B onsai Society of Dallas

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1 BSD NEWSLETTER PAGE 1 B onsai Society of Dallas Monthly Member Newsletter July 2018 Message from the Vice President In This Issue Message from the Vice President July program July Bonsai Tips and Advice Upcoming Events Tip of the Month June Program Review Beginner Bulletin Board LSBF Convention Review July To Do List Board of Directors President, Vacant Emily White, Vice President/Program Chair ewhite82@gmail.com Ben Karlson, Secretary bkarlson@gmail.com Bill Muto, Treasurer bmuto@aol.com Chandra Velmulapalli, Membership Chair csvemula@gmail Haiying Huang, Newsletter Editor Haiying_huang@yahoo.com Todd Hang, Webmaster tqhang@gmail.com Luis Alex Lebron, Social Media Chair luislebron78@gmail.com Brian Myers, Member at Large John Borusheski, Member at Large Howard Smith, LSBF Delegate bonsaismiths@tx.rr.com John Miller, President Emeritus bonsaimiller@aol.com Sylvia Smith, Past President sylvia3smith@gmail.com Happy Independence Day! Although Benjamin and I missed our June program we did not miss an opportunity to practice bonsai. While you were in study group we were in northern New Mexico hunting for ponderosa yamadori. We were fortunate enough to find a great little ponderosa that was naturally dwarfed, growing on a shelf of a boulder. We are looking forward to being able to bring in one day as part of a Show and Tell. Remember, we plan to have a Show and Tell pilot program in August in which 3 members will show a tree and have 5 minutes tell the club about it. We would like to know about its origin (when and where did you get it?), the type of tree, how long it has been in training, what you like and don t like about it, and what your plans are for the tree. If you are interested in being one of the three Show and Tell members for August, then please let me know. Kakejiku by John Borusheksi

2 BSD NEWSLETTER PAGE 2 July Program Scroll Making Demonstration with John Borusheski 9:00 AM to Noon, July 7 th - North Haven Gardens Join us in this creative and fun demonstration, where we will learn all the steps of making beautiful scrolls to enhance any bonsai display. Our own BSD member, John Borusheski, will present the history of kakejiku ( hung scroll ) and will showcase all artwork, materials, and supplies needed to create a scroll. You will leave with the knowledge and list of materials needed to create your own scrolls. Upcoming Events Saturday, July 7 th 9am to noon Scroll Making Demonstration with John Borusheski Saturday, August 4 th 9am to noon Volunteer Bonsai with Jeff Andrus Saturday, September 22 nd 9am to noon LSBF Traveling Artist Demonstration with Tyler Sherrod Saturday, October 6 th 9am to noon Club Auction Events Elsewhere July 14-15, Columbus Bonsai Society s annual show, Columbus, Ohio July 21 st -22 nd, Rodney Clemons Workshop at Houston Bonsai Society, Houston, Texas August 17-19, 2018, 41st Annual Mid-America Bonsai Exhibition, Chicago, Illinois An ashe juniper on display at the annual show of the Bonsai Society of Dallas. The display includes a number of elements of traditional bonsai presentation including a kakejiku (hanging scroll). September 8-9, 2018, 6th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition, Rochester, NY September 14-16, 2018, Northwest Bonsai Rendezvous, Portland, OR October 12 14, 2018, French Bonsai Federation Convention and French Suiseki Federation convention, Mulhouse City, France October 21 st, 2018, Heathrow Bonsai Show, Middlesex, England

