N E W S L ET T E R 2 8 4www.bonsai-southern-tasmania.org.au JUNE 2017

NEWS FROM THE BONSAI SOCIETY OF SOUTHERN TASMANIA

E V E N T S T H I S M O N T H

TASMANIAN BONSAI COLLECTIVE - Lton.Saturday 17 June, Lynne Farrell’s Nursery Designed to increase collaboration between north, northwest and south bonsai groups this will be an exciting day of talk, demonstration and general get together.

BSST MEETING: Tuesday 20 June 7.30pmThis will incorporate our annual Swap & Buy so bring along your plants, pots, cuttings, trees, tools whatever you have - ‘One man’s trash could be another man’s treasure’Tea/Coffee provided - bring supper to share

BSST WORKSHOP: Saturday 24 June, 1pm - 4pm Cambridge Hall - members $3Wire is available to purchase at the workshops. Tea/Coffee provided - bring a snack to share.

WORKSHOP SUGGESTIONS:Conifers: Abies, Cedar, Chamaecyparis, Cypress, Juniper, Larch, Spruce, Pine, – Wiring, bending and pruning as they can be worked on almost anytime of the year. Deciduous: Without their leaves this is a good time to give trees a clean-up and prune. Also check trees wired previously to see if wire should be removed.

Page 1

C O M I N G U P - J U L Y

AABC VISITING TUTOR ANDREW WARD (SA) 15 & 16 July 9.30am - 4pm Cambridge Hall.register now - at the meeting or on-line.

NURSERY VISIT – to Andrew Bradbury in Forcett, Sunday 30 July– Last time we had a very pleasant late lunch/afternoon tea at Velvet cafe in Sorell on the way home.

HONARARY LIFE MEMBERSHIPS FOR TWO VERY DESERVING MEMBERS

MAY WORKSHOP

Evelyn Black and Gill Roberts receive their certificates and flowers in recognition of their years of service to the Bonsai Society.

Working hard at the May workshop. photo: Ambrose Canning

Scott gets the angle just right on his Macrocarpa. photo: Ed

Robyn’s Mugo pine gets a very thorough makeover. photo: Ed

Gill a picture of concentration. photo: Ed

Will and Ambrose discuss the shape of the Cedar. photo: Ed

Page 2

NEWS FROM THE BONSAI SOCIETY OF SOUTHERN TASMANIA N E W S L ET T E R 2 8 4REPORT FROM THE MEETING

Tuesday 16 May 2017 at BCAC Meeting opened by Ambrose at 7.30 pmGeneral Business: Ambrose reminded members to get their plants, pots, etc., ready for the Swap and Sell at our next meeting in June, (which would not attract the usual 20% fee to the club) and to register for the workshop coming up in July with Andrew Ward from SA. Chris mentioned that if anyone has olive trees it would be good to bring them to work on with Andrew as they are one of his specialties. Chris also asked for those planning to attend the Tas Bonsai Collective in Launceston to register their interest. The morning will feature 12 short presentations followed by a shared lunch and a chance to catchup and chat with members from the other groups. The afternoon will be taken up with an intensive wiring demonstation by Chris Xepapas. Cam was thanked for donating a set of 4 DVDs to the Library. Rob White (treasurer) presented the new wire caddy, which he had arranged to have built, to make wire purchases at the workshops easier. He also announced that there would be no increase to membership fees this year. He then went on to introduce the special event of the evening - the presentation of honarary life membership to Gill Roberts and Evelyn Black. Gill has been a member of the Society for twenty seven years, and a good deal of that time she served on the committee, and though she is not now on the committee she is still always there with the tea, coffee and milk at every meeting and workshop and usually a tin of yummy biscuits or slice. Evelyn may have only been a member for nine years, but very quickly found herself on the committee, taking on the tasks of secretary, and membership secretary, but most of all she took over the editorship of the newsletter, which she carried out for the past eight years without missing an edition which is about ninety newsletters. Unfortunately for us Evelyn will be leaving Tasmania in the near future to return to Adelaide so that she and Arnold can be closer to their families.Raffle Draw: Rob White chose the Osmocote and Jan Fleming, a Bonsai book.

