Only changing the point of view

I have been looking at my variegated ficus, hating how straight and boring it is. See the picture below from one year ago. Why should I make a tree like that?  But now I have decided I must change it, I will change the front. In the picture above you see the new front. I have cut the tree shorter and it is much more natural and alive. Now I like it again! Next time I repot it, it will also be put in the right place in the pot.

The last days have been warm and sunny, so the spring has really exploded! The snow has melted away from my outdoor trees, and the great thing is they look good! Not like last year when I had a bad spring-surprise in some brown dead pines.

The wild nature is still very grey,  but close to the house some flowers pop up and brighten up the colours!

And on our lake the last pieces of ice are floating around - will they be completely gone tomorrrow?

Bonsai Umeå 2015 - exhibition

Here are some pictures from the exhibition from this past weekend. All trees belong to members of the Swedish Bonsai Society. A few of them are mine! (None of these small ones.)

I don't have a picture of every tree in the exhibition, here are only a few.

We asked Mr Mori to give suggestions for improvements. He gave many suggestions for improvements but mostly on how to display bonsai, how to choose the right accent plants and so on. Not as much on the shape of the trees.

There were many pines, it is the sort of tree that grows best in this area. And a super tree for bonsai.

... but only one ficus! That was a species that Mr Mori had never heard of. He thought this tree should have a higher stand. (I agree on that - this solution was only better than the alternatives available.)

For my twin trunk pine he suggested I should turn the tree a little, and I can agree on that too. I will do it when I repot it next year.

A rowan with nice colours to mix with all the dark conifers.

A birch, brought to Umeå by a member from the south of Sweden. I didn't bring my own birch because I thought it was too ugly at the moment.

A pomegranate and a small pine.

More pines.

And a spruce.

This was Mr Mori's favourite in the exhibition, unfortunately not my tree!

This pine is mine though. I got the feeling he wasn't very impressed by this tall and thin tree, he only said it should have a shallower pot. He can not know, of course, that I am happy it has a pot at all.

Neither was he impressed at all by the grey wood I had put under the pot. I like it very much!

Another of my pines, this one too is tall and thin (and has the same kind of old wood under the pot). I have had an idea for some time that I should take away the long branch on the left side, but I havent really dared to do it. What if somebody should say "you damaged the tree". But it would make the tree more of a proper bunjin, and the direction of the tree would be more obvious. Now Mr Mori suggested the same idea. So guess what. I did it today. I took away not only one but three branches. Now the tree looks like this:

Some wiring needed of course, but how much less it is to wire and keep in shape! 

Then I only need a round pot for it!

Ficus

13.00.  One o'clock.

A hot and sunny day, finally in the end of summer!

And I am happy to have time to take care of my ficus - it is totally overgrown and the trunk is hidden in all the leaves!

14.00.  Two o'clock.
(I must remind myself to not keep this tree so triangular, must make it more rounded, like a leaf-tree.)

15.30.  Half past three.

The sun is still shining - and now the trunk is visible again!

Indoors, still.

 Worked on my variegated ficus today.

And my ivy.  I would want the low branch to become stronger on this one.

Pomegranate with flower buds, maybe they are not visible in the picture?

Here the flower buds are more clear to see. Now when I see the picture I think this pomegranate will be repotted on an angle the next time, so that both trunks will be leaning to the right instead of one to each side...

Here is also a picture of my hollies. They have been overwintering in the garage, I took them outside today as it is pretty warm (10 degrees C). They are full of flowers! 

I love the shiny green leaves, and one time many years ago I thought I would make bonsai of them... What a joke. I hardly want to repot them or pick up a fallen leaf from the soil, because they hurt my fingers...

...

Januari

Winter outside. Indoor trees trying to survive in the poor light.

November

My ficus with electric christmas candles and an orchid. I have defoliated the ficus twice this season, and will do it twice again in the coming year. Now it looks just as normal.

Nu får jag skynda mig om det ska bli nåt inlägg i november... Jag vet att det är ett par dagar kvar till första advent, men eftersom jag jobbar i helgen så började jag leta efter adventsstjärnan redan idag. Hittade den dock inte. En ljusstake hittade jag - och den lyser!!! Det brukar den oftast inte göra när man tar fram den...

