I remember when I first started into bonsai how hard it was for me to find out what was in bonsai soil. Recipes were scarce and no one had the be all, end all mix. However as I got more involved and understood what goes into making the soil it made sense why it was so different. Everyone seems to have their own mix and use different ingredients for one reason of another.
Bonsai soils are soil less as they contain no top soil, or sand. Bonsai mixes are developed based upon the results that bonsai artist want to achieve. These specifics are good drainage, water retention, and sharp aggregate. In the following video I review the different types of materials I use for making my bonsai mixes and the reason I use them.
I don’t know if you rember or not, but I learned how to do tilt-shift photography a while back. In the old photo I miniaturized Kunio Kobayoshi’s wonderful Bonsai Garden. Well I couldn’t resist doin the same thing to the Bonsai exhibit at Epcot (Walt Disney World , Orlando) Here is a tilt-shift photo of the Torii Gate taken from the Restaurant area. It just all looks so tiny.
This year’s winter in Florida started very early and was very cold, but it didn’t seem to last that long. My trees started popping out new growth a few weeks ago and now they are well on their way to having full canopies of leaves. However this is no time to sit back and enjoy the trees because there is a lot of work to be done. In this video I talk about controlling the growth o fyour bonsai during the initial growth of the Spring season. You need to stay on top of your trees or you’ll lose a great opportunity to make the most of the fast growing period.
Well all the planning, e-mails, phone calls and worrying are over and the trees are on displayed at the 18th annual International Flower and Garden Festival at Epcot (located at Walt Disney World Orlando Florida). This the the 10th year I have been involved with the committee and 4th year as chairman. To say I love doing this is an understantment. It is so much work but so worth it.
This year’s display has got to be one of my all time favorite displays. Amazing trees and wonderful exhibitors. I put together a little video and added som photos to see near the end of this post. Enjoy (and don’t forget to subscribe to my channel)
