Pascale’s Garden

Defining Lavender Bonsai
How to care for lavenders

French and Spanish lavenders are common herbs grown to train bonsai trees. The sweet marjoram is another of the herbs grown to train bonsai. Each plant is the member of the tender perennial group, which the plants will live for a long time if cared for properly. French lavender grows woody shrubs and requires brilliant light and warm environments to survive. The plants can survive in lower temperatures if grown outdoors, yet the warm environment is recommended. The south window is the recommended spot for growing French lavender bonsai indoors. You can also rest the plants at the west or east, yet south is best. In fact, most bonsai plants require the south, west, or east corners to grow healthy.

Lavandula dentata or French lavender is grown as bonsai trees. The beautiful plant includes leaves with indents. The trees grow woody shrubs; therefore, you can grow the bonsai as a cascade, or grow the bonsai upright. The French lavenders can live a long time. The plant grows elongated stems and arched flowers, which are light purple. French lavender requires brilliant lights to survive. If the lights are lowered, the plant becomes weak. The French lavender will develop pale green leaves, especially when the plants do not receive sufficient lighting. You will need to wire the plant so that it does not hang down also. When the plant starts to cascade and the stems become woody and hard remove the wires.

How to upkeep French lavender
To maintain French lavenders you will need brilliant light from the sun, added water, etc. The soil should be richer than that used in common lavender bonsai. The seeds often sprout slowly and continue slow growth. The recommended light, water, and soil may increase growth. You will need to continually cutting to propagate the tree. Insecticides may be used if you see a need; however, French lavender bonsai has physical powerful scented oil that intimidates loose species.

About Sweet Marjoram
Origanum majorana or Sweet marjoram when maturing will grow craggy, harsh wood. Sweet bonsai is one of the fragile species, which is a member of the perennial. When the tree starts, growth it shoots up 1-foot greens that often flowers after it becomes woody. During maturity, you are required to trim the shoots regularly to maintain the bonsai. You should remove the shoots, unless you intend to grow the species in another format.

How to care for Sweet marjoram:
Sweet marjoram requires bright light during winter months. The plant can survive cooler weather, yet brilliant light will prevent weakness. The seeds of the Sweet marjoram often geminate quickly, which you should trim the branches often to promote rooting. The plant is one of the easier species to propagate. Sweet marjoram has a sweet to the smell aroma. The tree often grows up to 8-inches, or sometimes 6-inches, yet it resembles the oldest bonsai species when matured.

Lavandula stoechas or Spanish lavender bonsai grows silvery green leaves, which are smaller than other bonsai plants. The plant can tolerate dryness, whereas the French lavender cannot. If you plan to grow the Spanish lavender indoors, prepare to research. This particular species is not friendly to indoor growing. The species can still make a good bonsai, since it ages like wine.

Bonsai trees are creative miniature garden growths, which form trees and shrubs while requiring meticulous pruning of the branches and root. If you grow bonsai, it is wise to research the market to learn more about caring for the plants. Bonsai require training, care, particulars, etc to continue growing healthy.

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Training Bonsai from Semi-Hardy Perennials
How to train semi-hardy perennials

The perennials include the semi-hardy group. The group of perennials can tolerate unfavorable weather conditions, such as vague freezing and frost. Unlike the resilient herbs however, the semi-hardy will not survive below freezing weather. If you grow the plants indoors however, the plants will withstand warmer conditions. If you raise the plants outdoors or indoors make sure the environmental weather does not drop five, or below 25 degrees. One of the semi-hardy groups grown as bonsai is the santolinas. The semi-hardy will grow swiftly. The plant has tolerated levels contrasting other perennials, in that it will survive conditions that other plants will not. The plant also has a unique aromatic scent. You can purchase germanders and the group of winter savory plants to compliment your santolinas. The green santolina is another member of the semi-hardy perennials.

Santolina has a couple of species. The species include gray santolina, a member of Santolina Chamaecyparissus, and the lavender cotton. The gray santolina makes up a soft stunning foliage and contracted wooly group of bordered leaves.

Green santolina or the Santolina Virens grow brilliant, shimmering leaves green in color and the leaves thin down the bonsai shaping the form of thread. This selection will endure weathers contrasting the santolina gray, cotton, etc, yet the needs of environmental conditions are alike.

How to grow:
The plants require brilliant light and prefer to sit at the south window. The plants will survive east lights, yet to prevent damage, keep the plants at the south. To keep form of this bonsai, continue trimming and cutting. During the summer, supply your plants with adequate water. Purchase a water temp regulator to detect when to water your plant. You can place the plant in brilliant light, in a cool environment for the best growth. To propagate, cut the roots often. The plant is ideal for beginners, since it is one of the easier to grow semi-perennial.

