending on species, some trees stay in partial shade. My junipers and pines love full sun. My maples and hornbeams like a little shade. Does that help?
I find it rewarding when wild collected deciduous trees/shrubs leaf out in the spring. Never know for sure if they survived the transplant until those new buds appear. Great find.
I find it rewarding, too. There's a hesitation until it leafs out. Then I start to breathe easy. But, then there's sadness for those that don't. Of the 13 trees I collected last year, I only lost one (92% success!). But of the 5 trees collected this year, I've, again, lost one, with another I'm having to keep an extra eye on (80%). Hurts my feelings to lose them. Such is bonsai, neh? Thanks for the comment!
I get them at various places. As part of a bonsai club, there are plenty of older bonsai artists who can no longer care for (or carry) larger trees, so they lighten their collection of pots & materials at our annual summer auction for a very low cost ($250 pots for $25?! - can't beat it - join a club!). Additionally, almost all of my BIG pots (Ø16"+ are either mica or resin/plastic that I bought at auction or bonsai expo. The trees in them aren't for show yet, so who cares what they're growing in right now. And for the trees in training, or newly collected trees like this honeysuckle, I even go so far as to use large rubbermaid tubs (
This thing rocked! It grew more than two foot by the end of May. As healthy as it grew, I felt comfortable giving it the same early-summer prune I give my other trees. It's back to two foot again! *Note: most collected materials need a full growing season to renew their health. This one took off like a weed (and probably that's why it's so invasive around here).
Hope everything is going well on your end .haven't seen anything new on the channel for a good minute now . Did you find anything new on your hunts for yamidori?
Subtitles in Portuguese would be wonderful, today you have the best youtube channel in my opinion, and I'm sure that besides me there are other Brazilians who accompany you. Great work. Congratulations.
Estou espantado com quantos brasileiros assistem meus vídeos! Eu estou trabalhando em obter traduções para todos vocês. Posso usar o Google Translate, mas algumas coisas podem se perder sem um alto-falante verdadeiro. O que você acha? Apenas usá-lo? Muito obrigado!!
Only subtitles are sufficient, it will be of great help. Here in Brazil we have many good bonsai, but we have a lot more apprentices, sedentary people for information that we can not easily find in Brazilian videos. And believe me, there will be many more people accompanying your work. Thanks for what you do.
Yes it is, but usually just before they start to wake up. For instance, here in Virginia, USA, I collect in late February-end of March, but I wouldn't collect any winter time before that. Hope that helps you!
Alguns são da minha propriedade, alguns são de amigos, alguns são de estranhos. Todos eles estão com permissão. É melhor perguntar do que problemas de risco.
Check the video description for full details. Aquarium gravel can be used, but beware of colored varieties. The paint wears off over time & can clog the holes. For display, colored gravels would look unnatural & detract from the tree & composition. However, for training purposes, go for it!
You're right! Bonsai soil is very different from normal potting soil. It's actually akin to hydroponics medium. Coarse well-draining soils allow water to fully penetrate the roots, allow the roots to grow very freely and vigorously, and helps prevent compaction over the years. The nutrients are provided through fertilizers, which are absorbed by the porous components of the mix, then slow-released back to the plant. My mix is roughly 66% inorganic to 33% organic materials. I'm almost finished with the next video, which is on soils. Hope you'll stick around for it!
Color and texture are a big one. Dead roots have a dark color to them, both inside and out. They're not flexible, and they can be hard to cut. New roots scratch easily (a quick way to tell). The color is almost white when you cut them. And they're very crisp and clean when you cut them.
SimplifyGarden, I lived in the country around Memphis for maybe 20 years. I was more interested in all the small lakes an ponds I could find for fishing rather than bonsai. Going up and asking permission was one of the hardest things I ever had to get over...
It depends on the tree & the size, really. For my smaller trees, it is often once a year. For my larger deciduous, it's every two or three years. For my pines & junipers, three to five years. If the soil is still draining well and the tree is in good health, I leave it alone for another year. If it's not draining well and/or the tree is suffering, I'll repot.
Para a maioria das árvores por aqui, posso usar o mesmo substrato que o meu bonsai regular. 70:30 inorgânico a orgânico, como Turface e casca de pinheiro. Se a bola de raiz fosse muito apertada, como em uma rocha, eu poderia mudar isso, mas muitas vezes não encontro essas árvores.
No. The tree does a pretty good job of quarantining areas off. However, with larger cuts, it never hurts to add a paste or glue to prevent moisture evaporation.
