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the samoan lawyer's Avatar
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There is a race each year over here called the Seven Sevens, located in the Mourne Mountains, Newcastle Co. Down. Cancelled last year and probably this year because of Covid so we did the route ourselves, for the first time. The aim is to run over the 7 highest mountains in the area, which are all over 700m high.


17 miles long with stunning scenery! Was tough though. The downhills were just as back as the ups and we had every season including ice in parts. Running time 5hours 30mins. Will definitely be back.
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After work one of the bosses said to us drivers, there's some Irish Cream in the office we can't sell because of damaged labels or caps. If you want to bring a bottle home, have at it. So I had at it.



I'm not greedy though.



After work one of the bosses said to us drivers, there's some Irish Cream in the office we can't sell because of damaged labels or caps. If you want to bring a bottle home, have at it. So I had at it.



I'm not greedy though.
Diet?!


Might as well be drinking water with ice, dude

With a water chaser



@The Rodent, don’t Bonsai trees have to be indoors? Not that I would know since I managed to kill a beautiful Bonsai I had indoors.
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I’m here only on Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays. That’s why I’m here now.



@The Rodent, don’t Bonsai trees have to be indoors? Not that I would know since I managed to kill a beautiful Bonsai I had indoors.
That'll be why yours died



Serious note, they're trees...

They need daylight, not too much not too little, because they're small and can't root too much... so partial shade from both the sun and the wind, but again, not too much wind if the pot is shallow, will allow for them to root strongly... but a too shallow pot won't allow for deep enough roots to account for the wind they receive.

It's a balancing act with Bonsai.

Root depth with the wind coverage... amount of sun compared to amount of shade compare to the North/South coverage of the Sun... and also take into account the tree's needs in terms of amount of water as well from rainfall/watering... and also the acidity of said water.
Tap water doesn't suit some trees, but other tree don't care.
Some only go for rain water, so a tree from a warm climate will hate a wet climate, no matter what the care you take.

Then there's the sheer amount of water they get... as in, the soil and the species of tree... and the temperament they live in.
Too cold, too hot... etc etc...

I can go on



Quick guide to Bonsai for a beginner:

Go for Japanese Acer.
Also called Acer Palmatum

Go for green leaved rather than red.

Use a pot that has 8-12 inches of depth.

Soil... any type, but make sure it can drain well. Stone in the bottom of the pot allow for drainage.

Start with a twig around a 5mm thick, and around 6 inches tall.

Plant said twig off-centre in the pot. Square pot or round, doesn't matter. Off-centre the tree.

Allow to grow at own pace for around 2 years. 2 Summers basically.

After 2 years, repot with fresh soil into the same pot, AND DO NOT CUT THE ROOT BALL.

After those 2 Summer's worth of growth have gone by... you can wire it into shape using plain zinc wire, or anchors to pull branched downwards and leave to grow for 5-7 years. Cut off any "too tall" growth as it grows from year to year.
A Bonsai will try to grow tall due to the pot being shallow. Cut it down do it doesn't go above 8-12 inches tall at any point.
This will thicken it up, and also thicken the trunk.

Repeat above steps ^^... and repeat forever.
And ever.

Acer Palmatum, like mine, are perfect for amateurs...

They like any climate, warm or cold, tap water, rain water... they even live through harsh frosts and winters.
Make sure though, any deformed leaves, clip them immediately... this encourages the tree to grow only health shaped leaves. Sounds odd, but an Acer that's allowed to grow deformed leaves, eventually ALL the leaves will be deformed.
Use a good drainaged pot, again stones at the bottom of the pot help with that... and twice a year, as in February before growth season, and June-July during mid growth season, give them a heavy dose of soil enriching plant feed, like Baby-Bio:
This stuff...



Once you've cultivated your Bonsai after maybe 3 years, you'll know how to treat it.

One thing I've found though, is Nippon Insect Spray is great stuff for killing off anything that might eat the leaves.



Another note on Bonsai...

Once they're wired, and established after that 2 year period of growing...

DO NOT CHANGE THEIR NORTH/SOUTH

It's tempting to twist and turn the pot they're in.
Do not do this.

A tree roots and grows dependent on the movement of the Sun.

If you look at my Acer ^^... it is "pointing to the left" in that picture.
My tree "points" directly south.

I tried one year and turned the pot so it pointed north... and it near died.

Once the tree is established... never turn the pot.



This is what I've been busy with

The new planters that went in a couple months back:




My Bonsai 2021:


And remember the Ian Tree?
"Life found a way"
Facebook memories just came up
This was the Ian Tree and my Bonsai exactly a year ago after I chopped them up





Bonsai's doing better than I hoped after last year's clipping. I basically chopped her back to almost nothing and she took ages to recover



I might have to chop Ian back a bit again tbh... that branch in the pic at the bottom right, that's just hanging over the water bowl...

Today, just 24 hours after taking that pic, the branch has grown so it was actually in the water

Might have to get a chair out and spend an hour shaping Ian properly.



Serious note, they're trees.
I recently complimented my orthodontist on his Bonsai tree which I noticed he still had from 7 years ago when I was last in his office.

Secret of his success? Turns out it’s a plastic Bonsai.



Woke up today to find there's buds all over everything, and one of them has even gone as far as almost flowering