How to take care of the Fuchsias (Aljaba)

A gardening care guide for the fuchsia plant, known as a difficult flower to grow, is provided for you by gardening experts. The romantic, vibrant colored fuchsia plant has blossoms that dangle beautifully from flower pots, hanging baskets, or over the soil in a flower garden. If your not familiar with the fuchsia plant, let me teach you all you need to know about this beautiful plant. The fuchsia flower is a prolific bloomer all summer long and can be grown indoors with proper care. Learn how to grow and care for an interesting addition to your garden or home, the fuchsia plant.

The fuchsia plant is named after Leonhard Fuchs, a German doctor who lived in the early 1500's. Almost all the fuchsia varieties we know of today come from South and Central America, New Zealand, and Tahit.

Originally, nearly 100 varieties of fuchsia were known, but they have been hybridized so much that today there are countless varieties.

Fuchsias are low growing, bush or sometimes tree-like plants. We still cultivate many varieties as indoor plants, and one of them is so hardy that it can winter in the open in the south. Most of the cultivated Fuchsia varieties are hybrids which may be low, rather droopy flowering plants, semi-tall trees or shrub-like plants. People often prop them up to allow the beautiful flowers to hang freely from the leaf crown that radiates from a slender stem.

Fuchsia is rich in color. The eye catching colorfulness of the fuchsia flower is due to the fact that the sepals, leaf lobes and petals, are all richly colored. Fuchsias are the most beautiful when kept in rather cool conditions in half-shade. Too much warmth and sunshine leads to rapid flower loss and severe evaporation from leaves and stems. Always make sure that the fuchsia plant gets the water it needs in the growth period. All varieties of fuchsia require special care, but they will reward all your efforts by forming lovely new flower buds on the tips of their stems.

A gardening care guide for the fuchsia plant, known as a difficult flower to grow, is provided for you by gardening experts. The romantic, vibrant colored fuchsia plant has blossoms that dangle beautifully from flower pots, hanging baskets, or over the soil in a flower garden. If your not familiar with the fuchsia plant, let me teach you all you need to know about this beautiful plant. The fuchsia flower is a prolific bloomer all summer long and can be grown indoors with proper care. Learn how to grow and care for an interesting addition to your garden or home, the fuchsia plant.

Fuchsias are like children, though: each one requires a lifetime of care, or else…well, they won’t be much fun. Before I learned to take care of fuchsias, my well-intentioned gifts were crispy, drowned, or diseased by the Fourth of July. It turns out, though, that—unlike children—fuchsias are easy to care for, if you know a little bit about their needs.

Fuchsia is a genus comprising over 100 species of flowering shrubs and trees. The dangling habit and teardrop shape of the flowers gave rise to the popular name ladies’ eardrop. Most fuchsia are native to South America, where they grow in the understory of tropical or subtropical forests. There are a few interesting exceptions, however: Fuchsia excorticata is a tree from New Zealand that can reach 15 meters in height.

The plants you see at local flower shops are selected clones (cultivars), propagated by cuttings, not from seed. Over 10,000 cultivars have been described, and up to 2,000 are commonly grown. Nearly all of these cultivars, however, share the requirements of their South American ancestors: plenty of shade, frequent but not constant watering, and rich (read: fertilized) soil. To look their best, many fuchsia also need to be pruned at least yearly. If you can meet these needs, your fuchsia plant will remain lovely for many years.

Sun

Morning sun or sun-dappled shade is ideal for most fuchsia. Fuchsia can thrive in the sun, but the root system must be kept moist. Unless you are prepared for eternal vigilance, shelter your fuchsia from the hottest sun.

The flower symbolism associated with the fuchsia is confiding love. Fuchsia flowers are a very decorative pendulous "eardrop" shape, borne in profusion throughout the summer and autumn, and all year in tropical species. In many species, the sepals are bright red and the petals purple, a combination of colors that attract hummingbirds.

Water

Fuchsia should be watered in the morning, frequently enough to keep the soil moist but not soaked. In hot weather, you will need to water every day, while in cooler weather, twice a week will suffice. To decide whether to water your plant, look at and feel the soil. If the soil remains quite wet, right to the surface, then the plant doesn’t need more water. If the topmost layer has started to dry, then give water. Remember: fuchsia is more commonly killed by overwatering than by underwatering.

Fuchsia has a tendency to wilt on hot afternoons. It will perk up if misted with water or moved into the shade. You should avoid watering in the late afternoon or evening, however. Fuchsia has stomata (pores) in their leaves that close in the evening, preventing it from shedding excess water.

Fertilizer

Fuchsia is known as “gross feeders” and need access to plenty of fertilizer. When the plants are flowering, especially in late summer and fall, use water-soluble fertilizer formulated for tomatoes (higher in potash, or “K”). You can apply full-strength fertilizer every 1-2 weeks or quarter-strength fertilizer at every watering. I find the latter approach simpler.

