Bonsai Things to do in Cape Town - November

NOVEMBER   

Month	Mean Rainfall mm	Rel.  Humidity %	Daily Sun­shine Hrs	Temp. Max Celsius	Temp. Min Celsius
November	13,7	70	10,3	23,6	13,0

POSITION	The start of hot dry summer weather may be experienced, some trees may need to be moved to less sunny spots or, if necessary, put up shade cloth. Remember, trees need very bright light for photosynthesis to operate so if shade cloth is used do not use types that cut out excess light.
WATERING	If the trees are outdoors daily watering is required unless it rains.
FERTILISING	Continue fertilising and feed flowering and fruiting bonsai with a fertiliser which is high in potassium such as 3: 1: 5.
DISEASE CONTROL	Pests are always around and a wary eye has to be kept out for them.
PRUNING	The frantic growth of spring may have slowed down a bit but it is still necessary to nip and perhaps a critical eye may be used to revise and update designs of trees. Look very carefully to ensure that top branches are not becoming too heavy and so on. Sort out secondary branches and the fine networks of branchlets so that they do not become an entangled mess.
POTTING	There is still time to pot many evergreens, watch the buds.
REMARKS	Visit other bonsai growers' collections and nurseries for inspiration. There is time for seed sowing and propagating by cuttings and air-layering. Clean-up, erect new benches... Do not be impatient but relax and enjoy everything you do as you do it.

Bonsai Things to do in Cape Town - October

OCTOBER                                SPRING!

Month	Mean Rainfall mm	Rel.  Humidity %	Daily Sun­shine Hrs	Temp. Max Celsius	Temp. Min Celsius
October	32,7	74	8,9	21,2	10,6

POSITION	Early spring! All or nearly all deciduous plants are out in leaf, the soft new foliage is a delight. We normally still experience rain and some cool weather is still around. Days are definitely less cloudy and longer. The drying south-east wind has not started seriously but be careful of hot dry days.
WATERING	Daily watering of outdoor bonsai may be required unless it rains.
FERTILISING	This is the time of year when advantage must be taken of good strong growth and from now on feeding should be regular and conscientiously carried out. Trees put on girth and wiring must be carefully watched lest scars develop.
DISEASE CONTROL	Pests are starting to enjoy life and may be decimating bonsai. Judicious control needs to be exercised. Some pests are not easy to see or identify. If a tree is not looking "right" ask for help.
PRUNING	Nipping and feeding is what is done now, it may seem a contradiction to feed and then to nip most of the new growth off but that is the way to build up a fine structure of small branchlets and achieve detail design.
POTTING	Many evergreens may be potted now. Watch for swollen buds. The correct time is usually when buds are swollen but before the leaves unfurl. An exception may be figs it is far too early to pot them.
REMARKS	In our area the weather may be unfriendly with cold wind and rain but it is spring and when the weather is nice take the opportunity of collecting moss and stones for use with bonsai. It is also a good time to collect potential bonsai from the wild as long as the appropriate permission has been sought, have respect for the ecology. This is a very good time to plant seeds and to take cuttings

Bonsai things to do in Cape Town - September

SEPTEMBER  

Month	Mean Rainfall mm	Rel.  Humidity %	Daily Sun­shine Hrs	Temp. Max Celcius	Temp. Min Celcius
Sept	41,7	77	7,7	19,2	8,7

POSITION	Still cold, rainy and windy but the signs of spring are emerging and buds are swelling. Some trees are well into new leaf.
WATERING	Water if it does not rain for a few days. Wind causes evaporation even on really cold days.
FERTILISING	As deciduous trees come into leaf they will benefit from light feeds. Evergreens that show signs of growth may also be fed lightly. Growth stimulants may be used but remember that they are not substitutes for fertiliser. After the heavy rains of winter nutrients have been leached out of the small quantity of soil in bonsai pots. Bonsai are dependant on feeding.
DISEASE CONTROL	Pests, especially sucking mites and some fungi are active, take steps to control if necessary before they debilitate a bonsai.
PRUNING	Allow the soft branchlets on deciduous trees to extend to about seven leaves and then prune back to 2 leaves. This is a vital exercise to build up a fine network of small branchlets (ramification).
POTTING	It is best to wait until next month for potting evergreens but some deciduous trees which are not yet in leaf may be judiciously potted.
REMARKS	An exciting time of the year for bonsai enthusiasts as new growth appears. It’s a good time to spring clean and tidy up. Do not be discouraged by the odd storm which causes a mess, look upon the clean-up as a relaxing and therapeutic exercise. Remove spent blossoms on winter flowering bonsai such as azaleas. The production of seed takes a lot out of a small bonsai.

Bonsai Things to do in Cape Town - August

AUGUST

Month	Mean Rainfall mm	Rel.  Humidity %	Daily Sun­shine Hrs	Temp. Max Celcius	Temp. Min Celcius
August	73,7	79	6,7	17,8	7,4

POSITION	Still wet, cold, windy and dark but beneath the gloom sap is rising and potting is hectic. Finish potting deciduous trees this month and add acacias to the list.
WATERING	Little watering required but be wary of consecutive dry days. Check drainage holes in pots and if trees are not draining properly lift them up and place coarse gravel under them.
FERTILISING	It is still very early to apply feeds but growth stimulants may be used. Once growth commences fertilisers may be used.
DISEASE CONTROL	Pests are waking up and whilst humans are still reluctant to go outdoors pests may be damaging little trees. Take the necessary precautions.
PRUNING	Pruning may now be carried out freely, stimulating growth by pruning on both deciduous and evergreens are useful.
POTTING	Deciduous trees may still be potted but take care with evergreens it is still too cold for them. Only pot when the onset of growth is obvious.
REMARKS	August days are longer but temperatures are still lower than in June. This area is still in winter, so take care not to do things best left to spring.

SUISEKI AND PENJING

The weather is conducive to collecting rocks as SUISEKI or for creating PENJING. It is also very healthy both physically and mentally to get outdoors and to enjoy a special closeness with nature.

Bishopsford Bonsai Nursery

Online shop and website

 

Bonsai Things to do in Cape Town - July

JULY

Month	Mean Rainfall mm	Rel.  Humidity %	Daily Sun­shine Hrs	Temp. Max Celcius	Temp. Min Celcius
July	96,9	81	6,2	17,4	7,1

POSITION	The shortest day has passed and days are getting longer but only marginally. The same remarks apply as for June.
WATERING	The water table is high and frequent rains and dull days often mean wet condi­tions but, take care! A few dry days and bonsai could suffer. The winds are strong and frequent, shelter delicate trees and pots! Ensure that pots drain correctly.
FERTILISING	No point in fertilising this month - temperatures are too low.
DISEASE CONTROL	Snails and slugs are busy, use appropriate bait. Fungus spores may be active during wet humid conditions. It is never cold enough in our area to kill spores of fungus effectively.  Spray with fungicides if necessary.
PRUNING	Winter prune and design prune deciduous trees.
POTTING	This is a really busy potting month for most deciduous trees such as Celtis, Ulmus, Acer, Taxodium, Betula, Carpinus, Wisteria and Malus. Visit a nursery for soil and pot supplies. It is always preferable to take a tree for which a pot is to be chosen to the pot supplier for direct selection.
REMARKS	A month when enthusiasm is sometimes at a low ebb but soon sap will be rising. Enjoy exchanging views with like minded people and reading books and maybe even surfing the web on Bonsai and related topics.

Bonsai Things to do in Cape Town - June

What to do in June

June is the start of a very busy period for bonsai, with many time sensitive activities:

·      Clean and disinfect your benches.

·      Remove dead leaves from pots and under benches as they encourage re-infestation of Summer’s pests, put down bait for slugs and snails.

·      Check that drainage holes are clear and that your pot is draining properly if not angle it on a wooden block making sure it is secure, and then correct the problem in Spring.

·      Spray Lime Sulphur twice, at weekly intervals, 35ml per 1litre, cover unglazed pots I don’t spray my evergreens as some people do, because I don’t like the awful colouring the lime sulphur tends to leave on the trees. I prefer to use Rosecare, Seizer + Eco Oil, Koinor or Plant Care.

·      If you develop Black Algae on your soil surface Virikop works well without killing the moss.

·      Don’t let moss get anywhere near acacia, pine or cork bark elm trunks.

·      Time to shoot select and needle pluck multi flush pines and embark on a feeding program to build them up before candle pruning in December. Adelgids and mites seem very prevalent. I use the chemicals mentioned above in point 4.

·      Time to reassess the design of your deciduous bonsai, transition your branches from thick too thin to give you better taper, remove unnecessary growth, wire carefully.

·      Dead head azaleas (once the flowers have died remove them).

·      Check watering, Bonsai are extremely sensitive to drought and cold.

·      Potting time is soon here so gather all you may need and prepare your soil mixture.