You don't have to find them in the woods. They're in the city, in people's backyards, old businesses. If I see something I like, I stop & ask. There's a man in Florida, USA who collects what he calls 'urban yamadori.' He finds abandoned lots or construction sites & asks permission. He has some beautiful trees from it. Give a try if you can't get into the woods.
HEY BUZZ ! THANKS FOR THE VIDEO ! WHERE ABOUT IN VA YOU LOCATED? I'M IN WAYNESBORO/AUGUSTA CO, VA....I CANT FIND NO ONE OR NO PLACE THAT KNOWS OR GROWS BONSAI IM KINDA NEW, BUT HAVE BEEN WORKING ON THIS FOR 3 YEARS. I HAVE NOT BEEN SUCCESSFUL WITH HARVESTING TREES. HELL, TREES IN GENERAL. KEEP THE VIDEOS COMING !!!
I'm about 2.5 - 3 hours south of you near Ferrum, VA, and I am part of the Hinoki Club in Roanoke (an hour away). The closest club I can think of near you would be Lynchburg, but that's a haul. Since you don't have one nearby, have you thought of creating your own? It may be something as simple as getting a flyer or ad in the local paper, finding a free or cheap community space, and having some basic lessons. The more people you can drum up, the stronger your bonsai community comes. You could invite guest artists who would volunteer their time (I'd come given enough notice for planning), and do some lectures & demos. What I'm saying is, you might have to plant the seed and nurture it to fruition. And you never know, other artists may already be out there. I have several friends in Floyd that do bonsai. We all found each other through word of mouth. Go to a party and suddenly, "Oh! You do bonsai! Do you know so-and-so?" And, that's how we've become our own micro bonsai community. It wouldn't be hard to start a club from this point. Think about it. It's possible!
You have plenty of good species suitable for bonsai. Jack pine, Lodgepole Pine, and Tamarack (larch) make fine bonsai. Spruce, birch, and dogwoods, are some others. So some more research and give it a shot next spring!
I'm not too sure they grow around me a lot, the most similar looking one I can name it to is an Australian tea tree. I dug it up in early spring when i thought growth was strong. I planted it in potting mix soil since i thought it may not be ready for bonsai soil. Only 1 out of 8 trees survive and both of my stubs died
I think the problem may have been the soil. All of my collections go into the same well-draining mix is use for bonsai, and the new roots love it. The regular potting mix has some drawbacks for cuttings, like too wet on some sides and too dry underneath. Brush up on more bonsai & collection techniques, and give another try this coming spring. I've lost them, too. It happens to everyone, so don't be discouraged with the first go-around. When you collect, dig it up before it ever starts budding out. They have sugar resources stored in the trunk during dormancy, and will seal the cut cambium area in a week or two. Then, it will prepare to make new buds, and use it's stored goods to produce them. If it's already leafed out before digging, then the resources to rebuild have mostly been spent opening & growing the new leaves. Catch it early, and you'll have better success! I'm not very familiar with Australian species, but I did a quick search. I saw some nice ficus/fig, white cypress pine, banskia, bottlebrush, gum, and the tea tree you mentioned. The banskia looked especially nice. Keep it up, Haley, you gots this!
It could be, the area which i took them from was quite a damp place the soil there were like mud so i thought that the roots might not like bonsai soil straight away. I'm not discouraged i think it has taught me a lot more then if i hadn't gone out and tried to collect some plants. Though i do feel slightly bad for letting those plant die. My ficus cuttings however are blooming with new buds so I am so happy
It's a great question. I haven't tried this with bonsai but I have done some gold panning. Shaking loose particles will separate out the small from the large and the heavy from the light. This process is used to great effect in gold panning, where stratification (created by shaking) allows the heavy metals like gold to settle and the loose to be washed away. My guess for bonsai soil would be, the particles will definitely fill the pockets, but heavier particles like granite or sand would move to the lower parts of the pot & compact, and the lighter organic materials would move to the top, only to be washed away when you water it. If you use a chopstick, you still create this process, but on a smaller scale. The mixture is still relatively mixed, and by the time you bump the pot/container at the end most of the soil is already in place. I hope that helps! Let me know
I was wondering what the yellow tape was for. Just to find the tree again once you’ve picked one out? Or do you leave and it’s to show other people that it’s been claimed? Tia!