If you plan to keep your fuchsia for years, you will need to overwinter the plant (see below) and then feed through the spring and summer. During the first month of spring, when the fuchsia starts to put out new growth, use high-nitrogen feed. Through late spring and summer, switch to a balanced feed (such as NPK 20-20-20). Then, as the plant starts to flower heavily, use tomato feed as suggested above.

Pruning

Fuchsia only develop flowers on new growth. This means that you need to encourage a nice distribution of new growth each year in order to have a concentrated show of flowers.

Fuchsia should be cut back by one-half to two-thirds in late autumn, as the temperatures cool and growth starts to slow down. Fuchsia in pots can be cut back to 4-8” above soil level. The remaining stems will form the skeleton of next year’s growth. Without this pruning, the plants become long-stemmed over time, with flowers only showing on the newer, outside growth.In the spring, as the fuchsia starts to grow vigorously again, begin applying high-nitrogen fertilizer as mentioned above. When the stems have at least three pairs of leaves, you can “stop” the plant to encourage a bushy shape with more branches and, as a result, more flowers. Simply remove the growing tip from stems after they have acquired several pairs of leaves. Do not remove the growing tip before this point, as new branches will only form at the junctions between leaves and stems. Be sure not to damage these critical areas (the leaf axils). You can stop the plant again after the new branches have several pairs of leaves.

Stopping can be difficult for the novice to stomach. The process may seem to threaten your plant. Remember this, however: the more stops you put in, the more flowers you will get out.

Overwintering

Even a single, light frost can kill some types of fuchsia. Therefore, the plants must be kept above freezing throughout the winter. If the temperature is likely to drop below 40-45 degrees Fahrenheit, then the plants will likely lose their leaves and go dormant. When the plants are defoliated, they can be lightly watered and placed under a table, covered in peat, or wrapped in bubble wrap or newspaper. Note that the fuchsia must not be allowed to dry out over the course of the winter. They will need to be checked and watered occasionally. If the plants dehydrate, they will die. In the spring, when all chance of frost has passed, the plants can be brought out of storage and into a shady spot, then watered. When new growth appears, begin applying fertilizer.

In warmer areas, or if you have access to a heated greenhouse that will keep the temperature above 45 degrees, fuchsia can be kept in green leaf throughout the winter. They will grow slowly throughout the winter, giving them an excellent start in the spring. Keep watering to a minimum so that the potting medium is just moist.

Fuchsia is easy to care for if you remember their sub-tropical origins. Keep them moist but not wet, give plenty of fertilizer, and prune in the autumn to encourage new growth next year.

Special Techniques of Bonsai: Jin and Shari (Videos)

How to grow Rosemary (Rosmarinus) in your Balcony

Rosemary (botanical name Rosmarinus officinalis), also known as Garden Rosemary, is native to the Mediterranean area. A member of the mint family, it is an evergreen shrub also related to basil, marjoram, and oregano. It is usually found growing by the ocean, and its latin name equates to "dew of the sea." 

Some rosemary plants grow up to 6 feet tall or more, but standard varieties are usually around 3 feet and bushy. The small, gray-green leaves look similar to small pine needles and have a bittersweet, lemony, slightly piney flavor. Small flowers range from white to pale blue to dark blue, usually flowering in late spring. 

Usage of rosemary dates back to 500 b.c., when it was used as a culinary and medicinal herb by the ancient Greeks and Romans. It is still a popular medicinal herb today. 

Most commercially-used, dried rosemary comes to us from Spain, France, and Morocco. However, it is easy to grow your own in temperate climates. 

In 1987, researchers at Rutgers University in New Jersey patented a food preservative derived from rosemary. The chemical, called rosmaridiphenol, is a very stable antioxidant useful in cosmetics and plastic food packaging. 

Rosemary is indeed a versatile, aromatic herb. It is used in a wide variety of dishes, including fruit salads, soups, vegetables, meats (especially lamb), fish, eggs, stuffings, dressings, and even desserts. It is also used to scent cosmetics and perfumes, in insect repellants, and has medicinal uses. You will find rosemary a delightful herb in both savory and sweet recipes.

Rosmarinus means dew of the sea in Latin. It is found in rocky sites and woodland and scrub in the Mediterranean region, Portugal, and northwestern Spain. It is an aromatic, perennial shrub that is now widely cultivated for its aromatic leaves and flowers. Some of the legends connected with this herb are very curious. It is associated with the Virgin Mary. It is said that it used to flower white until Mary hung her cloak on a bush while fleeing Herod's soldiers. It is supposed to be one of the herbs, along with lavender, thyme, pennyroyal, lady's bedstraw, and costmary, found in the manger. For a long time, people believed the reason it would not grow over 6' in 33 years was so as not to stand taller than Christ.