3 BSD NEWSLETTER PAGE 3 July Bonsai Tips and Advice By John Miller It would have been well worth a trip to Austin in May for the three-person critique of Terry Ward, Mike Hansen, and Chuck Ware. Having three of that quality at the same table and talking about each tree was quite an accomplishment. I would have been fully awake all night. If you are interested in doing indoor Bonsai, I would suggest you read Mary Miller s last newsletter. Pay extra attention to the words on Jack Wikle. Also some interesting info on Portulacaria Afra (Dwarf Jade). Bonsai Banter Issue #99 (Bonsai_Banter@bonsaimary.com) At the Shohin meeting one said they had a severe infestation of thrips. A good site for bug info would be: July and August are the two most stressful months for bonsai in our area. Most healthy trees can take the full sun on their foliage. But the high ambient temperatures and the heating effect of the sun on the pots and soil create temperatures on the roots that they are not designed to cope with. Trees with thin leaves like the Japanese maple, Acer Palmatum, that are under-story trees, will probably scorch in full sun. They can also suffer from chemical burn from some fertilizers and insecticides which can be more damaging in the heat. I cannot give you a precise to-do list since your backyard is different from mine but you should be sure that the sun does not hit the pots directly. If you use a cover of any kind be sure that the side of the pot is protected also. A loose weave cover that allows air flow is preferable to solid paper or foil. A solid cover or box over the pot would create an oven type enclosure. There should be room for air flow around the pot. A 30-40% shade cloth over pines, junipers, and elms and maybe 50% over maples would be ideal. And don t forget to provide protection on the west side from that mean afternoon sun. Check your water practices. Normally I prefer to water heavily in the evening. That gives the plant all night to renew itself without losing most of its water to evaporation. Then in the early morning, they get a quick foliage spray and wetting the surface of the soil which may have dried out overnight. This was what I did while working. Be sure to do the double watering bit--water thoroughly so that the dry soil particles will get moistened and after a few minutes water again so that they will soak up water fully. Pots out in the sun can get pot pretty hot. Not only does this dry out the soil very fast but the tree roots cannot live in a hot soil. A temperature I have heard given is 120 degrees that will kill roots on most plants. An article by Dr. Bill Cody suggests that his experiments show that an afternoon watering at 2pm will go a long way to keep the soil temperature in a desirable range while a box close around the pot does little to protect it. Therefore, I now try to water at 2pm to cool and refresh the roots and again after sundown to get the night started right. When the humidity is low, I mist my junipers in the evening. I believe the story that in the wild many desert junipers (like Texas Ashe) open their stomata in the cool of the evening absorbing any dew that may occur and close in the heat of the day to conserve moisture. Other species may get their foliage spray in the morning. Also watch for signs of insect problems. The spider mite will always be near. Others to look for are scale of various forms, aphids, and mealy bugs. Preventative medicine is best, spray on a regular schedule. By the time you see signs, the damage is already done, especially from spider mites. I use the organic foliar feed (1 Tablespoon each of fish emulsion, liquid kelp, molasses and 5% apple cider vinegar per gallon water) to control all these. You can use some of the other organic controls or a chemical according to label directions. Read the label

4 BSD NEWSLETTER PAGE 4 July Bonsai (Cont d) directions carefully. Do not apply oil based chemicals to buttonwoods. A hose end sprayer does not work very well, its droplets are too large and you have little control over where it goes. Use a pump sprayer with a fine spray and cover both top and bottom of leaves. The humidity in summer varies quite a bit but when it sticks around for a few days look for fungal problems to appear, mildew being the most prevalent. Black spot will show up if the foliage stays wet very long. Foliage watering in the morning will usually not be a problem because it dries pretty quickly. Treat with potassium carbonate which you can find at any nursery with a decent organic section. There are several chemical sprays available too. As a rule we do not feed our trees enough. Since the mix we use has very little nutrient value, we must make up with our fertilizer practice. Water soluble fertilizers will be quickly washed out. The best rule I have heard was given by Matt Ouwinga who primarily grows trident maples, which states A. Apply organic fertilizer balls each 6 weeks. Discard old balls. B. Apply fish emulsion every two weeks. C. Apply liquid plant food on alternate weeks. You can fertilize with most organic type fertilizers without worrying about burning the roots in hot weather. Do not use hi-powered types though, such as bat guano or one made with chicken manure in the heat. If you use chemical types follow the label. If they do not specify any temperature restrictions, try using a weaker solution than normal. Without a lot of organic material in your soil you should use a weaker solution but more often to provide a more even feeding. Many spring flowering plants will be setting buds for next year s flowers. Azaleas will set theirs toward the end of July. If you prune tips after that you remove the new buds. Now that night temperatures are staying above 60 degrees you should think about repotting some of the tropicals. Most tropicals do well with an annual repotting. I would emphasize to check the wires on your trees and also see that the drains are not blocked in any way. Especially check them after a rain to be sure that your pots have drained properly. Keep the tropicals trimmed as they will be growing like crazy. However, if you want flowers on those that produce on the end of the twigs, bougianvilla-pomegranatecrape myrtle, you will have to forgo the bonsai shape to let them flower. These species should be pruned more drastically before the growing season starts so they can still be in a pretty good shape. Your trees too keep growing and need their periodic beauty treatment. Keep the ends trimmed and the stray shoots cut out. It s not that bad when you can sit in the shade with a big lemonade and really enjoy being with your bonsai. That way you will have your tree ready for the fall show or you will be ready to enjoy it when the change of seasons give it pretty colors. Tip of the Month Hail Protection by David Schleser A hailstorm can inflict severe damage to a bonsai collection, and it's often impossible to move all one's trees inside at a storm's approach. I solved this problem years ago by erecting a canopy from 2X4 lumber over all my bonsai benches and covering it with 1/4" hardware cloth. Simple, inexpensive and easy to do and will give excellent protection from all but baseball size hail that would probably tear through the hardware cloth.

