Detailed Explanation of Cultivation Techniques for Bahunia (Bauhinia) Withered-then-Regrown Bonsai
Bauhinia is an excellent potted plant and also a superior timber tree; because it is difficult to grow into timber, yet its appearance is beautiful. People mostly use it as material for making bonsai or as a landscaping tree species. So how can you cultivate a creatively shaped Bauhinia bonsai? Below, the editor will analyze it for everyone.
Withered-trunk style bonsai is made from tree parts that are partially withered and decayed but still retain some vitality, such as roots and stems, allowing this withered and rotten material to regrow new branches and leaves in the bonsai, radiating new vitality. Through the image of old, diseased and disabled forms, it displays an artistic implication and spirit of having endured vicissitudes, of distant time, and of unyielding vitality. In bonsai technique, withered-then-regrown is a relatively special method, but due to its limitation by materials, such artworks are not commonly seen on the market; however, good withered-style bonsai generally have relatively high artistic value, and some fine pieces are eagerly sought and purchased by people.
(1) Material selection: select part or all of the stems, branches or root system of the Bauhinia tree, and keep or discard according to their form to make rough material for later use;
(2) Shaping: use bending, carving, hollowing, piercing and other methods on the Bauhinia rough material obtained in the previous step to create a Bauhinia shaped material with a certain ornamental form, while retaining a small amount of bark;
(3) Withered treatment: soak the Bauhinia shaped material obtained in step (2) in withered-treatment liquid for 1-2 hours, then take it out to obtain the withered base material. The withered-treatment liquid is made by stirring and mixing the following materials in the following proportions:
Starch 10-15g
Vinegar 20ml
Chrysanthemum juice 20-30ml
Humus 5-15g
Humic acid 10-20g
Water 1000ml
Iron powder 3-6g;
(4) Transplant the withered Bauhinia base material into a flower pot to regrow and produce new branches and leaves, becoming a bonsai.
The shaping work in step (1) must be completed within 24 hours, otherwise the regrowth survival rate of the base material after transplanting will be greatly reduced.
In the shaping work of step (2), the bark retained on each rough material should be continuous from bottom to top, and the retained bark area should be no less than 5% of the total bark area of the entire rough material.
The withered-treatment liquid in step (3) is best prepared and used on the same day, to avoid the liquid losing effectiveness.
The ratio of the withered-treatment liquid per unit volume to the total surface area of the shaped material being treated is 1000ml:1-5 sq m. As the withered-treatment liquid is used, the content of active ingredients in the liquid will gradually decrease. After soaking shaped material with a total surface area of about 5 sq m, the withered-treatment liquid needs to be replaced with new liquid; otherwise the shaped material cannot be effectively withered, affecting the technical effect of the withering treatment.
The transplanting in step (4) is conventional cutting transplanting; it is only necessary to keep the roots facing downward and the tip facing upward, and it must never be inverted, otherwise the base material cannot regrow and sprout.
The soil used in step (5) is loam, black soil, loess or red soil, but does not include alkaline soils such as yellow mud soil.
The transplanting in step (6) is carried out in a natural environment. After transplanting, water once every 3-5 days until the base material grows new buds.
In step (7), control of sprouting on the base material: for parts of the base material surface where buds are needed, expose them to the air; for the remaining parts where buds are not needed, wrap them with plastic film or similar materials, and remove the film after new buds grow out. After that, for new buds growing on surfaces that had been covered on the dead wood, simply use the bud-rubbing method to remove them, which can effectively control the growth of sprouts. Alternatively, apply petroleum jelly to the parts where buds are not needed, so that the new buds regrown on the base material form new plants according to people's creative design. Generally, 15-25 days after transplanting, the base material can sprout new buds, thereby forming a bonsai plant with fresh green branches and leaves that will bloom and bear fruit.
Bauhinia is a relatively common landscaping tree species. In the past, when people used it to make bonsai, they would destructively dig out Bauhinia trees with somewhat peculiar shapes from the forest together with their roots, and select the roots and part of the stems to transplant into flower pots in time. This kind of bonsai is no different from the natural Bauhinia plants seen in the forest, and cannot produce a sense of antiquity and age. It lacks artistic spirituality and, apart from adding some greenery to indoor spaces and courtyards, has no particularly distinctive meaning. Therefore, its value is very low. On the other hand, this kind of Bauhinia bonsai cannot be mass-produced; it can only be made according to the shapes of naturally encountered plants, and cannot form an industry. If an industry were forcibly created, it would inevitably destroy the natural ecosystem and could lead to devastating damage to Bauhinia tree resources in a certain region or area.
In this bonsai cultivation technique, through selection tests among many tree species, Bauhinia was found as the specific tree species to serve as the rough material for withered-then-regrown bonsai making. Repeated practice over many years has proven that currently only Bauhinia can maintain a high regrowth survival rate after withering treatment, reaching 99% or above, while other tree species clearly show signs of withering and death in the base material after carving, piercing and other shaping work. After transplanting into flower pots, the survival rate is very low, mostly below 15%, and large-scale development costs are high, yielding results not worth the effort. However, withered Bauhinia not only has a very high regrowth survival rate, but its material is also convenient for shaping operations. Roots, stems and branches can all serve as rough material for withered shaping; therefore, the utilization rate of Bauhinia trees as bonsai raw material is high, and the bonsai production cost is low. For some highly ornamental bonsai shaping artworks, standardized mass production can be achieved, maximizing economic benefits.
