By It was a very weird June. I was able to participate in the SBBK bonsai show this year for the first time in 2 years. The thing is, our weather had been so odd with temperatures bouncing up and down, that some trees were were awake and showable while others would not be ready for months. Then, after the show, my apartment complex send out a notice of exterior construction starting on June 20 and to be completed July 11. They never manage projects well here and this one has been bad from day one. Their first demand was that all those units requiring construction would have to vacate their decks and patio areas. That announcement was horrible to hear. It meant that we would have to deconstruct the garden on the patio, removing all the benches and trees and stowing them indoors.
As you can imagine, we cannot store many types of our trees indoors for a prolonged time. Maples, Pines, Junipers and my prize Oak would never survive and it would be difficult to care for much in the collection outside of the tropical trees. We set about the process of cleaning pots and packing them up for inside storage, removing our benches and cleaning them for use indoors or stowage in the back of a pickup truck. We moved three benches into the apartment along with two work tables. Trees were everywhere.
June 20 comes and goes with no sign of any construction. It is now almost July 4 and still not word on schedules from the complex. Needless to say that we began seeing tree weakness shortly after the first week. We moved a bench outside on the patio so we could carry trees out and water them, let them drain, and bring them back inside. By June 27 I began seeing fungus on some trees and the indoor constant temperatures with limited light was making trees grown long leggy weak growth. So we decided to set the trees back out on the patio until someone told us construction would start. The trees are on two benches, a planting table, and the ground. Best we could do. The tropical trees, for the most part are kept inside abut they will need maintenance soon as I am seeing leaf drop.
It has been a physically challenging time since I do not move well right now. I hope this construction begins and ends very soon. No one should be keeping this up for a collection. Luckily we found a host for the best and biggest trees northward in the SF Bay Area and I know they are enjoying sun and care other than styling maintenance. I hope none of you every have to go through this process. Below are some scenes of the deconstructed garden.
artsofjc 