5 BSD NEWSLETTER PAGE 5 June Program in Review Study group with Bonsai Smith We had another great study group with Howard and Sylvia- The Bonsai Smiths. There must have been around 40 trees with Howard taking one half of the room and Sylvia taking the other. Each person s tree received individual attention which included an initial critique and some pruning and wiring for smaller trees. We saw many different types of trees including pine, juniper, maple, bald cypress, Chinese elm, Brazilian raintree, other tropicals and even a few succulents. After the workshop, we had a raffle for several junipers and jade plants. Jin Chung won 3 of the 5 items (John Miller selected the raffle tickets so we know it was on the level). Although we had to rush out of the room by noon, I m sure that everyone had a good time and were happy to improve their bonsai skills. Thanks again to Howard and Sylvia for sharing their knowledge and love of bonsai. Beginner s Bulletin Board There are no dumb questions when you are a beginner at any new endeavor. However sometimes beginners are reluctant to ask a question in a monthly meeting. Got a question? Send it to Haiying at haiying_huang@yahoo.com for an individual response. Your question may also appear anonymously here in a future issue so that others can learn. Question: I set up the soaker hose on a timer to water my bonsai trees before I went out of town for two weeks. When I came back, I found some leaves of the Yaupon holly have brown spots (see picture). What could have caused this and is there something I can do to help the tree recover? Answer by Diane: It is difficult to answer without seeing how prevalent the spots are over the entire plant but I would suspect it will recover, as Yaupon are very hardy in our area. In terms of what caused it, it would appear that the leaves are burned. It could be either from a chemical or perhaps from water on the leaf that might have evaporated at the hottest time of the day before the soaker hose had hydrated the soil. If the plant's roots were very dry and had not yet absorbed the water, this might explain why the water droplets burned the leaf. This is similar to how a light misting of water can make a sunburn on our skin even worse. The other possibility is a fungal infection, but with our recent hot dry weather, it is doubtful.