Winter savory is the body of Satureja Montana and grows elegant evergreens with shimmering effects. The green leaves grow from a woody trunk. The trunk has a reddish tint along with a green texture. Training the semi-hardy savory will land you an 8-inch bonsai, or at most a 6-inch bonsai. During the winter, months keep the plant in a cool, semi-inactive environment. You can keep the plant indoors next to a cool window during winter months, or allow the plant to rest outdoors during the fall. DO not allow the plant to sit in freezing weather conditions.

Unlike the annual plants, savory requires less water. The plant grows slower also. You can propagate the plant by cutting the branches and leaves as required. As well, grow the plant from seeds to achieve easy propagating. The lifespan is around two-three years. Beginners want to learn more about raising this plant, since it is a member of the hardier to grow bonsai, yet the tree produces a stunning form.

Teucrium chamaedrys and the group of germander Teucrium lucidum make a great species for growing bonsai. The trees stand upright when developed. The germanders are often used for its edged hedges, which are small. The plant has nothing to do with cooking, such as spice or season growth and has minimal aromatic scents. The germander however was utilized in ancient days, which formed a medicinal complimentary. During the winter, the plant requires the same desired temperatures as the winter savory. However, the germanders will survive less light than that of the winter savory. To maintain the germander add direct light in low shades, or low lighting. Growing the plant with seeding makes it easiest to propagate. If you frequently cut the plant, it will develop flowers at faster rates.

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How to Train Flowering Quince Bonsai

Chaenomeles or the Flowering Quince is a delightful plant to train as the bonsai, especially for those who enjoy flowers. Quince is a member of the Rosaceae family, and is born in native regions, Japan, etc. The shrubs produce deciduous leaves, which have strikingly beautiful springtime blooms. The blooms are surrounded by desirous, yellow fruits. The branches twist and are thorny. As they say, ?Every Rose has its thorn.? You cannot have beauty without having a little danger. Therefore, if you choose this plant, watch your fingers.

The flowering quince includes the Japonica (Chaenomeles lagenaria), which has spiky twisted shrubs that are around six ?-feet tall when matured. The shrubs are shimmering green with oval shaped hairless leaves that form serrated edge. The tree starts to develop flowers around March. The flowers are dark red, whitish-pink, pink, etc. The fruits that grow in October are bitter, scented yellow.

Maul Flowering Quince (Chaenomeles Japonica) has spiky bushes that grow up to three ? feet tall. The tree often develop patterns, such as spreading habits, which are tightly joined. The leaves are smooth, oval, green, and grows brilliantly red flowers. The flowers start its growth in March and continues to grow fruits in October. The spherical, yellow-green fruits have a touch of red contrasts. You cannot eat the fruits, yet you can enjoy the aroma.

Chinese Quince (Chaenomeles Sinensis) is a nice-looking flowering quince when grow outdoors can reach up to 40-feet tall. Training bonsai species requires careful detailing to prevent overgrowth, especially indoors. The spiky branches extend from flaking bark. The serrated leaves are long with pointed edges. In the spring, the leaves are downy fresh, yet in the fall, the leaves turn to scarlet. In May, the flowers are white or Salmon pink. In October the fruits start to develop, which they turn shades of dark yellow.

Propagation starts with seeds, cuttings, or layering. To seed you will need to crush the ripen fruits. The seeds should be cleaned, and stratified. You can start sowing the seeds in March, which the seeds will swiftly germinate.

June and July is the best time to sow cuttings, as well as layering. You can also layer in May.

How to care for your Flowering Quince Bonsai:
Now that you have sowed your seeds, it is time to reap what you sow. To, reap good results you want to expose the plants to south sunlight. You can place the plants in semi-shaded areas during summer months.

How to ventilate:
The plants need shield from the winds. Still, you need to place the plants in quality-airy climates.

How to pot:
You want to pot the species in a shallow pot, or medium deep container. Ash colors are appealing with the bonsai flowering quince.

How to clean:
Once the flowers ripen, remove some of the fruit.

How to re-pot:
When you cut the plants back annually, it slows growth. Therefore, when re-potting use a larger pot every couple of years.

Choosing soil:
Use a mixture of 1/3 loam, course sand, and leaf mould. Use soil with minimal lime and moderate nutrition?s.

How to prune:
Sub-branches should be pruned when late shoots start to develop. New shoots that meet 2-eyes is a great time to prune also. June is the time to prune the older branches. Cut the side branches also. The tree should be pruned back hard, and undesired shoots should be removed.

How to wire:
Spring and summer is the time to wire your plant and start training your bonsai. The wire should be removed in four months. To shape your bonsai, continue the procedure annually. Next, water, feed, and spray your plants as needed.

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Training Root over Rock and Multi Trunk Bonsai

Bonsai when trained can produce delightful plants and trees. The trees include double-trunks, multi-trunks, single-trunks, groves, and so on. The Costa Rican mint bush is one of the bonsai grown as the double-trunk, which these bush must be planted deep along with a few shoots to produce the double-trunk effect. If you want to create a multi-trunk tree from herbs, you will need to allot quite a few shoots to grow near the base.

The root-over-rock when grown in fields is often grown as one of the multi-trunks. The energetic herbal plants should have structured roots. Once you trim the plant, you can shape it to your liking. After trimming you will need to clean grime from the trunk base and near the region where the chief roots divide. In addition, to raise root-over-rock bonsai you will need rocks suitable for the plant. Before planting the plant in your garden or field, make sure that you place the rocks beneath the trunk baseline. Wrap the roots about the rocks.

How to plant:
To plant the root-over-rock, once you completed the steps place the rocks at the soil surface. The root tips will grow properly as it begins to widen beneath the rocks. You can heap dirt about the rock edges if needed. The mounds of dirt will shield the roots until it begins to flourish deeply beneath the soil. Once the plant develops, you can transplant it to a suitable pot and begin your training.

Larger plants can produce instant bonsai shapes. If you choose, the larger plants make sure that you search for branch and shapes of the herb. If the plant is healthy and well structured you may find it difficult to train as bonsai. Still, you can create bonsai that are not based on traditions if you search for flow and equilibrium.

The older plants are ideal for shaping bonsai. If you have the opportunity, and live in an area where several nurseries, greenhouses, gardens, etc, are available to you, search for the older bonsai and study the features. In fact, you can use older plants, or inexplicable plants to produce the root-over-rock bonsai. Early trims of branches can promote new shoots along with strong plants, depending on the style.

When you shop for older plants investigate the interior structures by moving the foliage forward. You want to keep in mind that some plants require that you remove unwanted branches. When you investigate the older plants, make sure that the branches are balanced. If the branches are balanced, likely you can shape the plant to produce a desired bonsai.

Coupled with the branches you want to consider the earth line. You can consider the earth line by tapping the root sphere out of the container. If the plant was re-potted, you will know this by determining how deep the plant has grown in the container. If the trunk is beneath the soil level, you will have found a potential bonsai.

When you find the tree of choice, early trimming starts which ensures the growth and shaping of your bonsai. If the plant is bushy, you will need to invent a basic outline of a tree trunk along and leave a few branches. Four or six branches are ideal, which any remaining branches should be stripped. Trim the branches near the tips once you remove the extras. The shoots growing at the lower section around the trunk once developed should be trimmed, or removed.

Tip: Rosemary over one year old is ideal for training as the bonsai. The rosemary, once trained as the bonsai will present sturdy directional movement along with fascinating features.

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Bonsai Japanese White Pine
How to care for Pinus Parviflora and Pentaphylla

The Japanese White Pine requires careful attention to maintain its health and train it as a bonsai. When you consider White Pine, you must learn cleaning techniques, growth, re-potting, soil, pruning, wiring, water, spray, feeding, etc. In addition, you want to consider peat, pests, disease, and more. Now, we cannot go into extensive details, however I can provide you a few helpful tips to get you started in growing Japanese White Pines as bonsai.

How to clean:
Cleaning the plants is easy. Use your ?thumb and index finger? to pluck the aged pine needles. The pine needles often turn yellowish during the fall. Next, prune the internal undergrowth or foliage and get rid of any decaying and/or injured sections. As well, get rid of any debris or decaying elements from the soil. Finally, you have cleaned your Japanese White Pine; however, you will need to move ahead. Remember the growth of the Japanese Whites is a slow process.

You want to clean the plants as needed, water, and provide nourishment for your White Pines as recommended. Wait five years before you re-pot the plants. You can re-pot the plants in a larger pot, which has a deep bottom. You want to treat the plants for a few weeks once you re-pot the plants. Early spring around March, you want to prune the roots. Prune around 1/3 length and get rid of the aged roots. You can leave aged soil about the roots so that the plant can re-establish its growth. Avoid cleaning at this stage. After you re-pot the plant, you want to, carefully watch its growth.

How to soil:
Adding the right soil is important when growing the Japanese White Pines. Use ?-soil leaf container to make a shape. (Learn about Mould) Next, add fertile workable soil, or 1/3 loam. The fertile soil is easy-working soil that consists of mixture of clay, sand, silt, and many times organic matters. Add some course sand, at least 1/3 and provide a drainage hole.

