Entry #44
Judge #1: This will look nice when it eventually has flowers all over. good to see that top is formed like a broadleaved tree
Judge #2: Interesting material. A difficult species to work on. Creative last photo.
Bougainvillea
South Africa
47cm (18.5") / 36cm (14.1")
Before
This is a Bougainvillea glabra ‘Zuki’ hybrid which is 47cm tall from soil to apex and in our temperate / sub- tropical climate flowers all year round with the most profuse flowers from early spring to summer before heavy rains.
This plant was selected for its vibrant colours and abundant blooms and also has quite dense foliage. I plan to style it as an informal upright to showcase the flowers to best advantage. There are no significant roots at this stage although I hope to develop the trunk and roots at a later stage with intensive feeding, watering and full sun.
A glazed pot will be selected from Misty Moon Bonsai, Assagay, KZN, South Africa
One Quarter Progression
This is my Bougainvillea glabra ‘Zuki’ hybrid trimmed ¼ way. Fortunately we are having a good spring with cool weather and plenty of rain.
When I bought this plant it was 47cm high, and I have done some trimming to open it up so that I can see the structure. After doing some trimming with my Ryuga Satsuki shears, I realised that two of the lower branches simply would not work at all, so I plan on removing them from the left of the main trunk.
Now that I have butchered the large branches, some of the top growth will need to
Half Way Progression
This is my Bougainvillea glabra ‘Zuki’ hybrid trimmed ½ way. It took a long time to decide what branches to remove and which to keep. From the previous step I removed the two large lower branches to the left of the main stem and a couple of small branches from the top growth. This has given a better shape to the tree and after this it will need to planted at a slightly different angle, but again I will leave it to recover.
Three Quarter Progression
This is my Bougainvillea glabra ‘Zuki’ hybrid trimmed ¾ styled. I have done some quite heavy wiring to shape it closer to where I want to go with it. For now I will leave it to recover and then pot it in a beautiful glazed jade green pot from Misty Moon Bonsai. Unfortunately my hands are not strong enough to do the wiring as neatly as I would like, but I hope it achieves the desired effect!
Final
This plant was bought from a local nursery shortly before the competition. It had an abundance of foliage and branches crossing all over the place! I had to do some radical pruning and training along the way.
After submission of the ¾ progress submissions we were inundated with almost 2,5 months of unseasonal wet, cool weather. As a result the plant went into winter mode and the foliage did not develop as I had hoped. By this time of year all my Bougainvilleas are normally covered in flowers, but the weather has not co-operated.
I am hoping that as it develops this plant will develop more foliage and the branches will thicken and lengthen. There is also a possibility that the top branches will grow out and I may be able to train it as a cascade at a later stage. There are some interesting roots, some of which will need to be removed at a later re-potting next season and I would like to place it into a larger training bowl to encourage more growth and thicken the trunk.
This is a great plant with quite a few possibilities to explore as it develops, but the variegated foliage will give a beautiful display even if there are no cerise flowers!!
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[tab title=”Judge #1″]
Scores:
Selection: 3
Design: 4
Technique: 4
Final Outcome: 4
Documentation: 10
Originality: 4
Total: 29
This will look nice when it eventually has flowers all over. good to see that top is formed like a broadleaved tree
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[tab title=”Judge #2″]
Scores:
Selection: 6
Design: 5
Technique: 6
Final Outcome: 6
Documentation: 6
Originality: 7
Total: 36
Interesting material. A difficult species to work on. Creative last photo.
[/tab]
[tab title=”Judge #3″]
Scores:
Selection: 5
Design: 5
Technique: 5
Final Outcome: 5
Documentation: 5
Originality: 5
Total: 30
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