Manilpulated nature: Bonsai

[Ganoderma]

For you turtle.

 

 

[belovelife]

On the subject of bonsai. (my god i hope i'm not off topic), I have been trying to get one of

my ideas to have some research on it. It involves a bonsai fruit tree, with a 2 chamber, atrificial

light growing setup. the 2 chambers are to be :

root ---------high pressure

trunk--------low pressure

This is to allow a capilary action to get nutrients from the soil medium

vermiculite, perilite, lavarock, etc) in a 0-G envyroment. This research project would

make it possible to have fruit trees on the ISS and ILTS

[Moontanman]

Great looking trees Gandoderma, I used to grow bonsai but non of mine were that old or that good. Thanks for the pictures.

[Turtle]

For you turtle.

 

:) Very nice! I like the one above very well, although I never cared for pots with patterns on them. where is that collection located? :lol:

 

On the subject of bonsai. (my god i hope i'm not off topic), I have been trying to get one of my ideas to have some research on it. It involves a bonsai fruit tree, with a 2 chamber, atrificial

light growing setup. the 2 chambers are to be :

root ---------high pressure

trunk--------low pressure

This is to allow a capilary action to get nutrients from the soil medium

vermiculite, perilite, lavarock, etc) in a 0-G envyroment. This research project would

make it possible to have fruit trees on the ISS and ILTS

 

Mmmmm...the fluid transport system in plants goes both ways though. Xylem & phloem, remember? You may find these couple threads on your topic of interest: >>

 

http://hypography.com/forums/biology/12069-i-grow-plants-upside-down.html

 

http://hypography.com/forums/introductions/12037-i-grow-plants-upside-down.html

 

I do have a small shrub in a pot, but I insist on not referring to it as a bonsai so I can continue to deny that I keep them anymore. :eek: :lol: Never mind that Bonsai is Japanese for "potted plant". ;) :D :(

[Turtle]

As you may see, I have put very little effort into training this potted plant. :shrug: I don't know the ID, but I dug it out of the yard & I see many of them used in landscaping here abouts. It produces short stalks of small white flowers. :naughty:

 

[belovelife]

:shrug: Very nice! I like the one above very well, although I never cared for pots with patterns on them. where is that collection located? :lol:

 

 

 

Mmmmm...the fluid transport system in plants goes both ways though. Xylem & phloem, remember? You may find these couple threads on your topic of interest: >> I Grow Plants Upside Down

 

I do have a small shrub in a pot, but I insist on not referring to it as a bonsai so I can continue to deny that I keep them anymore. :eek: ;) Never mind that Bonsai is Japanese for "potted plant". :naughty: :D B)

 

Hey the link did not work, I'll search it.

[Turtle]

Hey the link did not work, I'll search it.

 

Ooopss!! :naughty: I tried to group multiple links. Here we go thens...>>

 

http://hypography.com/forums/biology/12069-i-grow-plants-upside-down.html

 

http://hypography.com/forums/introductions/12037-i-grow-plants-upside-down.html

[Thunderbird]

Just had to share these beautiful tree pics. Most look like Baobab trees. The umbrella shaped trees come from Yemain island. :rolleyes:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Moontanman]

Just had to share these beautiful tree pics. Most look like Baobab trees. The umbrella shaped trees come from Yemain island. :rolleyes:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For some reason your pics didn't show up dude!

[Thunderbird]

Sorry about that , :) here's the link.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tree amazing in Yemain Island (Unknow Name) - linkinn.com

[Turtle]

Sorry about that , here's the link.

 

Tree amazing in Yemain Island (Unknow Name) - linkinn.com

 

While not similar in overall growth pattern, the tree pictured 4th from last at the link resembles in its 'wobbly' branch structure the Corkscrew Willows* that I trained as Bonsai. They propagate quickly from cuttings, as all Willows incline to, and take well to the wire training as they have great flexibility, again as all willows tend to. I collected my first starts from a roadside tree. :) :friday:

 

 

*Corkscrew Willo - Salix matsudana, 'Tortuosa'

Salix matsudana - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[HydrogenBond]

Bonsai has an interesting implication. Say we had two seeds from the same full sized tree and let one grow under ideal conditions and other we form a bonsai. If we didn't have the DNA available to show it was roughly the same DNA in both, we might assume two very different genetic make-ups. The bonsai or the big tree might look like the mutation, even without any intrinsic change in the DNA.

