Hi everyone,
Long time no see. Been about 4 years since I last posted. I have spent all this time in hospital suffering from a crisis of confidence. So bad were things becoming for me I felt I had little option than to stop my interest in Bonsai. I mean I was struggling so badly. Things just weren't working out. And I know why. I have a...problem in life. It is a little known learning and developmental thing which I never discussed with anyone on here. It manifests itself as a difficulty with hand-eye-coordination/motor skills/dexterity. So finer work such as anything using the wire was hard for me. And also I find remembering and processing any decent sized amount of complex information hard to do too. So a list of tasks to achieve an end product cannot guarantee the work being carried out precisely as requested
But I am back to give it another go and I really ant to make a better go of it. I have a Juniper, a Pyrocantha and also a Maple. The Maple at the bottom has a big kink in it. But the entire section in the pic does seem perfect for air-layering.
I think I need to carve a section of trunk down to the Cambium (I think it's called that). Dust with rooting powder. Apply wet Sphagnum Moss (which I have) around it and hold it in place with sheeting of some kind. This for about 5-6 weeks I think (according to expert UK Bonsai teacher Peter Chan) and after that time put it in a pot of Sphagnum moss where the new roots can grow.
What I would love to know is when is the best time to do this?