DISPLAY TABLE: This month Chris brought along the Radiata pine (20 yrs old) he had used to demonstrate at the weekend workshop. Scott brought a 30 year old Picea abies (spruce) which he had wired at the Joe Morgan-Payler workshop. Cam brought the black pine which he had been doing some very heavy bending on at the advanced workshop weekend. Stephanie brought a Purple beech which had beautiful brown autumn leaves, Cam also had a very pretty little Crab apple grown from a seedling in 2009 - a work in progress. Will had another exquisite miniature rocky landscape, this time featuring a very slow growing Persoonia gunnii also known as a Geebung. Ambrose had one of his red stemmed dogwood with deep pinky-red autumn foliage. Will also had a group of three, or was it a triple trunk? Casurina (black bull-oak) and one of the dozen snowgum seedlings he had purchased recently to start wiring while they were young and pliable. Barbara brought along a most beautiful non-flowering azalea group on a rock and a little squat oak in a white pot.

MAY TALK & DEMONSTRATIONChris Xepapas - ‘Podocarpus lawrencei or Native Plum Pine. Chris brought along two specimens showing the variety of growth style in this species. He had pre-wired both trees, so he could concentrate on demonstrating the different ways in which they could be styled. The first one was styled as a semi-cascade which would be potted at an angle in the future. The second one was styled as a twin-trunk informal upright.

Chris Xepapas styles two Podocarpus lawrencei (Native plum pine) at the May meeting at BCAC.

Page 3

NEWS FROM THE BONSAI SOCIETY OF SOUTHERN TASMANIA N E W S L ET T E R 2 8 4

Bonsai Society of Southern TasmaniaBonsai Society of Tasmania

Launceston Bonsai Workshop

Statewide Meeting: Saturday, June 17th 2017Tasmanian Bonsai Centre, New Ecclestone Rd.,

Riverside, Launceston.PROGRAMME

9:30-10:15 ARRIVAL AND MORNING TEA10:15-10:45 WELCOME & INTRODUCTIONEach club will present a brief summary of their history, current membership and activities.10:45-13:00 8 SHORT PRESENTATIONS: An opportunity to put a face to a name. 13:00-14:00 LUNCH (Bring a plate to share) 14:00-17:00 WIRING TECHNIQUES: Chris Xepapas will work with two representatives from each club. The format will be informal, allowing observers to participate in discussion. Afternoon tea available during this session.17:00 MEETING CLOSECongratulations to Cam Wadley and Tony Hewer on their selection to represent the Southern Society.We hope to see as many of you there as possible. This should be a very informative and enjoyable day, and a chance to chat and to get to know members from the other bonsai groups around Tasmania and it is free.

Please RSVP to Chris Xepapas by email cxepapas@gmail.com or phone 0439 383 365

TASMANIAN BONSAI COLLECTIVE

CLUB WIRE ORDER

ADVANCED WORKSHOP REPORTA bit of a cold wet day leaving Hobart but the weather brightened as we got to Dysart. However not to take a chance Chris and Koula had set up our workstations inside the house/church. We started with a short talk about the main things to look for when wiring -1. Decide placement of branches2. Look for anchor points3. Select correct guage wire for the size of the branches4. Work out which way to rotate the wire (the end should finish under the branch pointing in the direction the branch is to be moved)5. A piece of wire has two ends so look for branches to ‘pair’ (wire together forming an anchor in the process) 6. A rotation angle of 50-60 degrees creates a stronger hold and also uses less wire7. Wire to the tips (reduce wire size as you move toward the ends of the branches)8. Avoid more than two wires on a branch9. Only one wire on main branchesChris demonstrated on a black pine and then we got started on our own trees. Participating were Thomas, Cam, Tony, Scott, Ambrose, Heather and Alex with Gill and Robyn observing plus partners - Gabby and Peter.

Chris wiring the black pine Heather creates a broom style

Tony working on his pine

Some heavy bending taking place on Cam’s tree using a rod

Thomas thinning his picea

The Society will shortly be placing an order for bonsai wire. Our usual supplier offers a 20% discount because of our large order. Also, large orders attract a lower postage cost per kilogram.As with previous orders, we are able to include purchases by members. The exact price will depend on how much is ordered but you can be assured that it will be much less than you are able to purchase directly.The wire comes in 1kg coils from 1 mm to 8 mm if you want 500g coils, the price will be slightly higher.Contact Rob White: rwgw100@gmail.com or 0402 340 744 with your order.

