??? FOR PEOPLE OF THE GREAT CONTINENT OF AFRICA

have any of you folks been successful in container growing a KOKERBOOM (aka quiver tree) ?

Never tried it, and never seen one as a bonsai old chap.

I reread you post . . . . I have seen quite a few grown in containers, but think much larger than typical bonsai. Are you going to come and visit us here in Cape Town for the African Bonsai Convention in October? I hope so. It'll be a gas!

i want SO MUCH to come to south africa, more than anything (except whirled peas) but last time i looked (today), flights were $1,500 - $2,000 (USD)... and so i need to have some sort of windfall or ill-gotten gains in order to afford it...

but that is definitely at the top of my list before i die...

but apparently our Arbor Arts Collective member, and your fellow countryman, Andre has 6 trees being exhibited in that show !!!!!!!!!

really makes me wish i could make it...

Always seem to be changing wallpaper when I see your posts. Thank ye once more! Wish i could try it here, big bonsai or not. I wager it would grow like a bad smell.

Kevin, I think you just like 'boom' in a name.

Precarious wrote:Kevin, I think you just like 'boom' in a name.

huh... ironic that when i was a kid, my favorite cereal was...

yup :::



and george - i have been doing a little poking around since i posted this... apparently it is sold in a pot and is commonly known as a type of tree aloe... (i dont believe the second picture i posted is actually a kokerboom... it is simply overlooking a kokerboom veld)

you would do well with one down there... me, not so much i dont think...

Thanks, Kevin. I shall sutely be on the lookout!

Kevin

The tree on your second picture looks like a Shepherd’s tree, Boscia albitrunca. They are stunning trees in nature with small leaves, white bark and gnarly trunks. But……they are unfortunately not suitable for bonsai.

Jaco

"A specimen found in the central Kalahari in 1974 had roots extending to 68 m (223 ft) deep, making it the plant with the deepest known roots.[2]". I see why not. At least for collecting.

thanks jaco and george...

when i googled kokerboom, that second image came up, but i hope my clarification was correct.

too bad its not bonsai-able...

Geo, is that the tree of Tenere you are referring to?

What interests you about it Kevin?

Boscia albitrunca. The quote was from WikiLeaks. Oops,my bad. Wikipedia,I meant to say.

geo wrote:Boscia albitrunca. The quote was from WikiLeaks. Oops,my bad. Wikipedia,I meant to say.

Don't beat yourself up. It was a tap root, so Wikileaks is quite feasible!

Andrew Legg wrote:

geo wrote:Boscia albitrunca. The quote was from WikiLeaks. Oops,my bad. Wikipedia,I meant to say.

Don't beat yourself up. It was a tap root, so Wikileaks is quite feasible!

For your enjoyment Kevin.....

Do you know why it is called a Kokerboom, Translated it means Quiver Tree. Bushman, the San used pieces of the stems to put there Arrows in, If you cut a piece of you can remove the inner pulp quite easily, and the bark is strong and hard to form a...well Bushman Tupperware...hihihiih

My Kokerboom Forest..









Me











The life cycle of a Kokerboom:  It grows for 250 years, then it matures for 250 years and then it dies which takes 250...  they say.













A Kokerboom seedling!  The Kokerboom Forests migrate southwards, This is the most Southern Forest in Africa, near Nieuwoudtville.  What is so different about the southern Forests is that one finds Seedlings, which you dont find anymore at the Northern Forests in Namibie.  Global Warming.

So exiting to see the seedling, and always germinated in between shrublets.  This field is pretty much overgrazed, a sign of bad Farming!









Love and Light

PSAre you coming Jaco Kriek To the ABC4 (African Bonsai convention 4)

Had a chuckle. Went right by me. I missed my own pun! Thamks for a laugh with my first cup of coffee

George.

Andrew Legg wrote:What interests you about it Kevin?

well, for starters, i have a soft spot for warm climate species (the word "tropicals" doesnt seem appropriate) even though i have too many of that type of tree and have recently found that my over-winter capacity will be DRAMATICALLY reduced beginning this fall (less than a month or two away )...

secondly i am fascinated with the true motherland and cradle of civilization, AFRICA, and trees native to africa are something i can actually put my hands on and interact with in person.

but why this species in particular ?

i think andre's photos illustrate it more than i can verbalize it.

but having said all that as i enter my 4th year in this endeavor, and being influenced by folks like arthur joura and others, i realize that working with trees native, or adaptable, to my climate is the most sensible direction... and i dont mind as i have been discovering many species that are perhaps not as dramtic, but ruggedly beautiful just the same... and rugged beauty is what i dig. (and no matter what i will always have at least a few favorite warm climate trees)

...that was probably more answer than you were looking for

and thanks andre !!!
yes i knew about the arrows but not the tupperware
perhaps a hunk of that would make a nice accent vessel ?

Andre, your Quiver Tree forest is interesting to see, and the pot seems a perfect match.  How long have you been developing it, and do the trees take many years to get to that size?  Do you care for them very much like your baobabs?

Oh, and thx for all the pictures- always inspiring to see life in rugged, harsh conditions.

Thanks Mate

The easiest things to take care of. I think they have been in this pot for 8 years now.

No fertilizers, little water in summer. And some root pruning in beginning of winter every 3 or 4th year.

You don't want them to grow, you want them to stay dwarfed, If they get too long you simply replace them with younger seedlings. Which I showed every year, for the nursery as well.

There is the Maiden Quiver tree that is much better for bonsai, will take picture tomorrow as it is raining now. Google maiden quiver tree (Aloe ramosissima ) and you will see what I mean, much more compact and many more branches than the normal quiver Tree.

Love and Light