Så ni ser att min stora fikus ser ut ungefär som vanligt. Två gånger har den avlövats under växtsäsongen, och två gånger ska jag göra det igen den kommande sommaren.

We have had a long period of rain, rain, rain, fog and darkness... Quite depressing.

Vi har haft en lång period med regn regn regn, mörker och dimma... Det har varit ganska deprimerande.

This picture is from today: It is a little colder and we have snow on the ground... One millimeter or so...

Idag ser det ut så här. Vi har snö - ungefär en millimeter!

The lake is ice-covered.

Is på sjön.

My outdoor trees. The red tapes are still here and I hope they will keep the moose away in the winter! It did work last year!

Vinterförvaring av utebonsaier. Jag har kvar de röda banden och hoppas att de ska hålla älgarna borta... Det fungerade ju förra året! (Ja ja jag vet att jag är en optimist.)

 My two ficus natasja.

Mina två natasjafikusar.

Ivy. I have let it grow in all directions.

Murgröna. Den får lov att vara stor och vildvuxen den här tiden - klipper den sedan i vår då den ska planteras om.

Many green leaves and a blue flower

 All plants in my house grow enormously right now, with the light coming back more and more. I got an advice to defoliate this tree twice in the same season for smaller leaves. The suggestion was early june and september (and same next year) but I couldn't wait any longer and did it today...

 Allt som står här inne i huset växer som bara den nu - dagarna är långa och ljusa. Min köksbonsai har blivit helt överväxt - nu kunde jag inte vänta med avbladning längre! Fick förra året rådet att blada av den två gånger på samma säsong, för att få mindre blad. Ja två gånger på samma säsong och två gånger nästa år igen var det till och med. Förslaget var tidigt i juni och sedan i september. Denna avbladning får gälla för tidigt i juni, det är ju i alla fall nästan mitten på maj...

Outside the snow is melting more and more, and my pines are beginning to show. Every spring I have different surprises when the snow disappears.

Ute har det också gått fort senaste dagarna. Snön sjunker ihop för varje dag och nu kommer mina tallar fram. Det är spännande varje vår att se vad som hänt under snön. Olika sorts överraskningar har man fått genom åren.

My husband has changed the tyres on our car from wintertyres to summertyres, let's hope it wasn't done too early.

And I have seen the first bumble-bee!

Maken har idag bytt till sommardäck på bilen, förhoppningsvis inte för tidigt.

Och jag fick se årets första humla!

The ice is going from the lake:

Isen håller på och försvinna:

Bonsai activities, at home - and in Umeå

I repot a tree now and then when I can get some time. This ficus was moved to the left in the pot, see below.

Jag tar ett träd då och då och planterar om. Den här fikusen hade jag bestämt att flytta åt vänster i krukan. Nu är det gjort, se nedan, och mycket av höjden försvann också.

Luckily I have a repotting space where I don't have to clean up after every time... (These are the two types of cat litter I use.)

Håller till i tvättstugan med det jordiga arbetet, och där städar jag inte bort efter varje enskild omplantering. (Det ser förskräckligt ut förstås...) De här två kattsandsorterna använder jag och blandar i jorden, de består av granulerad lera. INTE klumpbildande. Den ena har lite större och den andra lite mindre kornstorlek, hoppas det syns på bilden.

The other day I represented the bonsai society and talked about bonsai to a group of students in Umeå. There will be a practical follow-up later. They gave me an interesting plant for this, it is an acacia tortilis. It has beautiful small leaves - and is full of thorns...


 Häromdagen var jag i Umeå och berättade om bonsai för en grupp intresserade studenter. Jag var där som representant för bonsaisällskapet och vi var inbjudna av en grupp som kallar sig dendrologer. De var så intresserade att inte mindre än 18 st skrev på en intresseanmälan om att senare göra en praktisk uppföljningsdag!

Som tack fick jag denna växt, som är en acacia tortilis. Jätteroligt! Den har vackra blad - "upprepat parbladiga" - och är full med taggar...

This is how much you can see of my outdoor trees today: nothing at all!

Så här mycket har utomhusträden tinat fram: ingenting alltså.

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