Hi

I 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 Fagerli
Norway - west coast.

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Great find Inge. Berberis can be excellent bonsai. Are they the green or
purple variety?
Our club chairman has a great atropurpurea that was developed from a short
stump in three years.

I collected a giant one with good movement and craggy bark and have since
bought a huge Dan Barton pot for it, in the sincere hope that it achieves
its full potential.

I can't offer any advice on the thorns other than wire very early (while
they are still soft) and trim often. If bending new shoots down to set the
position for branches, do it carefully and gradually. A quick bend or too
far often pops the new shoot out of its "socket".

Good luck and keep us posted.

Cheers

Kev Bailey
Vale Of Clwyd
N Wales, UK
Zone 9



From: Inge Halvorsen Fagerli
Reply-To: Inge Halvorsen Fagerli
To:
Subject: [IBC] Berberis
Date: Fri, 3 Jun 2005 22:23:00 +0200

Hi

I 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 Fagerli
Norway - west coast.

************************************************* *******************************
++++Sponsored, in part, by Kevin Bailey++++
************************************************* *******************************
-- The IBC HOME PAGE & FAQ: http://www.internetbonsaiclub.org/ --
+++++ Questions? Help? e-mail +++++

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************************************************** ******************************
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+++++ Questions? Help? e-mail +++++

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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++++Sponsored, in part, by Kevin Bailey++++
************************************************** ******************************
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+++++ Questions? Help? e-mail +++++