Page 4

NEWS FROM THE BONSAI SOCIETY OF SOUTHERN TASMANIA N E W S L ET T E R 2 8 4SELECTION, CARE AND MAINTENANCE OF NATIVE BONSAI

We have had quite a focus on native plants as bonsai this year so it may be timely for a few words on selection, care and maintenance. (Excerpts from information reprinted from SA Bonsai Vol18, Issue 2 which was adapted from notes by Craig Wilson as printed in the Mornington Peninsular Bonsai Society Newsletter, Autumn 2008.)

Australian native tree culture as bonsai, is in its infancy, we have no idea what our trees will be like in hundred years time. We also have a lot of work to do with regard to selection of suitable species and cultivars.When you are in a nursery looking at Banksia you may notice a lot of variation in leaf size and bark texture. Once you have selected the best form, it is very easy to grow Banksia from cuttings, so reproduce and distribute, Australia needs you! This process may take years, but it is something that must be done if we are to start producing first rate native bonsai. There also needs to be a great deal of experimentation with different species and I suspect we have only seen the tip of the iceberg with regard to species which are best suited to cultivate as bonsai.There is no mystery to cultivating native trees as bonsai. I feed, water and prune my native trees in the same way as I do the exotics. The most important requirement is that they are root-pruned during warmer weather - mid December to early March. I always accompany root-pruning with at least part defoliation and I am careful not to over water the tree after it has been potted. It is very easy to drown trees of all species during this period. It is a myth that native plants are low maintenance, tip pruning is vital and must be done regularly, and while the growth is still young. They should be tip pruned the same as Acer palmatum – as soon as you can identify the lead shoot from the first two leaves, the lead shoot must be pinched out. To achieve a dense foliage pad and uniformity in leaf size it is essential to manage the foliage of your natives very carefully, even daily. I am not a great fan of defoliation in any of my trees to achieve branch ramification and small leaves. The reason is that when you defoliate a tree it stops growing completely for some time. I would much rather partly defoliate,

which means the tree will continue to grow and recover more quickly. However I really like to leaf prune, that is to cut the leaves in half, not to make then look smaller, but to let light in to the inner part of the branch. Another myth is that native plants don’t need feeding. Australian trees love to be fed and to be fed a lot. I give my trees regular doses of Osmocate for natives and then a weekly feed, both foliage and roots, of half strength Seasol throughout the growing season. The more your trees grow, the more you prune, the better bonsai they will become.

I consulted our local native plant guru Will Fletcher, who agreed the information presented here would apply equally to Tasmanian conditions. He did comment however, that he root pruned successfully anytime from August through to April and in fact had to be more careful in the hotter months or windy weather, not to let the plant dry out during root pruning.

A magnificent Banksia belonging to Chris Xepapas

Page 5

NEWS FROM THE BONSAI SOCIETY OF SOUTHERN TASMANIA N E W S L ET T E R 2 8 4 BONSAI TOOLS

Tools required range from four or five basic implements to a set of twenty or more specialised bonsai tools, each with a specific task. In the beginning substitute tools can be found around the house or shed. Scissors – for trimming and rootpruning. Good sharp scissors of any kind will work, but you may like to have a separate heavy duty pair for root pruning as they will blunt more quickly. Bonsai scissors come in many shapes and sizesPotting sticks – for tamping soil around roots when repotting, you can use a pointed dowel or bamboo, steel knitting needles, meat skewers or chopsticks.Potting hook – to remove soil from the root system when repotting, can be fashioned from a two prong carving fork or small three pronged garden hoe, or a horses hoof pick. Wire cutters – A number of tools in the shed will perform this task adequately, but having recently tried a pair of bonsai wire cutters they did seem to cut more softly, yet firmly. Small general purpose knife/grafting knife– useful for many things.

If your interest continues and you decide invest in bonsai tools, the most useful one which cannot be replicated by a household tool is the concave cutter also known as –Side cutters/branch cutters – remove branches without leaving a stub. They make a slightly concave cut which facilitates healing without scarring. The branch being cut should not be thicker than the blade width. A range of sizes is available – the size of the trees you work on will dictate the size of the cutters you will need. You may want a large and small pair. Tweezers/spatula or pincettes – one end is a miniature trowel for working the moss and firming it to the soil. The tweezers are useful for tip pruning the sharp needles on conifers and cleaning and removal of leaves and weeds. Other tools are – wire benders, (pliers can be used) a saw, for larger branches, large root-cutters and when you get really serious, there are jin strippers, carving tools and advanced bending tools, jacks and levers. Then there are also whisks for cleaning moss and soil scoops.