It is found traditionally in wedding bouquets as a reminder to the couple of their wedding vows. In the language of flowers it means remembrance and love. Greek students believed it improved the memory, and so they wore it in their hair when studying for exams. Another tale says that if a rosemary plant grows vigorously in a family's garden that it is the woman who wears the pants in the family. In Egypt, it was found in the wrappings of mummies. In Australia, it is worn on Anzac Day, a day set aside to commemorate the dead. In France, during the Middle Ages, it was combined with juniper and burned in bunches in hospitals to kill bacteria. Modern research shows that it does have antibacterial properties. In Hungary, in 1235, Queen Izabella was stricken with a paralyzing illness. A hermit came to court with a preparation of rosemary soaked in wine, which cured her. Since then, this combination, known as Queen Hungary's Water has been used to treat gout and baldness.

Harvest and Use: Rosemary has many uses besides culinary. It is used as a medicinal, an aromatic, an ornamental in the landscape, as a dye, in cosmetics, and as a houseplant. Rosemary essential oil adds a piney scent to soaps, creams, lotions, perfumes, and toilet water. It is a stimulating herb and makes a wonderful herbal bath when you feel worn out and want to get your blood flowing under your skin again. Just put some in a muslin bag and get in the tub with it. You can also treat yourself to a cleansing and pick-me-up facial steam with a stronginfusion. Blend it in potpourri. It can be woven into wreaths and garlands. Rosemary sachets are very nice for scenting drawers. Dry needles can be added to other herbs and made into closet sachets to repel moths. These smell a lot better than mothballs and are not toxic. It yields a green dye.

Add a handful of sprigs to the coals before grilling for extra aromatics. Throw the stems into the wood stove for scent. Combine rosemary with lavender, santolina, tansy, and lemongrass into a tulle sachet and hang in the closet with woolens as a moth repellent.

Medicinally, a warm tea is good for colds, flu, rheumatic pain, indigestion, and as a stimulating drink for headache and fatigue. It is antiseptic and promotes sweating and the flow of bile. It acts as an antidepressant, a circulatory stimulant, and a tonic for the nervous system and the heart. It is a rich source of vitamin A and vitamin C, phosphorus, iron, magnesium, and zinc. It also has antioxidant properties. A strong infusion makes an antiseptic mouthwash and gargle. The essential oil can be used externally as an ingredient in salves for arthritis and to soothe aching muscles. Extracts are found in shampoos. A hair rinse of a strong infusion can help dandruff and is good for dark hair. Do not use the pure oil internally. Like all medicinal plants, be cautious when using as a healing herb. The essential oil should not be used internally and when used externally, it should be diluted as is true for all essential oils except lavender. It should not be used in pregnancy, as it is a uterine stimulant. Large doses are irritating to the kidneys and stomach, but used in lesser amounts as a seasoning, it is perfectly safe.

The flavor of rosemary harmonizes with those of poultry, fish, lamb, beef, veal, pork, and game, especially roasts. It also goes well with tomatoes, spinach, peas, mushrooms, squash, cheese, eggs, lentils, and complements chives, chervil, chives, thyme, parsley, and bay. Commercially, an antioxidant prepared from both sage and rosemary improves the stability of soy oil and potato chips. Rosemary adds character to mild soups, marinades, salad dressings, and bouquets garni. Include fresh rosemary in all your Italian sauces. Stud roast pork generously with garlic and rosemary sprigs by making a hole in the meat and pressing the garlic and rosemary into it. Try an herb butter by combining 2 teaspoons rosemary to ½ cup butter. Add it to fruit salad to enhance sweetness without adding sugar. Make a rosemary jelly for roast meats and poultry.

Harvest anytime by snipping the ends of the stems. This will cause your plant to bush out. If you do not want it to bush, pull off a few leaves or sprays. Never take more than 20% of the plant. Rosemary is so much better fresh because it dries into tough little sticks that stick in your teeth or ruin the consistency of culinary dishes. If you are cooking with dry rosemary, wrap it in a bundle tied to the pot handle for easy removal. Besides drying, you can freeze whole sprigs. When you need some, remove from the stem. Frozen rosemary is stronger than fresh.

Cultivation and Propagation: Who can walk by a rosemary plant without passing their hand across it in order to get a whiff of its exquisite fragrance? I can't. It makes the work of repotting every fall to bring it in worthwhile. It makes a fine perennial border or a beautiful hedgerow. It is bold yet graceful and is handsome alone or as an accent plant on a patio or terrace. Prostrate varieties can be set so as to creep along a wall. They look great in hanging baskets or window boxes. The flowers attract bees and a delicious honey is made from the nectar. You also can create the spokes of an herb wheel with rosemary. Except for the cultivar 'Arp' which is hardy to zone 6, you can only leave rosemary out all year long if you live in a zone 8 to 10. The two reasons people lose their rosemary in the winter are incorrect watering and too heavy a soil. Judicious watering is imperative. It hates wet feet and will surely die if left un-watered for too long. It doesn't like being near a hot sunny window in summer where it will burn. If you are growing it in a container, consider taking it out of the pot and putting it in the garden for the summer where it can wiggle its toes. You will get much more vigorous growth and a healthier plant to survive the winter indoors. When you do repot it, nice, loose soil mixed with perlite, sand, and vermiculite is a must.