6 BSD NEWSLETTER PAGE 6 LSBF Convention Review by Sylvia Smith It only takes one close look at this picture taken by my 8 year old to capture the feel of April s Convention in Longview. A very fun, educational and cozy time was had by all. Key word cozy, evident by Joey McCoy s bare feet! Yes, there were only 4 vendors, and everything was packed into one small corner of the hotel, but it was that coziness that allowed us to get to know all of the wonderful members of the Longview club and witness firsthand their commitment to their very first ever convention! On stage Friday night were Mike Lane from Florida, Rodney Clemons from Atlanta, and Boon Manakitivipart from California (with a couple of token apprentice assistants that you might recognize. ). The exhibit was nicely put together thanks to our stand in exhibit chair Mark Bynum and his assistant Howard Smith. Dawn Koetting s beautiful Cedar Elm Forest was the center of attraction taking the honors of Best Texas Native, Best Group Planting and Best in Show! Hurley Johnson won Best Tropical and Nandita Souza won Best Shohin for this very well tapered and balanced, budding nerifolia ficus. Best in Show by Dawn Koetting Best Tropical by Hurley Johnson Best Shohin by Nandita Souza Our Dallas Club member s took the remaining honors for the evening. Mark Copeland s Azalea won Best Broadleaf Evergreen. Howard Smith s Redwood won Best Conifer and Sylvia Smith s Japanese Maple won Best Deciduous. The Smiths were also awarded an Honorable Mention for their Procumbens Rock Planting from last year s LSBF Convention, which proves you never know at what action or raffle you might find your next gem! Hope to see many more club members at next year s LSBF Convention in Houston. Remember they re pairing up with the American Bonsai Society (ABS) next year and it s going to be a big one! Hope to see you all there. Best Conifer by Howard Smith Best Deciduous by Sylvia Smith Honorable Mention by Smiths

7 BSD NEWSLETTER PAGE 7 July s To-Do List s Member News Got news to share? Let us know.. This is a simple monthly checklist for those enthusiasts who have the knowledge and skill required to perform the tasks listed. It is intended to tell you what to do, not how and why to do it. Want to know more? Send in any questions you might have or come to any monthly program to discuss further. All Species Begin to reduce fertilization regimen except on Tropical and Subtropical Continue to protect from extreme heat which may include increasing your watering times Treat for insects as needed; avoid using insecticides or chemicals during the hottest time of the day. Deciduous Cut back shoots and rewire branching as needed Feed lightly; do not let shoots become too strong unless you are thickening a branch. Light defoliation on trees in tertiary ramification. Evergreen/Conifer JB Pine decandling can be done on medium to large trees through July 4 th ; Shohin JB Pine can be decandled from July 7-10; wiring can be done within one week after decandling. Junipers can be thinned and wired as needed; "pinching" to maintain shape only. Flowering/Fruit Cut back if desired to maintain shape and structure Azaleas can be worked on through early July Tropical Fertilize 4-6 weeks after repotting Leaf prune for ramification (if not recently repotted) Planning any fun summer trip that involves Bonsai? How about writing a travel article for the newsletter. Articles of any length are welcome. your article to Haiying ( haiying_huang@yahoo.com) and you will relive the memory in print, digitally, that is. Thanks in advance for your support. Are you a Facebook user? Please consider posting pictures, comments, and questions at the club s facebook. Let s get active and let more people know about our great organization. Decandling is the single-most important technique used to develop beautiful red and black pine Bonsais. It involves removing the spring shoots in early summer to stimulate a second flush of growth (see the picture below for a red pine with two summer shoots after decandling). Done properly, decandling could encourage back budding, increase branch density, regulate vigor, promote balance, and reduce needle size. The link below provides an in-depth guide on the what, why, and how of decandling. ndling-black-pine-bonsai-overview/

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9 BSD NEWSLETTER PAGE 9 Place Your Ad Here! Business card size is $5.00 per month Half page size is $20.00 per month Full page size is $35.00 per month For more details contact: Bill Muto bmuto@aol.com

10 BSD NEWSLETTER PAGE 10 Bonsai Society of Dallas Membership Form Please mail to: Bonsai Society of Dallas P.O. Box Richardson, TX Or bring to any club meeting Bonsai Society of Dallas meets on the first (1 st ) Saturday of each month. Time: 9:00 AM Place: North Haven Garden Center 7700 Northaven Road Dallas, TX Name(s): Address: City: State: Zip: Telephone: Date: New Membership Individual Membership: $25.00 Renewal Membership Joint Membership: $30.00 For the convenience of our membership a roster is published for members only in March of each year. Please check the appropriate box if you do not wish to be included Include me in the membership roster Exclude me from the membership roster Do Not Cut: For Treasurer Use Member Receipt Name: Membership Year Amount Paid: Date: Received By: