And Here Are Some Pics....

The Black Locust Tree seeds have sprouted as I mentioned a few days ago... Finally managed to get some pics to upload, been a bit busy being back at work, being introduced to hundreds of people and generally getting back into the flow of waking up at 5:30-6 in the morning (fortunately avoiding the morning rush hour). But enough about me, and more about the sprouts!

Only 3 so far so still hoping on a couple more, but that'll do for now... Will wait until they have grown another set of leaves or two before repotting into something larger... Guess I now need to wait for a few years before doing anything with these guys. Still, most success I've ever had with seeds other than chillis. Let's hope they continue to develop nicely...

Planting Diagram...

And here it is, the two seed trays:

The key is below:

C - Cedar of Lebanon (Cedrus Libani)

E - European Hornbeam (Carpinus Betulus)

H - Hinoki Cypress (Chamaecyparis Obtusa)

W - White Chinese Wisteria (Wisteria Sinensis Alba)

J - Blue Jacaranda (Jacaranda Mimosifolia)

B - Black Locust Tree (Robinia Pseudoacacia)

O - Orange Jasmin (Murraya Paniculata)

R - Coast Redwood (Sequoia Sepervirens)

(Latin names are 'fun' to type - please not the sarcasm)

Last Week...

The first of the seedlings sprouted! I haven't been able to get any photos yet, but I can tell you it's the Black Locust Tree... Pics coming soon and a diagram of the plantings coming in a bit!

And I Forgot To Mention...

The new tree, as you could probably tell from the pics yesterday, has a gorgeous off-white pot that complements the tree so well! The rocks look great, even though they are a contrasting feature rather than being integral to the tree itself.

The bull is a very nice feature - I was born in the year of the bull, really adds character for the time being whilst the tree grows and develops further.

Won't be making any mistakes on watering it, and will avoid any trims for AT LEAST a month, maybe even a year... Want to see how it develops first, get to know the growth and pace...

Amazing Girlfriend...

It was my birthday near the end of last week and my amazing girlfriend, obviously seeing how into Bonsai I've been getting of late, got me this tree...

Have no idea what exactly it is yet (will have to look through all the trees in the short pocket encyclopedia that I mentioned a few weeks back), but looking forward to finding out!

- Since this was written, the guys on ibonsaiclub.forumotion.com have helped a little :)

Podocarpus macrophyllus - sometimes called the Chinese yew, though it is not a yew.

Or...Buddhist pine, but it's not a pine.

Thanks Guys! (Jim and Bruce)

Really lucious green foliage, can't really see the colours in this light (late afternoon and/or flash) but it's a really vivid green with a tiny bit of a blue tinge (looks much bluer in the pics).

Little Grassling...

Ok, I will need to make sure that it's not a weed, but have a tiny little grassling growing up through the moss of my first tree in this adventure...

And in focus:

Adds quite a bit of character in my opinion, but my opinion obviously doesn't count for much at this stage... you be the judge...

Back To Work...

Went back to work on Monday, had a very pleasant 3-4 months off between jobs and felt like I really deserved it after everything I went through at the previous one for 3 and a half years...

Glad to be going back, but doubt I'll be able to keep up with 1+ posts a day. Will try to manage 5 a week as a minimum - who knows, maybe being busier will allow me to get more done...