Bonsai West

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Save the Date:

30th Annual Spring Open House:
May 19th and 20th with Guest Artist Rodney Clemons

This year we are celebrating our 30th birthday at Bonsai West!
Our Open House on May 19th and 20th is packed with exciting demonstrations, classes and bargains - not to mention great food and drink.
We are proud and excited to have Rodney Clemons join us for this weekend. He will be teaching three classes as well as giving a free lecture/demo on Sunday afternoon.
Rodney is from Atlanta, Georgia, where he has been been practicing Bonsai and Japanese gardening for his entire adult life. He has traveled the world lecturing and teaching bonsai.
He is one of my favorite teachers because of his vast horticultural knowedge and his clear ability to communicate. His passion and enthusuiasm are inspiring.

Saturday, May 19th starts out with a Juniper Workshop. This is a perfect intermediate class. We have set aside a huge selection of Shimpaku and prostrata juniper from $35 - $200

On Sunday morning, May 20th, Rodney is teaching a special Scenic Landscape Class.
He and I developed it jointly to incorporate his expertise in garden design using rocks and trees to create a miniature landscape. Next week, I will be taking Rodney up the coast to Maine to my 'special' shoreline where will collect excellent volcanic stones specifically for use in this class.

On Sunday afternoon, Rodney is giving a lecture/demonstration. It's free and open to all will be enjoyed by all whether you are just starting out or an advanced student. (read more on our Classes page)

Open House Schedule of Events:

Saturday, May 19:

9-1 pm:
Juniper Techniques Workshop (registration required)

1-2 pm :
Garden Tour with Michael Levin

2-5 pm:
Bonsai Dynamics with Rodney Clemons (registration required)

Sunday, May 20th:

9-1 pm:
Tree and Rock Scenic Landscaping Class (registration required)

2-4 pm:
Free Lecture/Demo with Rodney Clemons

... and on both days:
Food, Drink and Bargains!

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Spring at Bonsai West

Spring really seemed to be coming fast but now it has slowed down much to the chagrin of all of us. People have started calling asking about when is the best time to put their trees outside. My answer is the same every year "Be Cautious".

New England springs are undependable and the temperature, wind, and sun can all damage new tender buds and leaves. Here at the nursery we have to be particularly careful because a damaging frost could really hurt our spring business. We are getting ready in the next couple of weeks to uncover our cold frames that had the hardiest trees kept in it. Around the 15th we will begin to put some of our cold hardy specimen bonsai outside, and by the very end of April all of our cold hardy bonsai will be outside. We do not put our tropical bonsai outside until the middle of May.

Now with that said: most of you with a small collection of trees probably have a little more flexibility. Knowing that trees are tender this time of year you should be careful to place your trees in the shade at first and watch the weather daily to make sure temperatures are above freezing and keep them out of the wind as well. And most important be willing to pull them in even for one night if the weather seems to be getting below 34 degrees.

It's a great time to begin fertilizing all your trees. This time of year they are using up last years stored nutrients and would really enjoy a boost of energy. At Bonsai West we are really please with our results of rotating the use different fertilizers. We use Green Dragon, which is a slow release pellet that sits on the soil and makes nutrients available to the tree as it needs them. We also use a chemical fertilizer for a quick shot of energy that goes right to the roots immediately. For tropical trees we also have a few different foods that we use on a rotating basis, our favorite is Green Dragon Tropical granules.

Over-watering trees is a common problem in the winter, however now that there are longer brighter days your trees should be drinking much faster and you need to be sure not to let them dry out. Dunking your indoor trees is still the best way to saturate them and use your finger to dig down into the soil to make sure it is at least half way dry before watering them. Our customers are always asking if we use moister meters, yes we do, it's our finger and eyes. Recognizing when the soil is too wet or dry is the most important part of growing bonsai.

We are enjoying watching the new Maples and Hornbeams that we got last November pushing leaves. We've also been busy potting up a new shipment of Japanese Five Needle Pines. The new Pines are some of the nicest we have ever had.

If you haven't been out to the nursery in the last few weeks you will enjoy seeing all of our dormant trees coming to life in the back greenhouse. It is very beautiful seeing all the new buds getting ready to explode! Ahhhh . . . Spring in New England

Bonsai Tips for Spring:

• Watch out for below freezing temps on tender new growth
• Harden your trees off to the sun and wind
• You can pick your trees up as long as you watch the weather
• Fertilizing should be started if you have not already
• It is still ok to prune you conifers if they have not broken dormancy
• Wait to prune deciduous trees until after the first push of new Spring growth

And as always, call or send us an email if you have any questions.
We are all looking forward to seeing you soon -

Michael, Mike and Kelly