[Turtle]

Bonsai has an interesting implication. Say we had two seeds from the same full sized tree and let one grow under ideal conditions and other we form a bonsai. If we didn't have the DNA available to show it was roughly the same DNA in both, we might assume two very different genetic make-ups. The bonsai or the big tree might look like the mutation, even without any intrinsic change in the DNA.

 

Ah Hydro, you lovable, vexing, even-tempered, impenetrable fella you! I won't even point out that you never get to the implication, but instead I'll move right on to what your arcane observation sparked up in my own little corkscrewed mind. :D

 

Now starting with the Corskrew Willow again for the first time, I had altogether about half-a-dozen of them as Bosai and all were clones of a single branch of a single tree. Virtually genetically identical. As in the photo above of a full-size Corkscrew Willow, mine were inclined to grow upright, however on a small scale they really looked like some sort of freakish horror that ought immediately be destroyed. A few visitors to my garden even remarked, "Is that dead?". Enter here the technique of wire-training in Bonsai and I forced them into different positions so realistic that visitors now asked, "Is that tree sick?" :cup:

 

The aim of Bonsai is simply to manipulate nature to imitate nature on a smaller scale. :D

 

As to seeds, their genetics is as ours to our parents, and even they might find that their sister is their mother or their brother is their father. Apple seeds never grow true to the parent tree, and this is why they don't need to fall far. :coffee_n_pc: :cup:

[Moontanman]

I'm in the process of starting a few bonsai cypress trees, I will be looking for some water tupelo as well. I'll try to post a few pics when I get them potted. Right now they are in regular flower pots recovering from being collected.

[Turtle]

I'm in the process of starting a few bonsai cypress trees, I will be looking for some water tupelo as well. I'll try to post a few pics when I get them potted. Right now they are in regular flower pots recovering from being collected.

 

G'donya mate! Implicit in your post I read the "rules" of Bonsai as it were, or more often referred to as "traditional" Bonsai. You plan to get them out of "regular" filthy common vulgar pots and into beautiful shallow ones, oui/no? These traditions are well documented and come from the Japanese. They deal with aesthetics and quite frankly I spit on them. :D The traditions, not the Japanese. :D

 

When I had nearly 150 potted trees there was no way I could water shallow potted trees often enough so I got practical. My willows particulary I kept in deeper pots as drying out meant all the leaves dying and recovery was long if they recovered at all. Besides the Corkscrew Willows I kept Black Willows, Weeping Willows, and native broadaleaf Willows called Sallow Willow.

 

Another "tradition" in Bonsai is to choose small-leaved varities as they lend to the believablenss that the tree is full-size when viewing it, which again is the whole point after all, to look at these potted trees and imagine you & it in the wild. Rats! Getting all weepy eyed when I really brought up leaf size tradition to point out that I spit on it too. :D :cup:

 

Moon Man, I had a varigated Cypress and they can be reproduced from cuttings if you haven't found that out yet. A clean cut, some Rootone or similar treatment, keep watered and so on as for any cutting. They make great Bonsai, even for the traditionalists. :D :coffee_n_pc: :cup:

[Moontanman]

I almost always do "water trees" I usually put them in a smaller pot and then put that pot inside a large bowl full of water. I grow Azolla caroliniana on top of the water in the bowl and it hides the pot the tree is in anyway. Azolla forms a thick floating layer that mosquitoes cannot even penetrate.I have done a couple of regular bonsais in the small pots and keeping them watered is a problem. I've tried to grow bald cypress from cutting but it never seems to work. I've herd variegated cypress which is a different tree can be dome like that. I plan to do a couple of Dawn Redwoods too. Being able to grow them in water negates the problem of drying out. I did a Sycamore tree once from seed in a large flat bowl most because the book said it could be done. I ended up with a great twisted tree on top of a large rock with roots trailing into the soil below.

[Turtle]

I did a Sycamore tree once from seed in a large flat bowl most because the book said it could be done. I ended up with a great twisted tree on top of a large rock with roots trailing into the soil below.

 

Beautimous!

 

I read an account of a Bonsai master in Japan who after the war could find no pots so he started growing trees on the low-curved roof tiles from the bombed out buildings and essentially started a new tradition. Does your book refer to this story too? :singer: