Updates, This and That

[grouper52]

Been away from BNut for a short while. I'll spare the travelogue, and other aspects of drama, for the most part, except to say the following.

We're out of the apartment, and my trees - all of which are doing well except the "white flower" one that I bought bare rooted in Manila (which is dead, as I suspected).

We're moved into a rental home in a gated subdivision while our home on our lot in another gated subdivision is about to begin construction - perhaps ... the current setting is a better location than the apartment, sun-wise, for my remaining and new trees, all of which are doing well, including the Bantigue, which isn't supposed to do well here they say in the lowlands, but is pushing lots of new growth.

The stuff we crated up from our home on the Hood Canal almost a year and a half ago all arrived two weeks ago, and currently occupies most all of the floor space in the rental home, floor to ceiling. The stuff from the apartment we rented for a year between that move and moving over here is either still largely unpacked or still in transit.

I mention these details as prelude to mentioning these factors:

Most of my bonsai tools have arrived; I was able to find appropriate power conversions for my beloved die grinder.

A few nice pots that I didn't sell or give away with the move have also arrived, and have broadened my possibilities a bit here.

My old trusty Canon has arrived, but with only some of its accessories that I can currently locate. Still my photographic fortunes have now increased from recent posts, since I was able to jury rig it into somewhat servicable status ... but, my Korean satin background cloth - which rendered such absolute blacks - is still not to be found, and the best I could find here, a "black velvet blanket," is a poor substitute, as the photos below will show. The photos are also far from correct was also hampered because my new Mac - new since my old posting and publishing days - is currently without any photo processing software besides iPhoto. But I post three new Mulawin trees I recently got none-the-less, just to get started with my old equipment again. Other new trees may be posted later. Enjoy, if you can.

 

[Wilson]

Those are some pretty wild looking trees! I am loving the different trees I see people sharing from SE Asia. I am glad to hear you are slowly getting yourself set up.

 

[grouper52]

Those are some pretty wild looking trees! I am loving the different trees I see people sharing from SE Asia. I am glad to hear you are slowly getting yourself set up.

Thanks, Wilson. That first tree, BTW, is not just a piece of driftwood - there is live growth on that lowest right branch, which was cut way back since the branch is probably too established and seemed too brittle to bend it down much ... I and the fellow I bought it from agreed the tree would have to be re-started "from scratch," so the little remainder of that branch is already pushing new growth, as is another cut-back area in a live branch at the back - which will give the finished tree some depth. I've another great Mukawin I got from the same guy's hoard of starter material, and a really great Blue Bell windswept I'm working to re-style into a more natural-looking specimen. I'll post them later, and hopefully have honed the photographic efforts to a more pleasing level.

 

[Wilson]

Thanks, Wilson. That first tree, BTW, is not just a piece of driftwood - there is live growth on that lowest right branch, which was cut way back since the branch is probably too established and seemed too brittle to bend it down much ... I and the fellow I bought it from agreed the tree would have to be re-started "from scratch," so the little remainder of that branch is already pushing new growth, as is another cut-back area in a live branch at the back - which will give the finished tree some depth. I've another great Mukawin I got from the same guy's hoard of starter material, and a really great Blue Bell windswept I'm working to re-style into a more natural-looking specimen. I'll post them later, and hopefully have honed the photographic efforts to a more pleasing level.

Grouper my friend, you set the bar for photographing trees! I am sure all us nuts look forward to you sharing, when you are fully established in your new home.

 

[M. Frary]

Glad to hear you finally got your things Will.
And the photography looks great.
The trees are going to be excellent.
As yours always are.
Are there conifers of any kind in the Phillipines?

 

[grouper52]

Thanks for the kind words, Mike.

We are surrounded by the most beautifull pines up here in Baguio, but no one has yet figured out how to either grow them into bonsai in pots, nor - more to the point for me - how to collect them successfully from the wild ... not sure that I'll offer my collecting expertise to these local efforts at any point, but it would be great if my years collecting with Dan could change the zero survival rates for these beauties. Now that my camera is here, I hope to take it with me around the area and start getting some photos of these pines and other gorgeous trees in the landsacpe.

There are other things here for sale that may classify as evergreens, carrying the appelations of "juniper" and "pine" locally anyway, but they are only useful for long-term mame projects and such IMHO, and not my sort of thing, mostly.

I still can't get my photo-processing programs to do a real stellar job with the "black" velvet blanket I'm stuck with for background yet, but I'm working on it - once I can get those programs back to full functionality the need for my currently-missing black satin background cloth will disappear I hope, since such cloth might be impossible to find anywhere here. Will get more when I go back to the States next if need be, though.

Using another, and seemingly better, approach to the processing dilemma, here's the best I can do with the final of the 4 small Mulawins I've acquired recently, this one undergoing its first styling work just before the photo. Enjoy, and thanks again for your kind words.