How to prune:
Pruning is best handled in April, yet you should prune back the candles as needed. The candle(s) should be pruned back about 2/3 before the candles open. Use your index finger and thumb. If the plant grows thick crowns, you will need to remove at least one bud. There should be around three buds per growth, which you will only remove one per growth of the three. You can leave the buds alone if you want a thicker plant. In October, you will need to prune the branches. You do not want to cut the needles, rather cut 1/3 of the branch. You can pinch the buds back for a few weeks to balance the needles.

How to water:
If you plant the bonsai with stones at the base, water your plant sparingly. The Japanese White Pines require less water than common plants; therefore sparingly water your plants as recommended.

How to spray:
During the summer, you want to spray the undergrowth, or foliage.

How to fertilize:
Fertilizer is a feeder, which the Japanese White Pines require feeding during spring months and fall. Use slow-processing natural fertilizer sparingly about once a month during July and August to feed your plant. At the end of fall amplify the amount of fertilizer and add moderate amount of chemical radicals, or nitrate. Read the instructions on feeding so that you know which nitrate to add, since you have the option of potassium nitrate, ammonium nitrate, and sodium nitrate. If the tree is sick, or recently has been re-potted, do not add fertilizer.

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Fighting Bonsai Disease and Damage
How to fight disease and damage continues

Bonsai are subject to decay and damage. To protect your bonsai you must learn how to treat the plants from pests and disease. Before you can treat the plants however, you must learn the symptoms to prevent damage or decay.

How to spot damage and decay:
Decay and damage comes from lack of care, as well as from red spider mites, scale insects, and mealy bugs, aphids, which include the greenfly, gall aphid, and the black fly. Wooly aphids also attack bonsai as well as goat moth, leopard moth, geometer moths, small ermine moths, etc.

Spider mites include the web-forming tetranychus and the glasshouse reds. The greenhouse mites and the red spiders often feast at the underside of bonsai or other plants, especially at the leaves. The spider mites and greenhouse will chew at the foliage as well. If the spiders or mites gnaw at the leaves, you will notice marks, patterns, or irregular patterns, which turn yellow, or silver-gray. It depends on how severe the pests have attacked the bonsai. The tree may fade away if you do not treat immediately. The web-formers create webs, which you will find on the trees. To eliminate the problem and save your bonsai spray the plant/foliage with insecticides. You want to spray the undersides. Use acaricides immediately if you notice mild symptoms. You can use defensive action at the start of spring, otherwise use a selection of acaricides so that the pests do not adapt to the chemicals.

Red mites or the red spiders will feast on needles. The needles will show signs of damage. The plant will change from its natural color, changing to reddish-brown, yellow, etc. The needles will finally fall off the plant if you do not treat. The spiders will produce a matted web between the branches. This will cause the carbohydrates to slow production, since light and chlorophyll is reduced, i.e. the process of plants ability to produce basic carbohydrates produced from carbon dioxide, hydrogen, etc are reduced. The plant will not have the energy produced from photosynthesis processes to continue its growth and produce macrobiotic cellular pigments that absorb from radiant sources.

To treat your bonsai you will need to consider the plants. If you produce, confer and deciduous trees you can wait until the climate is warm and dry the plant. (Deciduous trees only) Continue treatment by cutting and destroying any branches that have been severed. Once the bonsai starts its new growth (usually near the end of winter), you can spray the bonsai with tar oil. Tar oil is a thick black substance, which is obtained from destructive distillation process and extracted from macrobiotic fluids. (E.g. coal or wood) Spray the tar oil with caution. Tar oil will destroy the female reproductive cells, or eggs. As the spring nears, use methodical acaricides and spray the bonsai. You will need to spray the bonsai again in the summer with distinctive acaricides. You should water your bonsai munificently in the summer and vapor the foliage methodically.

The deciduous trees will show signs of damage, such as hibernated eggs, which are often found on the branches. At the bark, you may notice red patches. During spring, the mites may leave holes in the leaves. You will find the mites predominantly at the underneath of the leaves. Mites and spiders often drop eggs on confers in cracks, especially at the bark. The eggs are also deposited at the foundation of the plant needles.

Geometer moths leave trails on foliage. The pests will feast on foliage and leave perforations in the sprouts, or buds. Geometers will also leave silky web trails in the soil or at the foliage. To treat the problem sprays the bonsai at the last months of winter with oil-based solutions. The oils will obliterate the eggs. Once spring arrives, treat the plant with parathion-based solutions made by chemical processes, or use lindane.

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