I can! I've recorded some footage to be used in a soil-mixture video. Not sure when it will be out, but hopefully this year. I use a 50-50 mix of expanded clay (Turface-brand) and diatomaceous earth (AKA kitty-dama. I use NAPA #8822 or Oil-Dri) I sift out the material with 2 screens to keep the particle size between 2-6mm (1/16" - 1/4") and eliminating as much dust as I can. Sometime I use sifted pine bark, but I didn't on this honeysuckle. This coarse inorganic mix does require extra care, like making sure it has enough water (every day when it's hot) and nutrients (I use full strength fertilizers according to instructions ever other week). But, with this excellent drainage and attention, the roots grow really well and strong. It makes for a healthy tree in the end.
Only some of my bonsai are created from collected material. I have many that were started from nursery stock, and in fact, when I first started, it was all nursery stock. I have some pines, including some mugo. The mugo were bought at my local nursery. When I transplant them, I'll do the same as other pines: Sifted fired clay, diatomaceous earth, and pine bark. I'll mix them 40:40:20. Here in the States, I use Turface brand clay, NAPA #8822 or Oil-Dri for diatom earth, then pine bark soil conditioner - all of it bought at local hardware stores & nurseries.
It's just experience here. I am looking at many things, including trunk and branches and time it would take to get the tree in shape. Excellent bonsai come from excellent material. We sometimes talk about how long it takes for a tree to become great bonsai. It could take 30 years for one tree or 10 years for another. Which do you want to spend all your energy on? For the pines, the bases of the trunks were nice, but the branches were really far away. This would require years of training, grafting, growing, wiring - all with the hope that someday they MIGHT look really good?... or I could find a tree that already has the characteristics close to my end goal. I'd rather spend my time and energy there.
Mantaf hunting Bonsai .. Lokasi area yang bagus buat berburu bahan bonsai..sukses dan tetap berkary👍
It's amazing how much of the root mass you can remove and the tree does just fine. I'm IMPRESSED!
Gary McCarthy my thoughts exactly! I never had that good of luck in doing this
It’s quite impressive how powerful the will to succeed plants and trees have in them .
Impressive natural shari.. and what a find! Hope we will see more of this tree in the future.
Definitely! The shari extends through the main trunk, which was dead. This will make for an awesome carving in the future.
How do you explain what you want to do when asking for permission?
Be absolutely honest.
- I'm digging up trees for bonsai.
'What's that?'
- Those little trees that are often seen in Japanese culture.
"Oh! Those are neat. I know what you're talking about. You do that?!"
- Yup, and you can create them from local materials, not just Japanese trees.
"Wow. Sure, dig them all up."
Appalachian Bonsai i don’t get the fuzz about people getting mad at you taking a tree trunk here or there. Honestly, it is of little value unless you go through the hassle of making it a bonsai. It’s not like people are regularly caught „stealing“ trees from public forests....cause it has no value to them. Quite the opposite, the state pays people to cut down a certain portion of trees so it doesn’t get out of control and each individual tree has more light. These weeded out trees are often just discarded as they are too small to use in the wood industry. You are doing just that for free the way i see it (unless it’s private ground)
Just dug up a tree in my woods out back. The area was pretty rocky, took me forever. I was thoroughly wiped after. Then I just found your Chanel this morning, subscribed. Keep up the good work. 👍
Sweet, and thanks for subscribing! I hope the tree does well. Keep an eye on it - summertime digging can be extremely stressful on the tree. If you've got others in mind, I'd wait until spring. Until then, keep studying up and checking on that new collection! Good luck, DB!
Appalachian Bonsai yeah I did have another couple in mind. Good to know, I'll wait till spring. Going to give the one I gathered yesterday some compost tea after work.
This is such a cool video, I love the idea of finding bonsai material and making something beautiful from it.
I love your heelers I have one still myself but we lost one a few years ago I miss him! Love the channel too!
Thanks & thanks!! We love our sweet girls, the little punks. ;)
When root-bearing is there any reason for not using a water hose to wash away all the soil ?
Hi there, very nice video, thank you for sharing. Can you elaborate a bit on what was wrong with all those pines that you examined? Some of them looked quite nice, so I would like to know the thought process behind leaving them there. Thanks. Radek
They were definitely beautiful, but there were a few things that kept me from collecting them. First, there wasn't anything really interesting about them. They were very pretty, but not stellar. I determined they would look better on the mountainside where they were than in a pot at my home. Second, the nodes between branches were long. For bonsai, they need to be closer and more compact. It's easy to correct this issue in deciduous trees, but pines & junipers have limitations on breaking adventitious buds from old wood. Lastly, creating a bonsai out of these particular trees would take an extreme amount of time. Assuming I collected it and it lived and I was able to get it to bud back, the time involved to create a nice bonsai could take decades. Yes, this is bonsai and that means a lifetime of work, but starting with good material first means my decades are spent refining an amazing tree, not correcting and hoping it works out with a okay tree. All that said, I collected a pine this year that has the potential to become an incredible bonsai. I think you'll see the difference, and why it pays to be picky & choosy about what you collect or purchase. Maybe I should do a video about what I'm seeing when it comes to selecting material, both in the woods and in the nursery. What do you think?
