A New Bonsai and a Weekend in the Garden
It was Bank Holiday weekend last wekeend, the weather was glorious, and so we did what many people probably did over the long weekend — headed to the local garden centre to buy some bedding plants for the patio pots.
Of course, it’s never quite as simple as that.
The local Greenacres Nursery here in Ynyslas that we visited specialises in bonsai trees and had an ever growing display of them. Some are enormous, beautifully shaped specimens that look more like ancient landscapes than pot plants, with price tags running well into the thousands. I’ve always admired them, but never quite been brave enough to spend proper money on one.
Bonsai Bonus Buy
I’ve dabbled with bonsai over the years and have a couple of trees slowly developing that I’ve grown from seed myself, but they’re very much long-term projects rather than anything particularly refined. There’s something satisfying about shaping and nurturing them over time, and it’s a good test of patience for me, as progress is measured in years rather than weeks.
This weekend, however, one little bonsai caught my eye. Nothing especially dramatic or rare, and certainly not a showpiece tree, but it had a nice shape and a bit of character about it. At £45 it felt just about reasonable enough to justify as a treat to myself, so home with us it came.
Now comes the difficult part: keeping it alive!
The timing probably isn’t ideal, as the weather here has been slightly ridiculous lately. Scorching temperatures that dry it out in no time and bake the roots in the tiny pot. An now, the katabatic winds have started howling down the valley, turning the garden into a miniature wind tunnel. Bonsai trees may look tough and ancient, but in reality, they’re vulnerable little things sitting in shallow pots, so I suspect it may need a bit of shelter while it settles in.
Garden Updates
Aside from the new addition, the rest of the weekend was spent doing the usual seasonal garden jobs. Pots were tidied and replanted, shrubs pruned, and various neglected corners brought back under control. I cleaned out the pond as well, discovering that at least one frog seems very happy with the current arrangements and has taken up residence amongst the weeds and stones. The hot weather and encroaching vegetation has reduced the size of the pond somewhat, but it’s now looking quite settled and more natural. I just wish I’d made it bigger in the first place.
The bees were inspected too and seem to be thriving in the warm weather. There’s always something reassuring about opening a hive and finding calm, purposeful activity inside. Thousands of bees all apparently knowing exactly what they should be doing, unlike the beekeeper, who is often making things up as he goes along.
Leaving a few bits of the garden wild – it’s deliberate, honest – seems to be helping the wildlife too. There are loads of little creatures everywhere at the moment: damselflies and pond skaters around the pond, tiny beetles and flies darting about in the sunshine, red-and-black froghoppers clinging to the foliage, bumble bees working their way through the flowers, and shield bugs appearing here and there amongst the leaves.
All of it attracts the birds as well, and even the dried-out molehills seem to have found a purpose, providing perfect little sandy dust baths for them in the warm weather.
Between the wind, the sunshine, the wildlife and the constant small jobs that come with looking after a garden, it’s been one of those weekends where very little of note actually happened, yet somehow it still felt full and satisfying. Anna and I had some strolls around the dunes and a sneaky ice cream too.
And now I need to find some time to sit on the patio amongst the newly planted pots, there’s also a small bonsai tree demanding attention, patience and some shelter from the wind.
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