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[IBC] sudden increase of leaf loss of our fukien tree
Jim: No need to insult the author out of ignorance. The Simon &
Schuster's Guide to Bonsai (as well as the identical The MacDonald Encyclopedia of Bonsai) was authored by the eminent Italian bonsai artist, Gianfranco Georgi. Gianfranco was a major player in bonsai a couple of decades ago. He also served a few terms on the Board of Directors of BCI. I last saw him at the BCI convention in Orlando in 1993. I have no idea where he is currently or how he is doing, but please do not assume the author is ignorant of bonsai. As you well know, it is not always the author's fault when a book is published with bad photos, etc. Sometimes they have control, but often they do not. Alan Walker http://bonsai-bci.com http://LCBSBonsai.org -----Original Message----- From: Jim Lewis Regarding the soil. We bought it in nearby garden shop as bonsai soil. The truth is it does not look like the rest of the soil in the pot. It does resemble (on touch, look) the layer that was there before, that is the clay pieces... As I wrote elsewhere in this thread, we draw our information on the book "Simon & Schuster's Guide to Bonsai". Their ideal mixture for *repotting* is 60% humus-rich soil, 10% peat and 30% of coarse sand. Since we removed about an inch of the top layer, we thought we'd replace it by the mixture above but its composition is quite different. I'm getting a bit confused here... Oh, aaargh! ONE of the problem with bonsai books is that they're written everywhere and translated into everything, and that does lead to confusion. S&SGtB was written in Italy and later translated into English -- possibly by someone who has never grown (or maybe even seen) a bonsai. Heaven only knows what the original text said, but the translator gave you 70% humus -- which isn't a very good idea, since humus is rotting leaves, worm casing, etc. -- ORGANIC -- stuff, which rots and gets mushier and mushier. The peat also is organic and comes in MANY forms (most of them not suited for bonsai soil in any great amount) and "coarse" sand varies according to one's definition of "coarse" (of course). I have the book, but haven't paid attention to the soil bit since I got it well after I'd killed my share of trees for this or that stupid reason. So. Your tree should be planted in the soil you bought as "bonsai soil," assuming it is at least 50 percent baked clay and 30 percent pine bark and 20 percent coarse sand (or, 70-30 clay-sand or clay-bark) with NO mushy humus. I don't remember where you live, but there are bonsai clubs in surprising locations. Goto www.absbonsai.org or to www.bonsai-bci.com and find their pages that list clubs in N. America. There's probably one near you. Failing that, send Carl Rosner an e-mail (he answered one of your earlier questions and have him walk you though the art of transplanting a Fukien tea into good bonsai soil. Or, seeing as how that garden shop handles something called bonsai soil maybe that's an indication somewhere there knows something about bonsai????????????? Go also to www.internebonsaiclub.org, click on the "knowledge base" and read some of the articles there -- especially the one about soils. As far as news readers go, I don't do newsgroups too often (I read these messages via the linked e-mail list) but do a google search for free and newsgroups and see what pops up. Jim Lewis - - Tallahassee, FL - Only where people have learned to appreciate and cherish the landscape and its living cover will they treat it with the care and respect it should have - Paul Bigelow Sears. ************************************************** ****************************** ++++Sponsored, in part, by Chris Cochrane++++ ************************************************** ****************************** -- The IBC HOME PAGE & FAQ: http://www.internetbonsaiclub.org/ -- +++++ Questions? Help? e-mail +++++ |
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