Thank you very much for a structured and informative answer. Indeed, it would be very nice to see this thinking process both on the nursery plants and on the wild trees, I will definitely enjoy such a video as it is a great way to learn something from someone who has more experience than I have. And looking forward to seeing that pine you wrote about.
How do you know what kind of tree is unusable for bonsai ( like you said the pine trees)
Some of it is experience from trial and error. Trees with large leaves are harder to make smaller. Some trees grow straight as an arrow, which can be difficult to make the bottom limbs look proportional to the supposed age of the bonsai.
Can you do a video on after care? I collected a nice hornbeam but it only lived for about a year.
I can definitely go more in depth about it, and should. I'm working up ideas on collection techniques vid and will put that in there. If it runs too long, I'll do a stand-alone.
I too enjoy your videos, i have always loved bonsai, i am slowly getting material to work with.
This is bonsai - time is on your side! I wish you loads of luck with your growing collection!
thank you for your amazing videos , i could watch them all day without getting bored :) great content great videos ...keep up the good work :) have a nice day
Thanks Blues Barn!! More coming soon.
can't wait ...im a complete beginner would you please do some videos for complete beginners like me in which you explain the basics of bonsai , the root structures (what to cut and why) soil maybe a hommemade soil /substrate for bonsai ...and please keep sharing . thank you
Please tell me you have more of these videos coming. I crave them
I have more of these videos coming.
Nice video, question, is it ok to completely cut oak, or birch back say to about 3 inchs from the ground, so nothing is left at all, I have some oak & birch in the ground, I want to cut back nearly to the ground.
You can, but if it's large you want to cover the wound with some kind of paste so that it doesn't dry out. Otherwise, if it lives, it will send shoots from the base. No guarantees, but it's a possibility.
i wanna go get my first yamadori this year, but i'm in canada ,the weather aint the same, what signe i should be looking for to tell me it's time to get it out. should 'nt i keep some branches to help restore the tree?
The signs you should look for is the swelling of buds in the tree. The water & sugars have been pushed into the trunk of the tree in preparation for growing, which means it's ready to come out of dormancy. I can't say when that will happen in your area, but it occurs with all trees. You just need to keep an eye out for it. The more you watch over the coming years, the more you'll see when the time is right.
Some branches are okay, but you don't need them all. Leave as many roots as you can. As said before, the nutrients that have been pushed into the trunk should help sustain the new growth for some time.
Check out Nigel Saunders' channel. He's over in BC and may give you some more insights about collecting in Canada from his collection videos. I wish you luck, and hope this is helpful for you!
Tanks, yes it help :)
Hey Ben, I'd really like to see a recent update on that honeysuckle you collected in spring of '17. I have one that I bought from the tlc section of a nursery. I just want to see how you're styling yours to get some ideas for mine from what you're doing.
Did you read my mind?! That's going to be the next video!! I'm editing now
hey there! is there any type of soil mix you can recommend for some tropical plants?
I haven't kept tropicals for a number of years, but I do have friends that continue to keep ficus, serissas, and others. They generally use a little finer mix with more organic media in it. One uses the same mixture as I do (Turface, diatom earth & pine bark), but also peat moss and coconut coir with some coarse sand in the mix. Check out Nigel Saunders' RUclips channel. He has loads of ficus, serissas, and tropicals, with plenty of tutorials about tropical bonsai care. Whatever you use, make sure water can reach all areas of the root ball and that it drains well. If you're still uncertain, contact a bonsai nursery in your area. If there isn't one, there are several in Florida that could answer better. Wish I could help you better on this one.
oh! I see. It's been a while since I didn't look at Nigel's channel. Thank you so much bro it helps a lot. :-)
by the way i have here some of your videos collection from spring time those hawthorn, hornbeam, dogwood etc. collecting videos kept in my pc. its a little funny though 'm collecting your videos collecting bonsai... 'm a fan of appalachian bonsai for a year now and I've found some of your work inspiring...hope you didnt stop uploading these kind of collecting videos... more power!
Os melhores videos de coleta de bonsai na Natureza voce só encontra aqui....Very god...
abraços!
I love the way you do things..👍
You had said at the end to not put it in full sun. Would you want it in full sun or even partial to give it growth?
I don't put it in full sun for the first several weeks after collection. Once it starts growing new leaves, I gradually move it from partial to full sun depending on the species. This honeysuckle is now in full sun & growing very vigorously! Some species like dogwood and maple can handle full sun, but they're also understory trees, so they see to do best in partial sun here. I have them in a spot that gets morning and evening sun, but not midday.
If you plant seeds, would you put them outdoors in the sun or in house?
Depends on the species of seed & time of year. For instance, tomatoes we usually start indoors during the late winter/early spring, because they don't prefer the cold. Then we transfer to the garden in mid-May after last frost. But, we put beans, beets, and squash directly in the ground late spring/early summer.
For trees, I'd put them outdoors if they're cold tolerant. Many temperate tree seeds won't even take unless they've had at least one cold spell (chestnut & paw paw are good examples). If they're hardy-zoned for your area, then, like temperate bonsai, they belong outside.
Once place the plant in a pot, how long do you leave it in the shade?
I usually give it two to four weeks, depending on how severe the cuts were and when it starts to grow. Once it starts growing, I gradually start giving the trees more light. Morning and/or evening sun are excellent, because the light isn't very intense. And, depending on species, some trees stay in partial shade. My junipers and pines love full sun. My maples and hornbeams like a little shade. Does that help?
I find it rewarding when wild collected deciduous trees/shrubs leaf out in the spring. Never know for sure if they survived the transplant until those new buds appear. Great find.
I find it rewarding, too. There's a hesitation until it leafs out. Then I start to breathe easy.
But, then there's sadness for those that don't. Of the 13 trees I collected last year, I only lost one (92% success!). But of the 5 trees collected this year, I've, again, lost one, with another I'm having to keep an extra eye on (80%). Hurts my feelings to lose them. Such is bonsai, neh?
Thanks for the comment!
love your channel the atmosphere the tone ur perspective everything 😁
Thank you! I appreciate hearing that
i love the sound of the chopstick in the soil speed up lol
where do you get your pots? I get some online but they get really expensive for decent sized ones.
I get them at various places. As part of a bonsai club, there are plenty of older bonsai artists who can no longer care for (or carry) larger trees, so they lighten their collection of pots & materials at our annual summer auction for a very low cost ($250 pots for $25?! - can't beat it - join a club!). Additionally, almost all of my BIG pots (Ø16"+ are either mica or resin/plastic that I bought at auction or bonsai expo. The trees in them aren't for show yet, so who cares what they're growing in right now. And for the trees in training, or newly collected trees like this honeysuckle, I even go so far as to use large rubbermaid tubs (
I know it has only been a few months, but I was just wondering how much it has grown compared to the final shot shown in the (awesome) video.
This thing rocked! It grew more than two foot by the end of May. As healthy as it grew, I felt comfortable giving it the same early-summer prune I give my other trees. It's back to two foot again! *Note: most collected materials need a full growing season to renew their health. This one took off like a weed (and probably that's why it's so invasive around here).
Hope everything is going well on your end .haven't seen anything new on the channel for a good minute now . Did you find anything new on your hunts for yamidori?
Delivered one for you today! Thanks for checking in
Love that area, so glad I found your channel.
I'm glad you found it, too!
What season are you doing this in late fall
did you keep the nice slab?
I did, but it broke in half. Very brittle!
that's too bad. it will still look great in a setting. that piece really paints a picture well.
I kept the better half. It has some really sweet inclusions of quartz that I think adds character. I'll find a place for it someday.
you're speaking my language :)
Subtitles in Portuguese would be wonderful, today you have the best youtube channel in my opinion, and I'm sure that besides me there are other Brazilians who accompany you. Great work. Congratulations.
Estou espantado com quantos brasileiros assistem meus vídeos! Eu estou trabalhando em obter traduções para todos vocês. Posso usar o Google Translate, mas algumas coisas podem se perder sem um alto-falante verdadeiro. O que você acha? Apenas usá-lo? Muito obrigado!!
Only subtitles are sufficient, it will be of great help. Here in Brazil we have many good bonsai, but we have a lot more apprentices, sedentary people for information that we can not easily find in Brazilian videos. And believe me, there will be many more people accompanying your work. Thanks for what you do.
is it best to retrieve trees when they are dormant?
Yes it is, but usually just before they start to wake up. For instance, here in Virginia, USA, I collect in late February-end of March, but I wouldn't collect any winter time before that. Hope that helps you!
Excellent find and good advice on collecting.
Thanks @mikbonsai!
I'm waiting this video for alooooonnnggggg timeeeeeeee. Thanks so muchhhhhhhhh my friends. Now, i'll enjoy it.
