| Hey! It’s July Already! What's Up Now??? |
It’s
hot and we are watering and fertilizing like crazy
... That’s what’s up!
This
month’s reminder is on
why we need to fertilize this time of year.
Yes, in springtime you know you must
support your Bonsai with a boost of
fertilizer as it has just put on a
flush of new growth.
Now, this time of year you are providing
your Bonsai with a supporting dose
to survive the onslaught of high temperatures
during this period of heat stress.
Here are some points to remember
this time of year:
A.
It’s typical for temperate
climate plants to close up their breathing
pores (stomata) when temperatures inch
above 85 to 90° F. Your Bonsai
enters into a state of suspended animation – just
trying to survive the high temperatures
and protect the moisture it has in
its leaves/needles from evaporating.
The higher temperatures will dry out
the Bonsai above the ground level.
The Bonsai will then in turn pull up
moisture from the soil to replace this
loss of moisture. The extreme ending
to this is a very unhappy Bonsai that
can very easily get diseases and will
be unable to ward off insect pests
because of its lowered resistance.
Of course, this can cause death because
of extreme losses of moisture. To efficiently
utilize this point of natural survival,
you should attempt to water early in
the morning and late in the afternoon.
Give the leaves/needles a splash of
water to keep them turgid (full of
moisture). By utilizing this routine
you will increase your Bonsai’s
ability to survive this stress level
brought on by the high temperatures
of summer.
B.
You’re watering twice, three,
four times as much now as in the winter.
You should water until the water runs
out the drainage holes. Your soil should
be kept evenly moist, but not wet.
Your potting medium should have excellent
drainage properties. One of the two
problems I am aware of in excellent
drainage is that the fertilizer that
you have been giving your Bonsai will
leach out with each watering. (The
other problem with excellent drainage
is that you have to water more often).
So the answer is to fertilize more
often this time of year. Again – with
fertilizer – we are just trying
to keep our Bonsai in good health – not
trying to make it grow 6 feet in 6
months. The more often you fertilize
the better it is for your Bonsai – BUT – the
caveat is don’t over fertilize. “Gosh!
You just said for me to fertilize often – but
then you say don’t over fertilize.” How
do you reconcile these two opposites?
Without getting into the technicalities – here’s
what I’m saying – it’s
the strength of the fertilizer that
you are giving your Bonsai each time
you apply it. It’s better to
fertilize at a lower strength more
often than it is to fertilize at a
higher strength less often. It’s
better to fertilize once each week
at a lower level of strength than to
fertilize at a higher level of strength
once each month. I realize that some
Bonsai people cannot fertilize too
often because of their other commitments –but
if you can fertilize more often
at
a lower rate then please do. If
you
have excellent drainage you should
not get a buildup of the fertilizer
because you are leaching your soil
at the same time you are fertilizing
when the water, along with the nutrients,
is flushed out the drainage holes.
 Fertilizers
You
can view our entire range
of fertilizers by visiting: http://www.dallasbonsai.com/store/fertilizers.html
Shameless Self-Promotion
When you are looking for quality fertilizers for your Bonsai, please remember
that we only carry the finest fertilizers on the market, at a price that usually
beats the inexpensive all-purpose name brand fertilizers. How do we do it?
Simple, we are the largest Bonsai Supply store in the world. We import boat
loads of items from Japan and pass the savings on to you. Also, because we
are the largest, we carry many items that no one else can. We guarantee that
no one has neither better quality products, better selection, nor better prices
than us.
New Tools
Lots of new books to round out your
selection. Please go to http://www.dallasbonsai.com/store/bonsai_books_english.html
We’ve added over 17 new books
... and more are coming from Japan
... And
... Shortly ... we
will have the Bonsai Europe line
of outstanding books and their fantastic
magazine.
As
we don’t have them in inventory
now all we can do is presale them
to you. It might be a good idea to pre-order
them because these are in a limited
quantity and will go fast.
If
you would like to reserve a
copy of one of the following
publications, please visit our
pre-order
page.
 Bonsai
Europe magazine. Published 6 times a year at
$7.50 per copy. Bonsai Europe is the leading
bonsai magazine in the western world. 84 full
color pages of pure bonsai pleasure. We are
receiving the two most recent issues #74 and
#75 (Books and Magazine images courtesy of
bonsaieurope.com. ) |
 The
Best of Bonsai in Europe - 4 - 2003 Edition.
$39.95
Every two years this fabulous Bonsai event takes place in Belgium. Already
4 souvenir volumes are available. In a luxurious box. Hard cover. 128 pages,
full color, over 150 photographs The Best of Bonsai in Europe - 3 - $39.95
|
 The
Best of Bonsai in Europe - 3 - $39.95 2001
Edition. Hard cover. 128 pages, full color,
over 150 photographs.
|
 The
Best of Bonsai in Europe - 2 - $39.95 1999
Edition. Hard cover. 128 pages, full color,
over 150 photographs.
|
 The
Best of Bonsai in Europe - 1 - $29.95. 1997
Edition. This is the first volume. 128 pages,
full color, over 150 photographs, soft cover.
|
 Bonsai
Art Noelanders - $24.95
Marc Noelanders. English 108 pages Full color Hard cover
|
 Bonsai,
Spirit & Substance - $64.95
Salvatore Liporace An impressive view of the authors work.
English; 140 pages Full color; Hard cover in box
|
We’ve
gotten in more Masakuni tools and will
have them up shortly. Lots of new fertilizers
will be coming in from Japan in the
next two months. A number of them will
be aimed at specific varieties of plants.
You won’t
be disappointed with the vast selection.
| Making
a Bald Cypress Forest by
Thomas J. |
Included
in this Month’s Email is another fine article
by the Bonsai Artist Thomas J. This month Thomas
describes how to create a Bald Cypress Forest.We
know you will enjoy this!
Click
here to read Thomas J's article
|
