Guys, i was looking at my decidedly ugly big poppa crassula. This one is the guy that i got my other crassula in the pot from, they were cuttings. So unfortunately he is not a great looker because i read in my chemistry textbook from school that you can use wood ash as a organic source of Potassium, i wanted to use this because potassium is needed by flowers and i wanted my crassula to flower.. Well.. it ended up killing half of the trunk as you will see in the pics.

So anyway, i was looking at this tree, and immediately a wonderful idea popped into my head. I am going to cut it in half and use the other half as a mame bonsai! I shall chop it off and pop it in a tiny pot and grow it! I envision it looking like my mentors tree like the photo called "paul mame" attached! Enjoy

Interesting - I was just reading about Mame yesterday. I am still in the learning phase. Hope everything works well, lives long.

it will be another year or so before I try a Mame or a Shohin

Yeah i was chatting to Harry Harrington on email the other day and he gave me one tip.. Learn to make a small tree look big. This is infact the most difficult part of Bonsai and takes years to perfect. This is why trees grown by pros look that beautiful because of the intricate detail.. Mame are just that.. making a small tree look big, in other words looking at just that tree and being able to imagine yourself standing next to it

Thankfully - I have an excellent imagination. Usually it runs to far too fast.

I get confused trying to keep up.

J. nice trees love the roots on the smaller one. my father has one thats 40 years old but is in a planter not in a bonsai pot.they make great specimens

A. shohin size are my favorite they are much easier to handle but take more work to get the "old tree" look.as for mame i have herd they are for retired folks the take alot of care .durring summer months they need constant daily attention to keep hydrated

Haha yeah thats the problem with Mame, but crassula dont need that much water, they are basically cactis trees. I read that if you water crassula too much they dont send out roots and their leaves just get big and top heavy

Hi Jon,

Great idea for Poppa Jade! I'm thinking...after you cut the main trunk off, what you will have left of the original tree are the two large branches. These look to be directly across from each other, yes???...(which is unacceptable for branches in bonsai)...so you may want to consider a split trunk style and completely remove the stump from where you cut and let it heal over. This would result in a large scar similar to Paul's large tree. Just an idea.

As for the wood ash...get rid of it! It was a good experiiment and learning curve. As you mentioned in a previous post elsewhere on the forum, you will now be fertilizing your plants with a water soluable liquid fertilizer (which I personally prefer). Take the time to learn the importance of the NPK value (macro elements)...K being potassium for flower & fruit growth and make sure it contains all the necessary trace (micro) elements as well. Also realize that the NPK requirements change according to the seasons and the plant's growth habits. Here is some good info: www.bonsaiempire.com/care/fertilizing

Also I recently found some great info on the Crassula ovata which gives a healthy, natural suggestion on how to get your Crassula to flower. This is great ~ you'll luv it! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crassula_ovata

Have fun with it!

actually if they're watered too much they will drop their leaves.perfect time to spread babies in the desert is the wet season.keeping them dry makes them store water with means more leaves bigger roots and fatter trunks.its kinda weird but makes sence when considering the climate they are from

Hi Keith,

You are so right about the watering...which I just recently read. I was also really surprised to learn that the Jade prefers bright, indirect light rather than direct hot sun! ...considering they are a desert-type plant. So now I'm wondering, seeing I live in a temperate climate should I *not* place my Jades in direct sun in my southern exposure windows during the winter months? And what about during the summer here when it gets hot and humid and daytime highs reach in the 90's F/low 30's C? It's kind of confusing.

manofthetrees wrote:

actually if they're watered too much they will drop their leaves.perfect time to spread babies in the desert is the wet season.keeping them dry makes them store water with means more leaves bigger roots and fatter trunks.its kinda weird but makes sence when considering the climate they are from

Yeah i think thats if it was watered waaay too much!