BEŠTJA

Even though I know that I am always surprised by how good trees the boys have home. Rough diamonds, but within a few years this trees will be excellent bonsai. Again, we met with the Maribor branch of Tora bonsai school, Dušan joined the group.

 

Saj vem, ampak vseeno me vedno znova preseneti, kako dobra drevesa imajo fantje doma. Še neobrušene diamante, ki pa bodo v nekaj letih vrhunski bonsaji. Spet smo se srečali z Mariborsko podružnico šole Tora, skupini se je pridružil še Dušan.

 

 

The tree that I was impressed this time and which by my opinion has a very good potential is Andrej's Prunus mahaleb. Apparently in nature did not look anything special; potential has only begun to show in the pot, finally, we gave a great future to tree with first step at the last meeting in Maribor.

 

Drevo, ki me je tokrat navdušilo in ki ima po moje zelo dober potencial, je Andrejeva rešelika. V naravi menda ni izgledala nič posebnega; potencial se je začel kazati šele v posodi, dokončno pa smo odlično prihodnost drevesu zakoličili na zadnjem srečanju v Mariboru.

 

 

It is a massive tree, with the first work on dead wood (we tried something different and new techniques), and with the choice of front Andrej discovered the best possible line.

 

Gre za masivno drevo; Andrej je s prvo obdelavo suhega lesa (preizkusili smo nekaj različnih in novih tehnik), in izbiro prednje strani izluščil najboljšo možno linijo. 

 

Next step is building of the crown, the first primary branches. In this kind of species this goes very fast. Nebari which is not ideal is the minor defect of this tree, but in such a great material that's not a serious error.

 

Zdaj je na vrsti graditev krošnje, najprej osnovnih vej. Pri tej vrsti gre to zelo hitro. Manjša pomankljivost na drevesu je le nebari, ki ni idealen, ampak pri takem drevesu tudi to ni huda napaka.

 

 

P. S.: If you want to join Maribor, S. Primorska or the central group of Tora bonsa school, you are welcome!

 

P.S.: Če se želite pridružiti Mariborski, S. Primorski ali centralni skupini šole Tora, ste dobrodošli!

PPS: Prunus at the photo below is also in the phase of building a crown and a few years away from the target. But the contrast between the delicate white flowers and coarse skeleton, these days is really remarkable!

 

P.P.S.: Spodnja rešelika je tudi v fazi graditve krošnje in še nekaj let stran od cilja. Ampak kontrast med nežnimi belimi cvetovi in grobim skeletom je v teh dneh res izjemen!

 

MAMA

When the winter finally turned  into spring, it was suddenly a lot of work to do in my garden. But I still managed to finish the key project of this spring! I was planning to write a long article about this project, but the Juniper just sucked all the energy out of me. Amazing tree! Maybe I'll write an article at another time ... Juniperus Itoigawa came into my garden from Japan in last April. I chose it from the bottom photo as was on the shelf in one of the Japanese nurseries, but even then I felt that It has the great potential.

 

Ko se je zima končno prevesila v pomlad, je bilo nenadoma dela v vrtu čez glavo. Pa še osrednji projekt letošnje pomladi sem uspel spraviti pod streho! O tem projektu sem nameraval napisati poglobljen članek, a mi je brin enostavno posrkal vso enegijo. Izjemno drevo! Mogoče malce bolj poglobljeno kdaj drugič ... Brin vrste itoigava je z Japonske v moj vrt prišel lani aprila. Izbral sem ga po spodnji fotografiji še na polici japonske drevesnice, toda začutil, da ima velik potencijal.

 

 

I've held it in my arms for the first time a few months later. My feelings were confirmed - the tree had a special energy even in live. In the company of trees for the NTC it has traveled to my garden.

 

Prvič sem ga v rokah držal nekaj mesecev pozneje. Moji občutki so se potrdili - drevo je tudi v živo izžarevalo posebno energijo. V družbi dreves za NTC je odpotovalo v moj vrt.

 

 

After a short analysis at home I realized that the front will probably be just on the opposite side of those on the first photo.

 

Po krajši analizi sem doma ugotovil, da bo prva stran verjetno ravno nasprotna od tiste, ki mi jo je brin ponujal na prvi fotografiji.