Another one on the way! Editing now.
Ok thankssssss
Any new videos coming out this spring?
Not til at least May. Teaching online now means my priorities have switched up. Loads of footage though. I'm way behind
yeah...! great job duuuude... beautiful tree with a lot of bonsai potential.. awesome.. thanks for sharing i really enjoy to see that...
yeah!!! Thanks for the love!
voce resgata lindos yamadoris tem muita sorte, a fazenda é sua?
Alguns são da minha propriedade, alguns são de amigos, alguns são de estranhos. Todos eles estão com permissão. É melhor perguntar do que problemas de risco.
nice work. you got me interested in going out and finding treasures like you did. I will keep an eye on this.
What's the best time of the year to collect bonsai? Late winter? Very early in spring?
Yes & Yes, thought I prefer the spring. For me, it's late February - early April, depending on weather and what the trees are doing.
What is that soil composition? Can you use aquarium gravel?
Check the video description for full details. Aquarium gravel can be used, but beware of colored varieties. The paint wears off over time & can clog the holes. For display, colored gravels would look unnatural & detract from the tree & composition. However, for training purposes, go for it!
What is tree.?
This is in all seasons of the year ؟؟
i wanna see the evolution of this bonsai. how can i see it?
It is still evolving! This was only collected this year, and has several more years to go.
I don't see soil?I see a rocky medium what about nutrients. just found your channel love it thank you.
You're right! Bonsai soil is very different from normal potting soil. It's actually akin to hydroponics medium. Coarse well-draining soils allow water to fully penetrate the roots, allow the roots to grow very freely and vigorously, and helps prevent compaction over the years. The nutrients are provided through fertilizers, which are absorbed by the porous components of the mix, then slow-released back to the plant. My mix is roughly 66% inorganic to 33% organic materials. I'm almost finished with the next video, which is on soils. Hope you'll stick around for it!
how do you know which roots are dead and are still alive?
Color and texture are a big one. Dead roots have a dark color to them, both inside and out. They're not flexible, and they can be hard to cut. New roots scratch easily (a quick way to tell). The color is almost white when you cut them. And they're very crisp and clean when you cut them.
SimplifyGarden, I lived in the country around Memphis for maybe 20 years. I was more interested in all the small lakes an ponds I could find for fishing rather than bonsai. Going up and asking permission was one of the hardest things I ever had to get over...
excellent find. you did take the small slab right?
I took part of it. Just after the video section, it broke in half! It's turned out to be very brittle.
bummer. anyways.. the honeysuckle looks like it will turn out to be an excellent bonsai specimen
The slab is called Schist by the way :) In case you would like to find more like those !
how often do you re-pot?
It depends on the tree & the size, really. For my smaller trees, it is often once a year. For my larger deciduous, it's every two or three years. For my pines & junipers, three to five years. If the soil is still draining well and the tree is in good health, I leave it alone for another year. If it's not draining well and/or the tree is suffering, I'll repot.
Appalachian Bonsai Cheers! I didn't expect you to respond so quick!
i seriously love your vids bro. keep up the good work
Just come across your videos there fantastic :)
Thanks, @mike_Scott! More coming, and hopefully soon
Que tipo de substrato voçe usa em seus yamadoris?
Para a maioria das árvores por aqui, posso usar o mesmo substrato que o meu bonsai regular. 70:30 inorgânico a orgânico, como Turface e casca de pinheiro. Se a bola de raiz fosse muito apertada, como em uma rocha, eu poderia mudar isso, mas muitas vezes não encontro essas árvores.
Hi, Did you apply anything to the cut exposed stems?
No. The tree does a pretty good job of quarantining areas off. However, with larger cuts, it never hurts to add a paste or glue to prevent moisture evaporation.
This is surely fun and adventurous! I like this.
Well cool, in your country has enough material to make bonsai, thanks for the video have a good week.
You don't have to find them in the woods. They're in the city, in people's backyards, old businesses. If I see something I like, I stop & ask. There's a man in Florida, USA who collects what he calls 'urban yamadori.' He finds abandoned lots or construction sites & asks permission. He has some beautiful trees from it. Give a try if you can't get into the woods.
COLLIN BONSAI Que Dios te amo mucho mucho y yo yo voy a ver que tal ves hccvv a vccccvcccçg hora hora que ccvçc çcç
Show parabéns como sempre ótimos videos acompanhando sempre suas coleta
Fantástico! Obrigado pelo amor e apoio!
Thats a nice place for hunting pal..
