A Happy Bonsai reader asked me how do I attach aluminum foil on my bonsai trees when I seal cuttings (refer to post – Sealing Cuts of Bonsai Trees). Although it seems obvious to me, it probably isn’t so clear for many others. So here, I have taken a photo of the aluminum foil that I use for sealing cuttings of my bonsai trees. Yes, these are aluminum foil tapes with a removable paper liner.
The aluminum foil conforms well to irregular and curved surfaces. More advantages: waterproof sealing and heat reflection 😉
Last week, Teacher Wong demonstrated how to bend thick branches of a Eugenia uniflora (aka Brazilian Cherry, 紅果 in Chinese) bonsai tree by notching. “So, what is notching?” you probably will ask. Notching is a technique of bending a branch by cutting a “V” shape across the width of the branch and bend it into position Notching is especially useful for bending thick branches.
We must make the cuttings of the “V” shape as smooth and as straight as possible so to avoid any gap in between the cuttings when we pull together the cuttings and bend the branch with a guy wire tourniquet.
Wound Care: Wound Sealant or Waterproof Adhesive Tape?
While many bonsai enthusiasts prefer the use of wound sealant to protect cutting wounds on their bonsai trees, Teacher Wong advises us to use waterproof adhesive tape to tightly and completely wrap around the cutting wound for protection. And same as how we use adhesive aluminum foil, we should never use any wound sealant when we are using waterproof adhesive tape (for more about adhesive aluminum foil, visit Sealing Cuts of Bonsai Trees.)
Besides bending two major branches by notching, we also cut away some unsightly roots of the bonsai tree.
LEFT: Before RIGHT: After
Best Time for Notching
Since notching leaves a big wound on the bonsai tree, the most suitable time periods to carry out such operation for our trees are either in spring (when the weather is still cool while the tree has started its growing season), or in early autumn (when the summer heat has gone, and our tree still have much time to heal its wound before it goes dormant).
Recommendation
While I was trying to find out the proper term of this “V-shaped cutting and bending” technique, I came across a very useful article that describe different ways to bend thick or brittle branches with lots of photo illustrations by Harry Harrington in his very informational website.
Portion of scroll showing Shōki; Late Heian Period; a treasure of the Nara National Museum
Only until recently have I learned from a Japanese bonsai friend that Zhong Kui (鍾馗 in Chinese) is not only a well-known mythology character in Chinese culture, but also in the Japanese culture. Well, I shouldn’t be too surprised since there is so much in common between the two cultures.
In Japanese, Zhong Kui is called Shoki.
The Story of Zhong Kui
It is said that Zhong Kui is the deity who is the king of 80,000 ghosts and demons. According to folklore, Zhong Kui (712-756 AD) was a physician in the Tang era, a man with a very ugly appearance. To advance his career, he took the national examination at the capital and performed brilliantly, scoring the highest among all applicants. But due to his ugly appearance, Zhong Kui was rejected by the emperor. In shame and anger, Zhong Kui committed suicide in front of the emperor. Regretted his wrong committed, the emperor ordered that Zhong Kui be buried with the highest honor. After death, Zhong Kui became the king of ghosts in Hell, and in gratitude, Zhong Kui vowed to be a vanquisher of evil spirits.
The bat is often seen together with Zhong Kui as a symbol of good fortune and happiness.
Look closer, you will find a red bat on the tip of Zhong Kui’s folding fan.
Protector against Evil Spirits & Illness
In China, like many other Feng Shui items, Zhong Kui’s paintings and statues are often placed at the household entrance as a guardian spirit, as well as in places of business with high-valued goods. In Japan, during Edo-period (1615-1868), Shoki was very popular. People hung images of Shoki outside their houses to ward off evil spirits during the Boys’ Day festival (May 5 of each year). Nowadays, Shoki is relatively neglected, except in Kyoto, where residents still decorate their houses with Shoki’s statues to ward off evil and illness, and to protect the male members of the family.
Zhong Kui has also become one of Peking Opera’s most popular and beloved characters.
