Prunus Mume 'Omoi No Mama'

[Chuah]

I guessed that it was not English.
I'm one of these people who can find humor almost anywhere. Unfortunately, I'm usually the only one laughing.

As I reflect is poetic, especially with a developing bonsai.

With the english word "reflect" having multiple meanings I am tempted to want an omoi no mama with a reflecting pond under it giving the name a double meaning, however I don't imagine it actually means both kinds of reflection so the english born idea may not work.

I like your sense of humor. As you said, "reflect" has multiple meanings. It is the same for "omoi" which can be translated as reflect, contemplate, remember or thought depending on how it is used or within the context of a complete sentence. Translation from one language to another is quite difficult.

 

[fredtruck]

As I reflect...beautiful name. Sometimes, I don't reflect, as in the case of this flower picture. I went right by it, thinking it didn't have enough color. It's subtle, but it's definitely there.

 

[JudyB]

Yea, nice.

 

[TomB]

I like the delicacy of the flowers, with the white and pink hues. This is mine (garden tree, not bonsai).

 

[fredtruck]

And finally, here are some omoi no mama flowers I didn't pass up.

 

[JudyB]

Stunning. Does this one always bloom this late for you?

 

[fredtruck]

I think I took these Feb. 2nd, and I didn't get around to posting them until yesterday. I have to say though that as nice as these are, they aren't as dramatic as your little ume. Wow, that one really knocked my socks off!

 

[fredtruck]

My prunus mume omoi no mama “Brent” has had an interesting year. Things were going along very well in late April when a brief, very violent hail storm stripped almost every leaf off the tree.


Omoi no mama is a touchy plant. I have had considerable dieback with these. The dieback last year was concerned with the falling branches. In most cases, about half a falling branch died back. After the hailstorm, I thought maybe this tree wouldn’t make it.


However, the tree almost immediately began popping leaves and branches. Many of the branches are short shoots that then ramified. This is particularly true of the new shoots down low. The new falling branches on top are likely subject to dieback, but hopefully not all.


The No Mama also has a new apex. The old one died back, and it will be trimmed, at least somewhat. The main falling branch down low is still there, but half dead. You can see the tail end of it, still wired. I’m tempted to treat the bottom as dead wood. I still like the line it creates.


You will notice a lot of fine wire hanging off the branches. I don’t know what gage the wire is, but it may be floral wire. I use it to create the falling branches. Standard advice for wiring branches is to wait until the shoots harden off. To create falling branches, I don’t do this. As the shoot nears its optimum length for my design, I wrap it loosely and carefully bend the branch, creating the sharp angle at the trunk right from the start.


Do I ever break off shoots? Of course I do, but not often. I work slowly, sometimes taking as long as 3 days to make the sharp angle. Most of the time the angle can be done in one day, but I give myself the benefit of the doubt. If it’s not going well, I quit for the day and come back the next day. And so on.


I leave the long wire trailers on until after the tree sheds its leaves. The tiny amount of extra weight helps keep the branches down, and reminds me where the branches are. With a tree like this, which has lots of falling branches, it’s easy to lose track when checking the condition of the bonsai.

 

[fredtruck]

My prunus mume 'omoi no mama' has had an exceptional year for blooming. I also had a good year in terms of styling a deciduous tree like a conifer. Near the end of January, my tree looked like this:





I've never really liked the apex of the 'omoi no mama.' The picture above brought that into focus. On the other hand, there were a ton of flower buds.



By mid-February, it was clear the ume was going to explode into blossoms. Today, the first petals of the oldest flowers began to fall. The flowers were about as good as they were going to get.



Here is the best close-up I've taken of the flowers:



The colors of the flowers are not bright and bold as you can find in a good toyo nishiki bonsai. They require contemplation and reflection. I love the translation given above by Chuah: As I reflect.

 

[fredtruck]

My "omoi no mama" continues to chug along, showing flowers everywhere, or at least the potential to flower.

 

[fredtruck]

Here are a few closeups to show the amazing subtlety of "omoi no mama's" flowers:

 

[just.wing.it]

Wow. Beautiful close ups!

 

[cmeg1]

Definately an Ode’ to the arriving Spring!

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Fred, your wonderful photos and really nicely done tree make me want to try my hand at Ume again. Very nice.

My track record with Ume has been poor, of the cuttings I've picked up, the only ones that lasted more than 3 years for me were the ones I sold to someone else. I know they can be grown well in my area, I just need to pay more attention.

 

[0soyoung]

OH BOY! Yo mama, @fredtruck !!

 

[fredtruck]

Fred, your wonderful photos and really nicely done tree make me want to try my hand at Ume again. Very nice.

My track record with Ume has been poor, of the cuttings I've picked up, the only ones that lasted more than 3 years for me were the ones I sold to someone else. I know they can be grown well in my area, I just need to pay more attention.

The trick with all the ume I have is winter protection. I keep my ume at about 40 degrees F. at the coldest. Well, sometimes that slips down to 37. I don't let them freeze, ever. I water them every day until flowering. And, once a week until flowering, I give them a shot of 0-10-10.

And thanks for the compliments.

 

[namnhi]

Damn Fred, that is a beautiful tree.

 

[fredtruck]

The ume is at the end of its flowering for this year. It's been a fine time for the flowers, really the best I've had with this tree. Many flowers now are smaller, and quite a few in the center area of the tree are slowly wilting. But, it's been a lot of fun.

 

[JudyB]

Even at the end of blooming it's still a stunning sight.

 

[fredtruck]

Thanks, Judy. I really appreciate your comment.