According to the method of this invention, using the stems of wild Bauhinia as rough material, they can be cut into sections; the length of the sections and the cutting method can be chosen and determined according to the specific state of the trunk and branch nodes and creative requirements. Next, artistic shaping is carried out on the rough material; the shaping methods are traditional techniques, such as removing part of the bark, and then using carving, bending, piercing, hollowing and other techniques to make the rough material into forms with mottled, broken, partially decayed, insect-eaten, beast-gnawed, bird-pecked and other traces, giving it an impression of great age and having endured hardships. When carrying out such operations, it is essential to ensure that 5-15% of the bark of the rough material is kept intact, that is, let a portion of the bark remain undamaged to maintain its function of transporting nutrients and water; otherwise it will truly wither and die, losing the possibility of regrowth. The shaping work on the same root or the same section of rough material is best completed within one day, to avoid excessive water loss and loss of vitality, especially in hot summer.
The shaped material after shaping is promptly put into the withered-treatment liquid to soak. Soaking can be done by fully immersing it in the withered-treatment liquid or partially immersing it, so that the liquid acts on all or part of the rough material. The soaking time is appropriately increased or decreased according to whether the rough material is old or tender, generally 1-2 hours, with 2 hours being sufficient in most cases. After soaking, take it out; at this time the surface color of the shaped material will gradually turn black, brown-black, light black or iron-black, and the shaped material will look more like withered ancient trees with a visual effect of vicissitudes, distant age, hardship and unyielding resilience.
The rough material after withered treatment is called withered base material. The withered base material should be immediately transplanted into a previously prepared flower pot and given routine management, especially watering once every 3-5 days to keep the withered base material moist, until the base material regrows and produces new buds. This time is generally 15-25 days. The regrowth survival rate is above 99%. Unless the shaping operation is improper, with insufficient bark retained or retained bark not meeting requirements, it can all regrow new buds and then become a verdant Bauhinia plant.
Withered-style Bauhinia bonsai has a unique appearance, and its market value is very high, because Bauhinia itself has very good ornamental value. As long as it is slightly designed into a creative bonsai, its market value is limitless. The above cultivation techniques for withered-then-regrown Bauhinia bonsai can be learned by everyone.
Cultivation Methods of Bauhinia blakeana
Bauhinia blakeana is what we commonly call the redbud flower, but since Bauhinia blakeana is an evergreen tree, artificial cultivation requires a suitable environment and sufficient space. Bauhinia blakeana likes light and prefers a warm and humid climate, but is not cold-tolerant.
Bauhinia blakeana
Bauhinia blakeana does not easily set seed, so vegetative propagation is suitable. From spring to summer, after leaf fall and before sprouting, when branch sprouting ability is strong, collect fully mature and robust one-year-old branches as cuttings for cutting propagation. Generally take branch sections 10-15 cm long, cut the upper end into a slant, with the cut at 1 cm above the bud eye, and cut the lower end flat, about 1 mm from the lower part near the stem node; this is beneficial for rooting. If soaked in rooting agent, the rooting effect is better. Carry it out at the turn of spring and summer, remove the small flowers on the branches, and insert them into river sand or vermiculite for fast rooting. Pay attention to heat preservation and moisture retention; it is best to cover with plastic film, keep the temperature between 20-25 degrees, water thoroughly the first time, and thereafter water reasonably according to the dryness and wetness of the substrate. When the temperature is on the high side, ventilate to cool down; when humidity is low, spray water. The average survival rate of cutting propagation can reach above 70%.
Transplanting is suitable in early spring from February to March. Small seedlings need to be kept with more original soil, and large seedlings need to be kept with soil balls. For potted cultivation in a greenhouse, water should be sufficient in spring and summer to maintain humidity. During high summer temperatures, avoid direct sunlight. In autumn and winter, it should be slightly drier. Apply liquid fertilizer 1-2 times during the growing period. When potted in subtropical regions and the Yangtze River basin, this flower should be moved into a greenhouse to overwinter, and the lowest temperature must be kept above 5°C.
What kind of flower plant is Bauhinia? Bauhinia pictures and introduction
Chinese name: Bauhinia
Alternative name: Lingjia flower
Latin scientific name: Bauhinia purpurea L.
Family and genus: Fabaceae, Bauhinia genus
Origin and distribution: southeastern China
Bauhinia is a semi-evergreen tree or upright shrub plant, 7-10 m tall; bark thick, nearly smooth, gray to dark brown. Leaves hard and papery, hairless on both sides or slightly pubescent beneath; raceme lateral or terminal, few-flowered, flower buds more or less spindle-shaped, petals peach-red, oblanceolate; seeds nearly round, flat, seed coat dark brown. Flowering period September-November; fruiting period February-March. This species is an excellent landscaping tree species and is often planted as a street tree along roadsides. Its roots, bark, leaves and flowers are used as medicine. It has effects such as strengthening the spleen and drying dampness, and reducing inflammation and stopping bleeding.