Have you come across a Podocarpus macrophyllus (aka Buddhist Pine, 羅漢松 in Chinese) with red leaves? While most Buddhist Pines only have leaves in green, the Buddhist Pine in Hainan Island has Buddhist Pine with red leaves.
New foliage of most Podocarpus macrophyllus comes in a light green color that gets darker as time passes by, but the new foliage of those in Hainan Island comes in red for a striking contrast.
Check out the post – Buddhist Pine – to learn more about this tree that is very suitable for indoor bonsai!
Podocarpus macrophyllus is one of the first few bonsai tree species that I learned about when I first put my feet in the bonsai world. Podocarpus macrophyllus is native to China and Japan. While the tree is called Kasamaki or Inumaki in Japanese, Podocarpus macrophyllus is also commonly called as Buddhist Pine, a literal translation of the tree’s Chinese name – Luo Han Song (羅漢松).
Leaves, Flowers & Fruits
Buddhist Pine has narrow, elliptical leaves that are stiff in texture and spirally crowded together. The tree’s cone-shaped flowers are unisexual. While male cones are yellowish brown, female are greenish.
The oval-shaped fruit which seated on thick fleshy receptacle turns reddish/purplish when ripened, which looks like a little Buddha meditating with a reddish/purplish rope on.
Sun
While Buddhist Pine loves full sun, it can tolerate partial shade, which makes this conifer a nice indoor bonsai tree.
by Mr. Wu Cheng-Fa
Illegal Digging
Recent years, there have been many cases of Buddhist Pines being illegally harvested. As China’s economy thrives, the demand of Buddhist Pine, which is viewed as a lucky charm, rises. A single Buddhist Pine can fetch up to HKD $100,000 (around USD $13,000). The high profits from illegal tree-harvesting have attracted many illegal mainlanders to come to Hong Kong, dig out and smuggle the trees back to China.
As you may know, I have a piece of 10 x 10 square feet land and a rack in the bonsai workshop (for more, check out the post My Bonsai Land Update – What is the Black Cloth for? and More Bonsai Trees on My Rack). I am growing a few big trees that need thicker trunks and more branch in the ground and putting the rest of my trees on the rack.
My bonsai rack and land (photos taken in early May 2011)
Among those on the rack, there were several big trees that I thought might have developed enough and could be potted for the final stage of development (development of fine branches). However, a year has passed and these trees haven’t grown much. I guess I probably have potted them a bit too early. So I decided to take these bonsai trees out from the pot and train them on the ground again. Hopefully, these trees will have their branches developed and can be potted in 2 years.
We can tell that the trees haven’t developed much in the past year with these photos (photo at the bottom is taken in early May 2011). Besides having a bit more foliage (mostly unwanted), the trees have not developed any suitable branches.
The tree surrounded with bricks in the middle is a bonus. It has been here before I moved my trees in.
With other committee members of Institute of Lingnan Penjing Hong Kong, I attended the Lingnan penjing (meaning: Southern bonsai) show which was hosted by 大良盆景協會 (literal translation: Daliang Penjing Association) earlier this month. It was amazing to see so many beautiful southern style penjing all put together in one place. And here, let me show you some photos I took on the day of the bonsai show.
大良盆景協會 (literal translation: Daliang Penjing Association) invited over 500 bonsai enthusiasts all over China to attend its lingnan penjing show.
LEFT: The committee members of Institute of Lingnan Penjing Hong Kong
RIGHT: 5 renowned penjing artists has formed a group and called themselves 嶺南盆景痴友 (literal translation: Lingnan Penjing Maniac) 🙂
Entrance of the bonsai show venue
In the lingnan penjing show, one could find many penjing work by Mr. Han Xue Nian (韓學年先生) – the Chairman of Daliang Penjing Association. While Mr. Han’s specialty is pines (indeed, he is nicknamed as 松王 – the Pine King), he grows bonsai trees of different species and styles. Here is one of his creative work.
I especially admire this bonsai. Note how the trunk of the tree has fully grown into the rock. I wonder how many years has the bonsai artist – Mr. Zeng An Chang (曾安昌先生) – taken to get the tree to grow so seamlessly into the rock.
