Bonsai
I discovered bonsai around the same time I found Arboriculture. I find both subjects absolutely fascinating. I grow them from seed, buy suitable plants from nurseries, salvage trees from unwanted hedges and collect from the wild. It is extremely important to seek permission before collecting from the wild as the land may be protected by legislation- such as SSSI- and their are certain moral issues to be considered.
Many of the bonsai books advocate the use of sterile growing mediums which have little nutritional value. The grower will then add chemical or organic nutrients to feed the plant. As an arborist with a penchant for ancient trees, I am tyring to apply my everyday observations to growing bonsai. I work with ancient oaks and often see aerial roots growing down into the decaying centre of the trunks. Through the work of fungi and microbes, the wood is turned into dark, rich soil. I believe this is highly nutritious and am experimenting mixing highly organic matter with grit as my growing medium.
Another point that I believe is critical to the health of a plant is mycorrhizal collaboration. It is thought that every genus of plants in the world except for one have mycorrhizal connections in their native habitat. Many books mention that these important fungi may be found in the soil of pines or beech, but not that every tree has some sort of mycorrhizal symbiosis.
Mycorrhizal fungi are important to plants as they attach themselves to roots of trees and then give the tree water and nutrients in return for sugars and starch from the tree. This symbiosis is important because the tree will not need to waste energy putting out feeder roots as mycorrhzal symbiosis can be ten times more efficient than feeder roots. The fungi also protect the roots from drought, heavy metals and parasites. The reason that growers use sterile mediums is to prevent soil borne pathogens coming into contact with their trees. If the tree has mycorrhizal symbiosis it will be healthy and protected.
The point of this is that I believe plants should be grown organically in similar conditions to those of their native habitat.
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