In a message dated 6/3/2005 4:33:29 PM Eastern Standard Time,
writes:

resently saved to really big Berberis bushes (small trees) from a garden,
where they was dumped in the compost heap. Particularly one show a good stem
and crown. Has anyone worked with Berberis before. They sting like nothing I
know, so any advice in addition to the obvious "use gloves" would be
appreciated.



Inge:

I have worked for many years with Berberis thunbergii var.atropurpurea
'Crimson Pygmy'. The best approach is to snap off the thorns. This is an easy
process, and it will now allow you to easily manipulate the branches through
wiring to create the bonsai illusion. The gold-tinged flowers of Berberis are
attractive, and older specimens can nicely lend themselves to interesting
designs.

The branches can be a bit temperamental, so be careful about the extend to
which you bend the branches. If you need to introduce a major bend, use
raffian wraps to prevent breaking.

The species responds extremely well to aggressive feeding, and consequently
sends out substantial growth during the spring flushing of new shoots.
Select those which lend themselves to your design objective, and then remove those
which are of little interest.

The winter can be unkind to this species, so DO NOT allow Berberis to endure
and extremely cold winter as a potted specimen.


Berberis lends itself particularly well to Kabudachi style bonsai.

If you have additional questions, please let me know.

Cordially,

Michael Persiano
members.aol.com/iasnob

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