You will also need some –Copper or aluminium wire – for wiring trunks and branches. Copper wire is measured by gauge ranging from 22 - 6 (the larger the number the smaller the wire). Aluminum wire is measured in millimetres from 1mm to 8mm, and is less expensive.Fibreglass or plastic fine screening – to cover drainage holes in bonsai pots.

Tools will last longer if you care for them. After use, wipe off the dirt with a cloth and clean off the resin with alcohol, oil the blades and pivot joint with rust preventing oil. Store your tools in a dry place, separately so that blades don’t get damaged.

The club buys wire in bulk and sells it by the metre, at cost, to members. (You can also order bulk wire for yourself with our order see page 3.)Will Fletcher at Island Bonsai, Ridgeway, has tools, wire, pots and advanced native plants. Chris Xepapas at Heritage Bonsai Shofu-en, Dysart, has bonsai ready plants, pots, wire and will have tools available soon. Tony Hewer will also order tools for members at cost price.

A fine set of professional stainless steel bonsai tools - hang the cost!!

A set of make do bonsai tools (you can see the difference) You can splash out and buy a whole set or gradually build up your collection.

Page 6

NEWS FROM THE BONSAI SOCIETY OF SOUTHERN TASMANIA N E W S L ET T E R 2 8 4

Open by appointment Ph 0418 342 046

Tasmanian native plants as bonsai

President: Ambrose Canning – Mob: 0409 165 446 Email: ambrose.canning@internode.on.net Vice Pres: Chris Xepapas – Mob: 0439 383 365 Email: cxepapas@gmail.com Secretary: Anita Shanahan – Ph: 6228 1281 Email: anita_shanahan@yahoo.com.au 6 Claude St New Town 7008 Treasurer: Rob White – Ph: 6223 2069 Email: rwgw100@gmail.com Committee: Tony Hewer – Mob: 0419 329 915 Email: tonyhewer13@gmail.com Committee: Evelyn Black – Ph: 6229 5741 Email: e.black@bigpond.com.au Editor: Alex Sutherland – Ph: 6239 6254 Mob: 0419 552 269 Email: alexsuth52@gmail.com PO Box 497, Kingston 7051

Committee Members contact details

OPEN BY APPOINTMENTTelephone: 0439 383 365

Email: cxepapas@gmail.com

MUSINGS FROM THE EDITOR

REPORT FROM THE 2017 AABC CONVENTION BRISBANE

2017 LOOKING AHEADSat 17 Jun – Tasmanian Bonsai Collective, L’tonTue 20 Jun – BSST Meeting BCACSat 24 Jun – BSST Workshop CCHSat & Sun15-16 Jul – VTP Andrew Ward, CCHTue 18 Jul – BSST Meeting BCACSun 23 Jul – BSST Workshop CCHSun 30 Jul – Nursery visit to Andrew at ForcettTue 15 Aug – BSST Meeting (AGM), BCACSat 19 Aug – BSST Workshop Sat & Sun 1-2 Sep – BFA Rui Feirrera, CCH Fri 8 & Sat 9 Sept – Exhibition, Town Hall

BCAC – Bellerive Community Arts Centre CCH – Cambridge Community Hall

My apologies for all the typos in the last edition I was suffering a nasty headcold and could hardly see the pages. I noticed a few beauties! - not least, all the gins being consumed at the last workshop. Ed.

Rob White was our sole representative at the AABC National Bonsai Convention that was held in Brisbane in late May. He reports:The attendance was about 220, very similar to that at our convention last year, although the proportion of locals was higher.The standard of trees in the exhibition was very high with a good range of styles but, as would be expected, including many sub-tropical species, especially Ficus. Alas, attendance by the general public at the exhibition was low. The sales area was large and very busy. There was a good range of trees and pots, for sale.

Our own Jarryd Baily, who originally comes from Brisbane, was there selling those trees that he is not able to bring to Tasmania.The “lead act” was Marc Noelander from Belgium. He is by far the best bonsai demonstrator I have experienced. His skills are amazing, his communication style was perfect and he adapted to the Australian sense of humour instantly! He was on stage for the entire 2 days of the convention. At times he was alone, at others he was working, with a low key commentary, whilst others demonstrated. If you ever get the chance to see Marc inaction, take it!!

TVP ANDREW WARD 15-16 JULY HAVE YOU REGISTERED to be a participant or an observer? Go to our website and follow the instructions to fill in the registration form and forward your payment to the society.

This will be an excellent workshop for both beginners and the more experienced.