 

 

After one year under the sun and complete acclimatization Juniper was ready to styling. How much the crown was increased in one year I found only when I compared the photos. The tree is in great shape, time to work!

 

Po letu dni uživanja na soncu in popolni aklimatizaciji, je bil brin pripravljen na oblikovanje. Kako velik je bil prirast v enem letu, sem ugotovil šele, ko sem primerjal fotografije. Odlična forma, čas za delo!

 

 

First, I spent two days cleaning the crown, 50-60% of green ended on the ground.

 

Najprej sem dva dni porabil za čiščenje krošnje, na tleh je končalo 50-60% zelene mase.

 

 

Then I started  to work on live veins. Cleaning the bark, finding edges of veins and then cleaning.

 

Potem sem se lotil živih ven. Odstranjevanje odmrle skorje, iskanje robov živih ven in nato čiščenje.

This was followed by wiring and the positioning of the branches.

Sledilo je žičenje in pozicioniranje vej.

 

After a basic setting of the clouds I started to work on the details.

 

Po osnovni postavitvi oblačkov je sledilo delo na podrobnostih.

 

 

 

On the otherwise excellent tree now the first left jin bothers me, it is to straight and out of context. I will work on it. Unfortunately, also the attractive ten-jin is hided behind the crown and is only partly visible, but also that has its own charm. I willsearch for a new pot too, of course! But the first phase of preparations for the exhibition is finished!

 

Na sicer odličnem drevesu me zdaj moti le spodnji levi džin, ki je preraven in iz konteksta. Na njem bom še delal. Žal seje tudi atraktivni ten-džin skril za krošnjo in ga je zgolj slutiti, ampak tudi to ima svoj čar. Pa nova posoda seveda! Toda prva faza priprave na razstavo je končana!

 

 

The final portrait:

 

Še finalni portret:

 

PS: Beside all of the work, also the school is going on. Amongst others, Uroš came in the studio, he received the basic workshop as a gift and he was immensely happy. On Saturday 27th April you are invited to attend the second meeting of the branch of our school in Maribor!

 

P.S.: Ob vsem delu se s polno paro nadaljuje tudi šolanje. Med drugimi se je v ateljeju oglasil tudi Uroš, ki je tečaj dobil v dar in bil darila neznansko vesel. Vsi Štajerci pa ste v soboto 27. aprila vabljeni na drugo srečanje podružnice šole Tora v Mariboru!

REKORD

The first real day of spring was celebrated with our work outdoors! We enjoyed the warmth and the sun and worked on trees. Miha was trimming and later also wiring his azalea under the watchful eye of Tomaž and Marija. Azalea did a significant progress in one year.

 

Prvi pravi pomladni dan smo krstili z delom na prostem! Uživali toploto in sončne žarke ter se ukvarjali z drevesi. Miha je pod budnim očesom Tomaža in Marije obrezoval in kasneje tudi žičil azalejo, ki je v zadnjem letu zelo napredovala. 

 

 

Aleš was finalizing his project of dwarf hinoki cypress.

 

Aleš je dokončeval svoj projekt pritlikave ciprese hinoki.

 

And when the evening drove us to the workshop, Nik also dropped by. He performed a quick transformation of larch, demonstration worth of every stage! ;-) In an hour and 20 minutes he created a future bonsai from raw material. This is a right speed for impatient viewers on demonstrations! Maybe this was even some record?

 

In ko nas je večer pregnal v delavnico, se je oglasil še Nik. Izvedel je rokohitrsko preobrazbo macesna, demonstracijo vredno vsakega odra! ;-) V uri in 20 minut je iz neobdelanega materijala ustvaril bodoči bonsaj. To je hitrost za običajno neučakane gledalce na demonstracijah! Morda je padel celo kakšen rekord?

Despite the speed, the result is a nice tree. Nik Bravo!

Kljub hitrosti je nastalo lepo drevo. Bravo Nik!

P.S.: Tora continue to accept new members. You can also join the Prmorska or Maribor group!

P.S.: Tora še naprej sprejema nove člane. Lahko se pridružite tudi Primorski ali Mariborski skupini!

DRAMA

Hours and hours of wiring, but I found time for repotting an interesting juniper. Just for fun! :-) The root system is now arranged and in the right substrate. I potted it in a Chinese pot. Quite a bit of work on the crown and with the dead wood is still vaiting, but this will be done later. Step by step!