Rosemary can be grown from seed, but since the germination rate is 30% at best, buy plants from a reputable nursery. Once you have a well-established plant, you can increase your supply by taking cuttings. It can also be propagated by layering.

Pests: Indoors, rosemary is susceptible to powdery mildew. Inside winter air is often dry and stagnant, which promotes the disease. A fan for better air circulation helps, as does misting your rosemary.

Creeping Rosemary: Rosmarinus officinalis Prostratus Group is a tender perennial that only reaches 6 to 12 inches in height, but can spread to 3 feet. Plant creeping rosemary in full sun in the garden border, cascading over walls, trailing down banks, and in window boxes and hanging baskets. It's especially pretty when the lavender flowers are blooming and its long, twisting, curling, re-curving branches spill over the edges of a terra cotta pot.General cultivation information above.

Rosemary 'Arp':Rosmarinus officinalis 'Arp'is a perennial that grows 3 to 5 feet tall and spreads 2 to 3 feet. It prefers full sun, and is the best rosemary for colder climates (survives to -10°F with protection of mulch and/or burlap wrap). It has an open, bushy habit, gray-green, lemony-scented leaves and blue flowers. Grow in ordinary, well-drained soil. Never let it dry out and never let it sit in water. General cultivation information above.

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis): is widely used as a spice when cooking, especially in Mediterranean dishes. It is also used for its fragrance in soaps and other cosmetics. Traditionally, rosemary has been used medicinally to improve memory, relieve muscle pain and spasm, stimulate hair growth, and support the circulatory and nervous systems. It is also believed to increase menstrual flow, act as an abortifacient (causing miscarriage), increase urine flow, and treat indigestion. Almost none of these uses have been studied scientifically in humans. However, one study in humans found that long term daily intake of rosemary prevents thrombosis.

In the lab, rosemary has been shown to have antioxidant properties. Antioxidants can neutralize harmful particles in the body known as free radicals, which damage cell membranes, tamper with DNA, and even cause cell death. Also in the lab, rosemary oil appears to have antimicrobial properties (killing some bacteria and fungi in test tubes). It isn't known whether rosemary would have the same effect in humans.

Indigestion

Rosemary leaf is used in Europe for indigestion (dyspepsia) and is approved by the German Commission E, which examines the safety and efficacy of herbs.

Muscle and Joint Pain

Applied topically (to the skin), rosemary oil is sometimes used to treat muscle pain and arthritis and to improve circulation. It is approved by the German Commission E for this purpose. However, there is no scientific evidence that it works.

Alopecia

Historically, rosemary has been used to stimulate hair growth. Rosemary was used in one study of 84 people with alopecia areata (a disease in which hair falls out, generally in patches). Those who massaged their scalps with rosemary and other essential oils (including lavender, thyme, and cedarwood) every day for 7 months experienced significant hair regrowth compared to those who massaged their scalps without the essential oils. But the study was not well designed, and it is impossible to say whether rosemary caused the hair growth.

Neutralize Foodborne Pathogens

Several studies show that rosemary inhibits foodborne pathogens like Listeria monocytogenes, B. cereus, and S. aureus.

Improve Memory or Concentration

Rosemary is often used in aromatherapy to increase concentration and memory, and to relieve stress. One study suggests that rosemary, combined with other pleasant smelling oils, may lower cortisol levels and help reduce anxiety. Another study found that the use of lavender and rosemary essential oil sachets reduced test taking stress in graduate nursing students.

How to Take It:

Pediatric: Because rosemary has not been studied in children, it is not recommended for medicinal use in those under age 18. It is safe to eat as a spice in food, however.

Adult: Rosemary can be used as a tea made from the dry herb, a tincture, fluid extract, decoction for a bath, or as an essential oil mixed with other oils for topical use. Speak to your health care provider to find the right dose for your condition. Total daily intake should not exceed 4 - 6 grams of the dried herb. Do not take rosemary oil orally.

Precautions: The use of herbs is a time honored approach to strengthening the body and treating disease. Herbs, however, can trigger side effects and interact with other herbs, supplements, or medications. For these reasons, you should take herbs with care, under the supervision of a health care provider.

Rosemary is generally considered safe when taken in recommended doses. However, there have been occasional reports of allergic reactions. Large quantities of rosemary leaves, because of their volatile oil content, can cause serious side effects, including vomiting, spasms, coma and, in some cases, pulmonary edema (fluid in the lungs).

Because higher doses of rosemary may cause miscarriage, pregnant and nursing women should not take rosemary as a supplement. It is safe to eat as a spice in food, however.

