moss over root over rock

After Piotr's advice I decided to wrap the roots of this root over rock lonicera with some moss to help the roots thicken a bit quicker. I'll check before winter as I don't want it to root out into the moss too much.

saving turf

2014 was an excellent year for cutting and saving turf (peat harvesting for fuel). This was the first year in a long time that I was involved in cutting turf and it couldn't have gone better. It's now safely stacked in my father's shed ready to be bagged and brought to my own house for the cold winter that lies ahead...

about two weeks after cutting by the hopper machine

after turning, drying well

rowed by my cousin, almost ready to bring home

safely into the trailer and almost out of the bog

biomass wllows

The willows planted in March last year settled in really well last season and put on a huge amount of growth this season, with more to come. The stems are tall, some up to four metres and the main stems are starting to swell a bit also. Salix cinera and Salix smithiana were the two varieties I planted initially and I would say at this point the smithiana is doing a bit better.

salix smithiana

salix smithiana

salix cinera

salix cinera

new book from Peter Warren

So today I received a parcel from Amazon containing Peter Warren's new book simply titled 'bonsai'. 

Having seen several videos on bonsaieejit.com and followed Peter's blog for a while I was very curious to see what level he would pitch his book at. 

In just a few pages about the history of bonsai I learned more than from every other bonsai book I have ever read.

It's packed with excellent photos and diagrams and very concise and clear text. Hopefully some of it will stick in my head and help me make some better trees. 

Peter Warren's bonsai book.

new pot for pine bonsai

I just repotted this into a pot I got from Phil at the last Munster Club workshop. Basically I just transferred it directly from the training pot, rotating it slightly and leaning it forward a little. I added the stone to fill a gap at the base and I also wired some of the branches. The main branch is perhaps a little full relative to the tree? The crown is a bit better than before. Maybe I need to remove the fiddly branch opposite the main branch?

But a step nearer a bonsai I hope. I'm not certain which I prefer as the front, face A or B? Suggestions welcome...

face A

face B

same tree in 2012

bull's eyes

These silage bales reminded me of bull's eyes sweets from my childhood...