 

Med urami in urami žičenja sem našel čas za presajanje zanimivega brina. Tako, za sprostitev! :-) Koreninski sistem je sedaj urejen, substrat pravi, posajen je v posodo kitajske izdelave. Še kar nekaj dela bo na krošnji in pa z suhim lesom, ampak korak za korakom!

 

May 2012

 

April 2013

 

Juniper is for sale or trade!

 

Brin je naprodaj ali za zamenjavo!

 

PS: In the afternoon we - Jakob, Evelina and I -  have visited the exhibition named Leonardo. Leonardo da Vinci was the Renaissance master, a true genius. The Vitruvian man anyhow is a basis of proportions, not only in the human body. His thesis on the proportions of tree growth is videly used in bonsaism. For nature, from which he copied many ideas, he said that it is complete and it is right as it should be.

 

P.S.: Popoldne smo z Jakobom in Evelino obiskali razstavo Leonardo. Leonardo da Vinci, renesančni mojster, je bil pravi genij. Njegov Vitruvijski človek je tako ali tako osnova proporcev, ne samo človeškega telesa. Njegovo tezo o razmerjih v drevesni rasti pa tako ali tako v bonsajizmu s pridom uporabljamo. Za naravo, iz katere je kopiral mnogo idej, pa je dejal, da je popolna, saj je vse tako, kot mora biti.

MARIBOR

The opening of a branch of Tora school in Maribor was successful. Simon was the initiator and organizer, Davorin, Andrej and Dominik have already joined the group, of course, we hope that we will be joined by anyone from Štajerska region. The students will tell you best, how much knowledge they have already taken at the first meeting :-)!

 

Odprtje podružnice šole Tora v Mariboru je bilo uspešno. Simon je bil pobudnik in organizator, Davorin, Andrej in Dominik so se skupini že pridružili, upamo seveda, da se nam bo v nadaljevanju pridružil še kdo s Štajerskega konca. Koliko znanja so študentje odnesli že s prvega srečanja, vedo najbolje povedati sami :-) !

 

Working place

 

Andrej brought some exceptional Prunus mahaleb trees, Davorin worked on a small Carpinus, Dominik on larch.

 

Andrej je na srečanje prinesel nekaj izjemnih rešelik, Davorin je delal na manjšem gabru, Dominik na macesnu.

 

Andrej working

 

Simon has worked on the great Carpinus betulus. Collected three years ago from the hedge, It was more than prepared for first step. After pruning, working with power tools and wiring the outline of a future bonsai is merging out of the dense bush. Carpinus have some great natural lines on some branches, while others branches will need to grow. What will be done with the middle section, where now stands the other shortened trunk, the Simon will decided in near future. But now we can see that the tree has a large potential!

 

Simon je delal na kapitalnem gabru. Izkopan pred tremi leti iz žive meje, je bil več kot pripravljen za prvi korak. Iz gostega grma je po obrezovanju, rezkanju in žičenju že viden obris bodočega bonsaja. Gaber krasijo naravne linije nekaterih vej, druge bo treba še vzgojiti. Kaj bo storil z srednjim delom, kjer izstopa zdaj skrajšano drugo deblo, se bo Simon še odločil. A že zdaj se vidi, da ima drevo velik potencijal!

 

Simon working on Carpinus

 

 

Before

 

and after first step 

Štajerci welcome to our company!

 

Štajerci vabljeni v našo družbo!  

STARA DAMA

In recent days I finally devoted my time to Old lady. The tree has a special place in my collection: it comes from the places where I spent my childhood, we've been together for a decade, we are growing together in bonsai way. When I look at pictures, I am always surprised by transformation it experienced, what path we've walked.

 

V zadnjih dneh sem se končno lahko posvetil Stari dami. Drevo ima v moji zbirki posebno mesto: prihaja iz krajev, kjer sem preživel otroštvo, skupaj sva že celo desetletje, skupaj bonsajsko odraščava. Ko gledam slike, me vedno znova preseneti kakšno preobrazbo je doživela, kakšno pot sva že prehodila.

 

Starting material a decade ago

 

Like every spring, I cut some branches to rejuvenate the crown and wired the new growth. After three seasons, I also re-potted it back into the same pot. Now I am already thinking about a new, slightly larger pot, which will be similar to present one. Oh, Matej, when I then looked it for some time, I turned it back to the previous position :-) And the Old lady is ready for the new season!

 

Kot vsako leto spomladi, sem jo tudi tokrat obrezal, pomladil krošnjo in ožičil nov prirast. Po treh sezonah sem jo tudi presadil nazaj v isto posodo. Zdaj pa že razmišljam o novi, malce večji posodi, ki pa bo sicer sedanji povsem podobna. Aja, Matej, ko sem jo potem še nekaj časa gledal, sem jo obrnil nazaj v prejšnjo položaj :-) In Stara dama je pripravljena na novo sezono!

 

 

 

I also started with the main project of this spring - the styling of juniper, which I have called Mom. More on this will follow ...

 

Začel sem tudi z osrednjim projektom te pomladi - oblikovanjem brina, ki sem ga poimenoval kar Mama. Več o tem seveda v nadaljevanju ...

 

 

 

PS: Tomorrow we'll open the Tora school branch in Maribor!

 

P.S.: Jutri podružnico Tore odpiramo še v Mariboru!

BREST

Sometimes with a bit of luck one can get a good material for a little money. Gregor has prove for that. At the session of Primorska branch of Tora school  he brought Chinese elm, which has an interesting history. Some years ago Gregor bought it from the store for a few euros. The tree was intended to be discarded because of the damage made ​​by a red spider. But with a good care the tree recovered and start to live a new life.

 

Da se včasih z malo sreče tudi za majhen denar da dobiti dober materijal je dokazal Gregor. Na seanso primorske podružnice šole Tora je prinesel kitajski brest, ki ima zanimivo zgodovino. Pred leti ga je Gregor kupil od trgovca za nekaj evrov. Drevo je bilo zaradi škode, ki jo je napravil rdeči pajek, namenjeno za odpis. A se je z dobro oskrbo popravilo in zaživelo novo življenje.

 

 

Later Gregor styled it, and then, as he says himself, somehow stuck and was not able to go a step further.

 

Gregor ga je kasneje tudi oblikoval, potem pa, kot pravi sam, nekako obstal in ni znal napraviti koraka naprej.

 

 

 

So the tree stagnated, but still gain in strength. At the séance in the Žogica tree definitely did a good step forward. It is a very good material, which was nowhere cut or grafted​​, but it was prepared for many years in the East. A really good buy!

 

Drevo je tako stagniralo, a vseeno pridobivalo na moči. Na seansi v Žogici je drevo vsekakor napravilo dober korak naprej. Gre za zelo dober materijal, ki ni bil nikjer rezan ali cepljen, temveč je bil dolga leta na Vzhodu vzgajan in pripravljan za bonsajsko pot. Res dober nakup!
 



Ulmus as arrived at workshop

Gregor working

Ulmus after styling

In the upper third of the crown one branch towards the observer is missing, but there in the right place is already a bud that will ensure that this branch will grew in a year or two. Meanwhile Gregor will look for a proper pot and the tree that was intended to die will be rady for the exhibition!

 

V zgornji tretjini krošnje manjka veja proti opazovalcu, vendar je tam že brst, ki bo poskrbel, da bo ta veja v dobrem letu zrastla. Med tem bo Gregor poiskal primerno posodo in drevo, ki se mu ni pisalo nič dobrega, bo pripravljeno na razstavo!

 

 

Students of Primorska branch of Tora school continued to prove that they have a great materila at home, they only lacked a bit of knowledge and encouragement, and in the next few years we can expect great results! David has embarked Cornus with the chainsaw ...

 

Še naprej študentje primorske podružnice šole Tora dokazujejo, da imajo doma izjemen materijal; manjkalo jim je le nekaj znanja in vzpodbude in že v naslednjih letih lahko pričakujemo odlične rezultate! David se je drena lotil kar z motorko ...

 

Bojan worked with Prunus.

 

Bojan je delal na rešeliki.

 

Matjaž was serious with shohin Cornus. We had a great evening!

Matjaž pa je resno zastavil na drenu šohin velikosti. Za nami je nov odličen večer!