People with high blood pressure, ulcers, Crohn's disease, or ulcerative colitis should not take rosemary.

Rosemary oil can be toxic if ingested and should never be taken orally.

Possible Interactions:

Antiplatelet and anticoagulant drugs (blood thinners) -- Rosemary may affect the blood's ability to clot. It could interfere with any blood thinning drugs you are taking, including: Warfarin (Coumadin), Clopidogrel (Plavix), aspirin

ACE inhibitors -- Rosemary may interfere with the action of ACE inhibitors taken for high blood pressure, including: Captpril (Capoten), Enalapril (Vasotec), Lisinopril (Zestril), Fosinopril (Monopril)

Diuretics (water pills) -- Because rosemary can act as a diuretic, it can increase the effects of these drugs. That can raise your risk of dehydration. (Furosemide (Lasix), Hydrocholorothiazide)

Lithium -- Because of its diuretic effects, rosemary might cause the body to lose too much water and the amount of lithium in the body to build up to toxic levels.

Diabetes -- Rosemary may alter blood sugar levels and could interfere with any drugs taken to control diabetes.

Special Techniques of Bonsai (Part 2): Jin or Shari (Deadwood)

Jin and Shari or Deadwood as it is called in the western countries, adds not only an effective feature to a design but in the case of many old Pine and Juniper, a very realistic one as well. Jins on trees in nature are normally created when branches are broken by strong winds, by the weight of snow or by lightening strikes.

If you have branches that you are not going to require for your final styling you can use them to create jin. The use of jin on a bonsai implies to the viewer an increased age and shows the struggle of the tree to survive.

Shari is made to add age to a tree, or to disguise a bad scar or defect on the trunk. There must be a good reason to have shari. It should not be made just to have a shari. In nature shari are made by storms, rockslides and insect infestations, not to mention lightning and a dozen other things.

If two dead branches occur, one above the other, a shari can be made connecting them. This can have a very natural look and give age and beauty to an otherwise plain tree. Also, occasionally a tree has a large twisted branch with a jin at the tip; a small shari can be made further back on the branch to give it a more aged look.
Shari should be made in the direction of growth of the trunk or branch. Small shari can usually be done in one treatment. Larger shari should be done over a longer period of time because too much removal of bark and live tissue can seriously weaken or kill a tree. If a shari is made small at first, then enlarged, it will give the tree time to adjust to the change. When the wood that is exposed dries out completely it can then be widened. The process can progress over a few years if you desire the majority of the trunk to be deadwood. Man-made shari will look better if they do not go straight up and down the trunk. Natural shari can be in any shape but can be modified with care to effect improvement.

Unfortunately, its design can be difficult. A successful jin must look natural, it must look as though it has been created by nature in order to compliment and not detract from the tree. A common way of creating a jin is by carving using power and hand tool. It takes a great deal of skill, particularly if the wood is featureless. Deadwood features are created by tearing away at the wood to mimic the action of a broken branch pulling away strips of the grain to create a natural effect. These techniques can also be applied when creating jin from branches down to 1/2" in thickness; they are however intended only for species that have fibrous wood. This includes nearly all coniferous species but only some deciduous species.

The purpose of jinning a trunk is to create an effect of an old, dead stump that will compliment the main trunk of the bonsai. 

Jin can be made at any time of the year but if you are doing large branches it is best to wait until the tree is dormant and the sap is not flowing.

When creating dead wood on branches, select branches that are heavy enough to produce good jin. Remember that when the bark and soft tissue are removed what remains is much smaller than the branch you started with. If you want to jin a branch in the future that is not yet large enough, wire it, shape it, and let the wire cut in so that the twist effect will show when the bark is later removed.

When jin are made here and there on a tree it is best to make them small, unless a very large branch is jinned. If the tree is mostly jin, then mixed small and large jin looks good.

The first step is to remove the bark from the portion of wood that is to be jinned. Any remaining soft tissue is also removed. At this point only the part of the stump that is above the soil level will be worked on; further work will be carried out as the stump is revealed after repotting in the future.

The first slithers are pulled away from the stump; the top of the wood is either notched to segment it or crushed with pliers. Each segment is then pulled down and away from the stump with jin pliers or ordinary pliers. When pulling away strips of wood, it is important the live section at the sides or the base are not damaged. Strips rarely stop abruptly above the live wood and often need removing near the base with a knife or similar.

The pulling down of the segments of wood continues on the first half of the stump.

The second half of the stump is then pulled away; it is starting to reveal more of a natural shape. Unfortunately, the current shape resembles a catapult and it is decided to reduce the second half of the stump further.

After reducing the second half of the stump; now the jin is really starting to take shape. Increasingly smaller strips of the grain are now pulled the length of the stump, creating more texture to the wood.As the wood is fibrous, small burrs and pulls are evident. These are best dealt with by gently burning the surface of the wood.

The stump is gently scorched with a naked flame to burn off all the fibres. It is very important at this point to protect the rest of the tree, in particular the foliage, from not only the flame but also the heat that it generates. In this case, a piece of hardboard was used to completely cover the tree from the flame. It is also important that the jin itself is only slightly scorched to remove the fibres otherwise it is possible for the jin itself to set alight!Any blackening of the wood is easily removed by the process of smoothing off and lime-sulphuring. In this picture, the jin has been lightly carved with a small gouge to accentuate its lines and it has been gently sanded down with sandpaper to smooth out any tool marks. Sharp edges are also rounded off to replicate the effect that the action of the weather would have on deadwood in nature.



Once the jin is made, scrape it clean, sand it with emery cloth, (cloth backed sandpaper used by plumbers, available at most hardware stores) wire it and put movement in it if it has none. The jin can now be treated with lime sulfur.
to whiten it and to stop it from rotting in the future. In the future, black ink will be added to the lime sulphur when painting the recesses to add a greater illusion of depth. 

The following morning the lime-sulphur has nearly dried and the work is complete. Once treated, wait until the wood is dry (months later) and then treat with wood hardener.

After the jin is dry and shaped by wire it can be worked on again. Soak the jin with water and remove the softer wood in one direction with a wire brush. This gives the jin an aged look with the grain showing. Then treat it with lime sulfur and wood hardener if you hadn’t previously.
Lime Sulfur should be applied once per year to help preserve wood for the long term. If it appears too white tint the lime mix with sumii ink to the degree of grayness you desire. However, trees with naturally black dead wood, such as olive, should not be made white.
 The effect of the lime sulfur will decrease over the course of a few months so that the jin looks more natural

In the future, when the tree itself has been styled, the jin will be further refined to ensure it compliments other areas of deadwood on the bonsai as a whole. For the time being, it will now be left to dry and weather naturally.

Shari is made by cutting into the hard wood. Since it cannot be wired it should be carefully shaped with a small gouge. Do not use an electric tool except for rough cutting. The marks from electric tools do not look natural, so always finish with hand tools. Treat the shari with lime sulfur and a wood hardener after it has dried as you would with jin.
A nice effect can be achieved with old shari that have a significant rollover. Rollover occurs when the cambium grows rounded at the edge of a shari to heal it. Kill the live section back further to create a double rollover on the trunk.

Thanks to my friend Thanun Patipantada for the pictures.

Welcome to the Fall (Videos)

Fernes, Mosses and Liverworts (Ground cover for bonsai)

The ground cover of your bonsai is one of the important aesthetic elements that will improve the overall visual composition of your bonsai, as well as assist in providing soil chemical stability and retaining temperature and moisture for the bonsai tree’s surface roots. A good choice of ground cover vegetation coupled with other landscaping accessories will complement your bonsai tree greatly. (It is also one of the assessment factors in bonsai competitions.)

There are functions for everything in bonsai, and mosses and lichens, used as ground covers, are no exception. They, of course, look great, covering the soil surface with 'green velvet' and helping to retain water while holding the soil in the container. For people buying bonsai, the presence of moss is always a good sign. There are a great number of types of mosses and lichens and these can be mixed to provide a very effective result overall. When not used for 'conservation' purposes, they should be planted sparingly so that their effect is natural, and they do not prevent water from reaching the soil.

There is a particular method of mossing a potted bonsai that will produce a smooth mat of deep green, with none of the lumpy growth that can be typical of piecing bits of moss together. With a sharp knife, slice the moss from its growing place, taking as little soil as possible. Put this moss in a container lined with paper, and moisten it lightly (it should be moist, not wet). Remove most of the remaining soil from the moss using sharp scissors, pulling each little tuft away from the larger piece.

Prepare the surface soil in the bonsai pot by scratching it to roughen it up. With long handed tweezers, start inserting each tuft of moss close to, but not against, the trunk. Work out and away from the trunk until you have the look you want, then brush off most of the tufts. Sprinkle dry soil over the moss and press it down with a flat spatula or small trowel (even your hand if you are careful). Mist gently two or three times and the soil will settle down between the tufts.

As an alternative to collecting moss and going through this somewhat time consuming process, you can use dried moss. Gather it, then place it in the shade for a few days until it is completely dry. Put it through a fine strainer - a sieve will do - to crumble it. Mix the particles with some soil and spread it over the bonsai soil in the pot, making a thin, even layer. Press it down with a flat spatula or small trowel and gently mist continually until the soft green moss begins to grow. Some people just scrape soil off the bottom of the moss and put this on the soil of the bonsai, but takes a much longer time to root and is a delight for small birds when looking for worms if left exposed. Along with the growth of a healthy crop of moss often comes the appearance of a silver fungus around the soil line at the trunk of the tree. This is a sign of a healthily growing bonsai. The fungus develops as the moss takes hold, and it cannot be artificially implanted. In the heat of summer, moss may turn brown. It means the bonsai is getting the water it needs. As soon as cooler temperatures and higher humidity return, so will the 'green velvet'.