There’s an elephant under the tree 😉
Unlike Japanese bonsai, one can often find figurines in Chinese penjing.
If you are interested in learn more about the different bonsai styles, you should definitely check out these posts in Bonsai Style category.
What is Lingnan penjing? What are there in Lingnan penjing that are so different from other penjing schools? What is the “Grow and Clip” method? These are the topics Teacher Wong talked about in my first Lingnan penjing class two years ago, and now I would like to share with you part of the content in my Lingnan penjing 101 class (you can also find this in the official website of Institute of Lingnan Penjing, Hong Kong which I am busy working on now).
Spring from the Mother Nature, Exceed the Mother Nature
Chinese Lingnan penjing embraces the Mother Nature. While it imitates the fascinating scenery in the nature, it is not bounded by any rule or formula. Because of its ability to associate its audiences with the beauty and majesty of the Mother Nature in a merely small pot, Lingnan penjing is praised as an art that “Spring from the Mother Nature, Exceed the Mother Nature” (源於自然，超於自然).
Convey Messages and Thoughts through Comprised Style and Ambiance
Lingnan penjing is not only about the outer beauty. Every penjing has its own unique ambiance and mood. When viewing a Lingnan penjing, one should savor the messages and emotions that the Lingnan penjing artist is trying to express.
Prune Trees with “Grow and Clip” Method
Lingnan penjing artists prune trees with the “Grow and Clip” method. Instead of bending by wires, the branches are kept being clipped as they grow. Every clipping creates a new turn and a new session on the branch, and in every session, there grows new branches. Eventually, as the tree keeps growing and being pruned by this particular method, it will taper from the base to the apex, the proportions between the trunk and branches will be greatly developed, with branches full of turns and twists.
If you are interested in knowing more about the other schools of penjing, I would recommend you to check out this page in Phoenix Bonsai Society’s website which talks many different penjing schools in details.
I am currently working hard on building the official website of Institute of Lingnan Penjing, Hong Kong and have just finished the post about how to appreciate Chinese Lingnan Penjing (“Lingnan” means Southern, “penjing” is bonsai in Chinese). While I think that most of the points mentioned can be applied not only on Lingnan Penjing, but penjing in general, these points are nevertheless worth sharing.
An excellent Lingnan penjing should have the following characteristics:
Style
The base of the tree truck should look strong, yet rugged and aged.
The branches should be naturally in proportion, with focus point clearly defined.
The size of the tree crown should get smaller as it goes to the top in a natural way.
Amount of roots showing should be just right. If too much roots is shown, it may affect the health of the tree. If not enough roots is shown, the tree may not look as strong and aged as we want it to be.
Pruning Techniques
Don’t leave (or at least minimize) any trace of cutting and pruning
Be aware of the density of the branches. While an unreasonably naked tree with very few branches is bad, a tree with overly stuffed foliage that block the view of the structure of the truck and branches is equally undesirable.
Growing Condition
The tree should be growing healthily with no pest and disease problem.
Unless the tree naturally has yellow or variegated leaves, the tree should have shiny, green foliage.
Flowering species should be able to fully blossom.
Fruit-bearing species should be able to bear many fruits.
Ambiance
An excellent penjing can touch its audiences with resonance, as if bringing its audiences to the scenery that is presented in the pot.
Pot / Container
Size of pot – A pot too small makes the penjing look too crammed, while a pot too large makes the penjing look too empty. (A pot too large also lessens the relative size and strength of the tree(s) in the penjing.)
The color of pot should harmonize with the penjing.
The shape of the pot should complement with the size and style of the penjing.
Display Stand
The size, height, and shape of the display stand should match well with the size and style of the penjing.
Accessories & Background
The figurines, rocks, and accessories in the penjing should be in proportion with the tree(s), as well as with one another. The whole picture in the penjing should look natural.
Titling
A great title brings life into the penjing, suggesting another perspective of the penjing to its audiences, inviting the audiences to view the penjing in another way, so to understand the thoughts and emotions of the penjing artist that may be hidden inside the art.
