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Gerry Fields presented an interesting  "Round Robin" program on collecting pre-bonsai stock, with tips on such subjects as Preparation, Collecting and Aftercare at Midori Bonsai Club's October 7th General Meeting

Gerry provided this

List of Items to bring Collecting:

(Consider each one; not every item may be appropriate depending on the length of your trip, the locale, or the weather)

1. Permit or permission from property owner

2. Personal Items:

  • Plenty of drinking water and snacks
  • Clothing: appropriate for weather, good hiking shoes, hat and heavy duty gloves
  • Lip balm,
  • Sunblock,
  • Toilet paper,
  • Insect repellent,
  • First aid kit,
  • Moistened towelettes,
  • Wristwatch and
  • Small hand towels.

3. Backpack for equipment and for carrying trees.  Long distance or large trees.

4. Small day pack for holding tools - short distance or small trees.

5. Tools for collecting trees

  • Pick or mattock,
  • Shovel,
  • Hand pruner,
  • Two folding saws,
  • Trowel,
  • Loppers,
  • Pocketknife or shears
  • Crow bar
  • Root hook

6. Packaging materials

  • Plastic bags in several sizes
  • Wrapping tape, twine or duct tape to secure bags to trees.
  • Bungie cords to secure treees to backpack
  • Pre-soaked (water with SuperThrive) sphagnum moss to cover roots
  • Large tub and water container for soaking trees at site
  • Two spray bottles: one to keep roots moist while digging, and one to spray foliage.
  • SuperThrive, Cloud Cover or Anti Stress 2000

7. Flagging tape for marking trees

8. Supplies if planting on-site:

  • Pots,
  • Basic bonsai tools
  • Fast draining soil (pumice, perlite, vermiculite) for planting tree prior to going home
  • 20-gallon garbage bags
  • 5-gallon buckets
  • Screens for sifting soil

Gerry found this ice pick at a garage sale.  It makes a light and effective collecting tool

A jumbo "root hook" like this one is an essential item for digging and separating a tree's roots

Juan Cruz demonstrates a pair of jumbo loppers that can quickly remove top growth and dead branches to gain access to the tree base

Gerry goes through a couple of these folding saws on each collecting trip!

Gerry demonstrated the process of repotting a recently collected specimen. Most of the growth on this tree has developed since it was originally collected.  Gerry said that he sometimes allows California Junipers to soak in water for a few weeks prior to planting.

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