  

Ferns, Mosses and Liverworts are flowerless plants, reproducing by small, dust-like spores that are dispersed by the wind.  They are most abundant in damp habitats and most climates, as their thin leaves are easily damaged by desiccation.  Also, unlike flowering plants that produce pollen, fertilization is brought about by a male sperm, which needs a film of water in which to swim to the egg.

Moses and liverworts belong to a group of plants known as the Bryophyta . Their spores develop in a capsule, usually situated at the top of a stalk, or seta.  Mosses differ from liverworts in the structure of the spore capsule and the arrangement of their leaves.  About 65 different mosses and liverworts have been found growing on the bark of oaks, but very few ferns habitually grow on the trees themselves.

Ferns like bright diffused light and moist soil. Prune dead fronds from the plant immediately and keep humidity near the plant high for best results.

 

 

Polypodium vulgare: Ferns are common in oakwoods but the Common Polypody is the only species that regularly grows on trees themselves.  The spores develop in the microscopic sacs called sporangia, which are arranged in orange-brown clusters, called Sori, on the undersides of the fronds.

Lophocolea bidentata/heterophylla: The bidentata is a common leafy liverwort, found on decaying logs and among mosses on woodland banks. The heterophylla grows on the lower parts of trunks and branches, and its upper leaves are unlobed, unlike the bidentata.

Isothecium myosuroides:  This is a very common moss throughout Britain and central Europe, typically growing on the lower parts of tree trunks, on falled logs, and also on shaded rocks adn boulders.  It is a pleurocarpous moss, with spore capsules growing from the sides rather than the ends of the branches, and has a characteristic olive-green sheen.

Amblystegium serpens:  This is one of the smallest European species of pleurocarpous moss, with tiny leaves, and it is common on fallen logs and the lower branches of trees throughout Britain and central Europe. It produces capsules almost all year round.

Dicranoweisia cirrata:  This is the most common of the acrocarpous mosses, (mosses that have capsules at the tips of erect shoots), of tree trunks and lower branches.  It is usually fertile and is found throughout Europe, specially in areas with low levels of atmospheric pollution.

Ulota crispa:  This occurs in small, yellow-green tufts on twigs and small branches of hazel and elder, as well as young oaks.  Widespread throughout Europe, it is less common in the Midlands and southeast regions of Britain. 

Mnimum hornum: This is one of the most common European woodland mosses.  It grows on tree trunks, decaying logs, stream banks, and woodland floors, especially on acid soil throughout Britain and central Europe. It forms extensive dark-green patches.

Eurhynchium praelongun: A delicate species of pleurocarpous moss common in central Europe, it favours decaying stumps and logs.  It has fine, feathery branches and small leaves, and regular branching of shoots is characteristic.

Frullania dilatata:  A small, leafy liverwort, it can frequently be found growing on the lower branches and trunks of oaks and other trees.  The reddish-brown colour is characteristic of the Frullania species.  It is widespread in Britain and Europe, except in polluted areas and the extreme north.

Dicranum scoparium:  This is a common moss on fallen logs, woodland banks and the trunks and lower branches of trees.  It grows in bright green patches and the tips of its erect shoots all curve over in the same direction.

Hypnum cupressiforme:  A very common moss throughout Europe, this grows in mats on banks, trees and decaying logs, Similar to isothecium myosuroides, it grows higher up on trees and has more curves leaves.

Brachythecium rutabulum:  This is a robust species of pleurocarpous moss wit a characteristic yellow-green, glossy tinge to the branch tips.  It is common on tree trunks and decaying logs, especially where the soil is fertile.  It is abundant throughout central Europe.

There exists a multitude of suitable ground cover plants for growing bonsai, and those above are only a fraction of the plentiful choices available. It must be remembered that the ground cover should never be totally shaded and covered up with growth, as the soil needs the warmth from the sun to provide conducive conditions for root growth.

Thanks Richard Lewington.

Eucalyptus Globulus

Eucalyptus, blue gum, fever tree

Family: Myrtaceae (Zone 9)

The Australian eucalyptus is cultivated all over the world. Leaves from young trees are rounded and blue-green with a silvery bloom, those from mature trees are longer, pointed, tough and glossy green.

The first leaves are broad, without stalks, of a shining whitish-green and are opposite and horizontal, but after four or five years these are succeeded by others of a more ensiform or sword-shaped form, 6 to 12 inches long, bluish-green in hue, which are alternate and vertical, i.e. with the edges turned towards the sky and earth, an arrangement more suited to the climate and productive of peculiar effects of light and shade. The flowers are single or in clusters, almost stalkless.

It was Baron Ferdinand von Müller, the German botanist and explorer (from 1857 to 1873 Director of the Botanical Gardens in Melbourne), who made the qualities of this Eucalyptus known all over the world, and so led to its introduction into Europe, North and South Africa, California and the non-tropical districts of South America. He was the first to suggest that the perfume of the leaves resembling that of Cajaput oil, might be of use as a disinfectant in fever districts, a suggestion which has been justified by the results of the careful examination to which the Eucalyptus has been subjected since its employment in medicine. Some seeds, having been sent to France in 1857, were planted in Algiers and thrived exceedingly well. Trottoir, the botanical superintendent, found that the value of the fragrant antiseptic exhalations of the leaves in fever or marshy districts was far exceeded by the amazingly powerful drying action of the roots on the soil. Five years after planting the Eucalyptus, one of the most marshy and unhealthy districts of Algiers was converted into one of the healthiest and driest. As a result, the rapidly growing Eucalyptus trees are now largely cultivated in many temperate regions with the view of preventing malarial fevers. A noteworthy instance of this is the monastery of St. Paolo à la tre Fontana, situated in one of the most fever-stricken districts of the Roman Campagna. Since about 1870, when the tree was planted in its cloisters, it has become habitable throughout the year. To the remarkable drainage afforded by its roots is also ascribed the gradual disappearance of mosquitoes in the neighbourhood of plantations of this tree, as at Lake Fezara in Algeria.

In Sicily it is being extensively planted to combat malaria, on account of its property of absorbing large quantities of water from the soil. Recent investigations have shown that Sicilian Eucalyptus oil obtained from leaves during the flowering period can compete favourably with the Australian oil in regard to its industrial and therapeutic applications. Oil has also been distilled in Spain from the leaves of E. globulus, grown there.

In India, considerable plantations of E. globulus were made in 1863 in the Nilgiris at Ootacamund, but though a certain amount of oil is distilled there locally, under simple conditions, little attempt has hitherto been made to develop the industry on a commercial scale, Australia remaining the source of supply.

A great increase in Eucalyptus cultivation has recently taken place in Brazil as a result of a decree published in 1919 awarding premiums and free grants of land to planters of Eucalyptus and other trees of recognized value for essence cultivation.

There are a great number of species of Eucalyptus trees yielding essential oils, the foliage of some being more odorous than that of others, and the oils from the various species differing widely in character. It necessarily follows that the term Eucalyptus oil is meaningless from a scientific point of view unless the species from which it is derived is stated.

They contain a strongly scented oil in small translucent glands. The woody flower bud has a lid that is pushed off as the mass of stamens emerge. The bark frequently peels off in characteristic ragged strips.

It is used as a leave infusion (antiseptic, anorexigenic), essential oil (antiseptic, wound healing, expectorant).

The British Pharmacopoeia describes Eucalyptus Oil as the oil distilled from the fresh leaves of E. globulus and other species.The oils may be roughly divided into three classes of commercial importance: 

• the medicinal oils, which contain substantial amounts of eucalyptol (also known as cineol) 
• the industrial oils, containing terpenes, which are used for flotation purposes in mining operations 
• the aromatic oils, such as E. citriodora, which are characterized by their aroma. 

The British Pharmacopoeia requires Eucalyptus Oil to contain not less than 55 per cent, by volume, of Eucalyptol, to have a specific gravity 0.910 to 0.930 and optical rotation -10 degrees to 10 degrees. The official method for the determination of the Eucalptol depends on the conversion of this body into a crystalline phosphate, but numerous other methods have been suggested 

The medicinal Eucalyptus Oil is probably the most powerful antiseptic of its class, especially when it is old, as ozone is formed in it on exposure to the air. It has decided disinfectant action, destroying the lower forms of life. Internally, it has the typical actions of a volatile oil in a marked degree.

Eucalyptus Oil is used as a stimulant and antiseptic gargle. Locally applied, it impairs sensibility. It increases cardiac action.

The oil is a powerful antiseptic and disinfectant. Rub in onto the chest for bronchitis and chest complaints, and sprinkle on the pillow to soothe coughs, colds and asthma. Several drops in warm water make a gargle for sore throats. To clear the nose and bronchial tubes, boil 25g (1 oz) fresh leaves in one liter (2 1/4 pints) water, then inhale the steam with a towel over your head.The bark produces a beige dye and when boiled for about 2 hours, the fresh leaves give a beautiful red.

When to use it? external use : antiseptic for cuts, burns, leucorrhea, respiratory infections (inhalation)

internal use : respiratory infections: sinus infection, bronchitis, common cold or flu with associated bronchitis, urinary infections

When not to use it? When you have allergy to eucalytus, possible bronchospasm with essential oil. all alkaloid are dangerous drugs.intoxication lead to hallucinations, dementia, possible death.

In veterinary practice, Eucalyptus Oil is administered to horses in influenza, to dogs in distemper, to all animals in septicaemia. It is also used for parasitic skin affections.