Two New Bonsai: Melaleuca & Baeckea Virgata
While out at Bunnings yesterday I picked up 2 new bonsai trees for my collection. Both of them came from the general shrubs section and have no training or shape to them (as yet).
The first is a Melaleuca, or more specifically the "Little Red" variety, referring to the red coloured leaves. As you can see from the image below, this tree is very "raw" and needs a lot of work. It stands close to a foot tall so is a good size for me to start working on it right away. I'm yet to decide what style I will use, so will take some time to look at it before making a decision. Wendy suggested I work with a "wind-swept" look, which would work well, but am not entirely sure just yet.
The other tree I picked up is this tiny little hedging shrub called a Baeckae Virgata. It is part of the Myrtaceae family of trees (which includes the Myrtle). The Baeckae has been used as bonsai by others, so figured I would give it a go. This is a dwarf species, so is very small. Saying that, as you can see from the photo below, it has a nice shape and a good size trunk considering the tree only stands 3 inches tall! I will probably work this one to an upright style, but will give it time to grow before making any serious decisions.
In other news, my Juniper has screamed that spring is approaching. Check out the new growth in the image below. I am going to re-pot this into a larger post in the coming weeks and then let it grow for another 6 - 12 months before making any big moves with it. The growth it's had so far is excellent though, so i'm very pleased.
The Harland Boxwood also continues to grow and has new shoots coming up. A recent photo can be found in the photo gallery.