Please can you tell me what is your mix for the soil ...😁🌳
Turface MVP, pine bark, diatomaceous earth, coarse sand. Ratio 3:3:2:1
HEY BUZZ ! THANKS FOR THE VIDEO !
WHERE ABOUT IN VA YOU LOCATED?
I'M IN WAYNESBORO/AUGUSTA CO, VA....I CANT FIND NO ONE OR NO PLACE THAT KNOWS OR GROWS BONSAI
IM KINDA NEW, BUT HAVE BEEN WORKING ON THIS FOR 3 YEARS.
I HAVE NOT BEEN SUCCESSFUL WITH HARVESTING TREES. HELL, TREES IN GENERAL.
KEEP THE VIDEOS COMING !!!
I'm about 2.5 - 3 hours south of you near Ferrum, VA, and I am part of the Hinoki Club in Roanoke (an hour away). The closest club I can think of near you would be Lynchburg, but that's a haul. Since you don't have one nearby, have you thought of creating your own? It may be something as simple as getting a flyer or ad in the local paper, finding a free or cheap community space, and having some basic lessons. The more people you can drum up, the stronger your bonsai community comes. You could invite guest artists who would volunteer their time (I'd come given enough notice for planning), and do some lectures & demos. What I'm saying is, you might have to plant the seed and nurture it to fruition.
And you never know, other artists may already be out there. I have several friends in Floyd that do bonsai. We all found each other through word of mouth. Go to a party and suddenly, "Oh! You do bonsai! Do you know so-and-so?" And, that's how we've become our own micro bonsai community. It wouldn't be hard to start a club from this point.
Think about it. It's possible!
It seems it will grow in a nice bonsai
We shall see. It's definitely healthy!
love your videos ,were not to far from each other -north Georgia ,I have a lot of collected material to
Wonderful! Maybe we'll run into each other one of these days, like at the NC Arboretum for the annual expo. Until then, keep having fun!
Does anyone know a good tree in Alberta that would make a good bonsai?
You have plenty of good species suitable for bonsai. Jack pine, Lodgepole Pine, and Tamarack (larch) make fine bonsai. Spruce, birch, and dogwoods, are some others. So some more research and give it a shot next spring!
Alright I will look into those and do some research on a few like you said. Thanks alot for the reply, I appreciate it. :) Great videos by the way.
love watching your videos , thanks
so nice.. i tried this technique but my tree just stay as a stub and died slowly over a few months
oh no! A few questions: What kind of tree? How big was it? When did you dig it up? What kind of soil mixture did you use?
I'm not too sure they grow around me a lot, the most similar looking one I can name it to is an Australian tea tree. I dug it up in early spring when i thought growth was strong. I planted it in potting mix soil since i thought it may not be ready for bonsai soil. Only 1 out of 8 trees survive and both of my stubs died
I think the problem may have been the soil. All of my collections go into the same well-draining mix is use for bonsai, and the new roots love it. The regular potting mix has some drawbacks for cuttings, like too wet on some sides and too dry underneath. Brush up on more bonsai & collection techniques, and give another try this coming spring. I've lost them, too. It happens to everyone, so don't be discouraged with the first go-around.
When you collect, dig it up before it ever starts budding out. They have sugar resources stored in the trunk during dormancy, and will seal the cut cambium area in a week or two. Then, it will prepare to make new buds, and use it's stored goods to produce them. If it's already leafed out before digging, then the resources to rebuild have mostly been spent opening & growing the new leaves. Catch it early, and you'll have better success!
I'm not very familiar with Australian species, but I did a quick search. I saw some nice ficus/fig, white cypress pine, banskia, bottlebrush, gum, and the tea tree you mentioned. The banskia looked especially nice. Keep it up, Haley, you gots this!
It could be, the area which i took them from was quite a damp place the soil there were like mud so i thought that the roots might not like bonsai soil straight away. I'm not discouraged i think it has taught me a lot more then if i hadn't gone out and tried to collect some plants. Though i do feel slightly bad for letting those plant die. My ficus cuttings however are blooming with new buds so I am so happy
Huh huh...those pines at the start of the vid would make great bonsai.
Can´t I just shake the soil into the air pockets? If not, why? :) Thank you for a interesting video!
It's a great question. I haven't tried this with bonsai but I have done some gold panning. Shaking loose particles will separate out the small from the large and the heavy from the light. This process is used to great effect in gold panning, where stratification (created by shaking) allows the heavy metals like gold to settle and the loose to be washed away.
