Repotting and preparing The Raft for exhibition at Swindon 2011

real cool work!!!extremely interesting..

Hi Harley,

Really good thread, I read it two or three times. Interesting to see one of Tonys trees being repotted.

Tony,

Thats just how you look!

Jonny.

Harleyrider, thank you very much for posting the series of whole work on this excellent bonsai hawthorn.
Thank you!
I would also like to mention that it is great experience to see friends work together in such high spirits!
Bravo to all of you!

Very good job and very nice tree,
Thank you.

tony wrote: Why do folk make such shocking photos of me?

As you have been telling us for years - it's all to do with the quality of the raw material.

Just joking - those photos of you are most certainly always "characterful".

A great thread and one which I hope we can add at some point to a collection of "best of" informative threads.

Artistic license? I didn't realise I needed one! Do you get them from the Post Office?

Ok, guilty as charged, there were one or two points in there where I sidestepped the truth somewhat but the trick is knowing where they were

As for the 'friends working and laughing together' comments, it's true. No matter what we're doing, or how serious the job at hand is, you never leave Tony's garden without a smile on your face.

Hi H

I just wanted to second everything said...and I must say...what a great storyteller you are ;-)

- And being offered close ups of special species (root systems and bonsai heroes) was a great inspiration, if not encouraging in its own right

best regards from

Loke Emil

Hi Steve,
Thanks for posting such an interesting subject. I'm blown away with how long the tree had been in the pot and how much root Tony removed!!!
Your right though, even on a cold and damp day, you never leave Tony's garden without a smile

Love, Peace & Bananas,
Simon

Steve

Thanks for a great read. Enjoyed your exploits immensely and I second Will, good to see the work on a fantastic and important British Bonsai.
Are you going to Willowbog next weekend? If so see you there sir

All the best

Andy

Great thread Steve, Tony seems to be learning a lot from you

Tony - in the photo where you are putting in the drainage layer, the tie-in wires look like aluminium wire. In the photo where your finger is bleeding and the one above it it looks like copper wire. What did you use?

I'm glad I've had the chance to see this tree in your garden, I would have liked to study it for longer, but I was drawn to the Taxus on your other bench, and everything else in between

Hope to see them all again soon.

Cheers

Paul

Stone Monkey wrote:Steve
Are you going to Willowbog next weekend? If so see you there sir

Hi Andy,

If it's for the 'Shohin Off' weekend, then its the weekend of the 19th & 20th, not next weekend.
Looking forward to seeing you again - I'll be there on the Sunday.

Cheers mate.

Paul

Hi Paul

Sorry I meant the weekend after next. See you at Shohin off mate, Burrs seemed like a lifetime ago.

Regards

Andy

Hi Paul, I use mostly aluminum wire on hawthorns... but tying in the tree its whatever I lay my hands on... a little copper in the soil will do no harm to the tree. See the little white buds are bursting all over the tree

here is the raft today in the greenhouse... see how well the moss has taken... greeeeeeen!

see how well the moss has taken... greeeeeeen!

Yeah, just like we are when we see this tree in your garden.