My guess for bonsai soil would be, the particles will definitely fill the pockets, but heavier particles like granite or sand would move to the lower parts of the pot & compact, and the lighter organic materials would move to the top, only to be washed away when you water it. If you use a chopstick, you still create this process, but on a smaller scale. The mixture is still relatively mixed, and by the time you bump the pot/container at the end most of the soil is already in place.
I hope that helps! Let me know
I was wondering what the yellow tape was for. Just to find the tree again once you’ve picked one out? Or do you leave and it’s to show other people that it’s been claimed? Tia!
For my area, it's just so I can find it again. There aren't many people who collect trees around here, so I'd be safe. But it does bring an awareness.
U r really a hard worker.
I love working hard. It's what I do. Go go go!!
what type of soil are you using, looks like gravel ?
Sorta. Check the video description or my Tips & Tricks video for full details.
Why have you cut the thick trunk so short ??? :-(
It was dead. If you scratch the surface of the bark, you'll see green where it is alive. I would have left more on if it was still growing.
tres belle video merci beaucoup
What do you mean by "damad not wet"?
Damp, not wet. I'll go back and check the subtitles.
Appalachian Bonsai ohh thanks.
Hi Ben. Can you describe the soil mix you used for this plant? Thanks, Dan
I can! I've recorded some footage to be used in a soil-mixture video. Not sure when it will be out, but hopefully this year. I use a 50-50 mix of expanded clay (Turface-brand) and diatomaceous earth (AKA kitty-dama. I use NAPA #8822 or Oil-Dri) I sift out the material with 2 screens to keep the particle size between 2-6mm (1/16" - 1/4") and eliminating as much dust as I can. Sometime I use sifted pine bark, but I didn't on this honeysuckle. This coarse inorganic mix does require extra care, like making sure it has enough water (every day when it's hot) and nutrients (I use full strength fertilizers according to instructions ever other week). But, with this excellent drainage and attention, the roots grow really well and strong. It makes for a healthy tree in the end.
Thank you very much!
absolutely
This is an inspiration for me, I have thousands of these growing on my farm along with eastern red cedar.
Hello from Brazil!🇧🇷🤝🇺🇸
Abraços!
ingredient to bonsai soil?
Check description or check bonsai tips & tricks.
Great video thanks for your time and expertise! What is the growing medium thanks 🙏
Cheap rock and cheap bark. Mixed at 3:2 ratio
Post more collecting videos like this
Gneiss quarry, "gneiss little slab," please tell me it was a piece of gneiss, because the play on words is just too great.
It was!
That's fantastic. I love Geology jokes.
great video keep up the good work.
Will do!
hi do you only work with collected material and can i ask what soil would you use for mugo pines thanks.
Only some of my bonsai are created from collected material. I have many that were started from nursery stock, and in fact, when I first started, it was all nursery stock. I have some pines, including some mugo. The mugo were bought at my local nursery. When I transplant them, I'll do the same as other pines: Sifted fired clay, diatomaceous earth, and pine bark. I'll mix them 40:40:20. Here in the States, I use Turface brand clay, NAPA #8822 or Oil-Dri for diatom earth, then pine bark soil conditioner - all of it bought at local hardware stores & nurseries.
I love your videos .keep it up brother ...love from india🇮🇳
Loved it
Why weren't they good for bonsai? How does one know?
It's just experience here. I am looking at many things, including trunk and branches and time it would take to get the tree in shape. Excellent bonsai come from excellent material. We sometimes talk about how long it takes for a tree to become great bonsai. It could take 30 years for one tree or 10 years for another. Which do you want to spend all your energy on? For the pines, the bases of the trunks were nice, but the branches were really far away. This would require years of training, grafting, growing, wiring - all with the hope that someday they MIGHT look really good?... or I could find a tree that already has the characteristics close to my end goal. I'd rather spend my time and energy there.
ผมเป็นคนไทยที่ติดตามคุณ และเอาสิ่งที่คุณทำเป็นแบบอย่างของผมเอง.ขอบคุณครับ
Upgrade video of three! Nice work! I fron Brasil, but follow you...
Update*
Awesome area! Im jealous.
lovely tree broo
Very nice
Great video thanks, you show great knowledge.
Thanks for inspiring me to look for yamadoris again! 😊
Absolutely! Hope this was helpful, and I wish you luck with them!
You just got a new follower great video.
Fantastic! Thank you for the support!
Wow, lots of work but it looks promising. I like this videos. Looking former for more :-)
I posted an update on this a few weeks ago! Thanks!!
Chao buoi sang , ban that tuyet , Toi rat thich oke
Perfect
stay safe sir😊
good job
very good I love
Thank you
Gracias
Wow. 😮
Incrível 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏🌳