My Bonsai Bench Tour And A Surprise Guest Appearance By Mable

[@BonsaiNorthwest]

Really enjoyed the tour, thanks! I especially love the mame tray - I'm working on replicating myself.

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

You’re most welcome! I recently saw your bench tour as well as Nigel’s and a few others and was inspired to do one myself. The trays are very effective. I thoroughly enjoyed your tour as well - you’ve got some very nice trees and I always enjoy your videos.

[@thunderlennert6]

Lovely video and amazing collection!

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

Thanks - I’m glad you enjoyed it. Next time, I will shoot the video when the sun is behind me! 🤣

[@bwusstsein4023]

thank you for these lovely insights 🌳🐾✨

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

You are so welcome and 🙏 so much for watching! ❤️🌲

[@BackyardBonsaiandBlooms-xn3dp]

Nice bench tour.

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

Thanks so much! I’ve so far been able to commit myself to having only a number of trees that will fit on this bench! I enjoy your channel as well - you have some very nice dwarf jade trees. Thanks for watching!

[@n8tyler]

Awesome tour and collection...I really enjoy your channel and the fact that we live relatively close means your information is very adaptable to my situation, which is really helpful...thanks for sharing...

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

Awesome! Thank you! We live in a paradise for bonsai actually. Growing all succulents where we live seems odd to some, but jade in particular (Crassula) enjoy a cool moist environment with many varieties thriving in a rain forest environment, which we have in spades!! The ports enjoy growing indoors under lights so it has been relatively easy to keep them healthy. If you are in to maples, juniper, apple trees, larch, cedar - all so easy in our climate: not extreme temperature or hard freezing generally, lots of water, intense sun at predictable times, lots of 'spring/fall' like weather which these trees love. Best of luck on your bonsai journey Tyler!!

[@pattituringan6745]

Thanks for the bench tour, Mable is a cutie.

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

She’s one in a million for sure 👍. 🙏 for watching!

[@BuffaloBonsai]

I've never had any luck with jade, they look so cool ! But the 3 I've tried to grow never did and just died. 😑

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

Sorry to hear that 🦬! I had the same problem initially and what worked for me was to limit the watering for most of the year. As a rule of thumb, I want the plant to dry out every 7 days at most, ideally every 3. I had several hundred trees years ago - mostly maple, azalea, larch, and juniper and would just water every day without checking them at all. Jade in some ways are more work this way since you should never water them if they are not already dry which is a death sentence for most other types of bonsai. I hope this helps - just don’t water until you really think you should, wait one more day, and then fully water. In the non-growing season, I don’t water until the leaves are wrinkled and then only a small amount. Best of luck and thanks for watching!! ❤️🌲

[@dkstott29]

Jades can be fussy...overwatering is the primary cause of dying followed by mealy bug infestation.... I lost 2 nice skinny finger jades this summer...they died from excess rain and high humidity...

[@thomasmorris2677]

Really enjoyed the tour, looks great, Mable is your constant companion , dogs are the best

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

They are! We’ve always had a dog and I can’t imagine not having one. She a year and nine months now so still very much puppy, but she prides herself on learning new things being part of the family - such a joy to have her around. Thanks for watching Thomas! ❤️🌲

[@thomasmorris2677]

@@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom Just a question, I have had 7 afra cuttings in water for 1 week with no roots yet, is this normal ?

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

Pretty normal, wouldn’t worry yet. I’ve had them grow roots in days, but others take longer with perhaps 2 weeks being the average. I’ve found the key thing is to keep them warm (maybe 75) and also lots of light. I have done most of my water cuttings indoors, but outdoors should also work. Best of luck.

[@Maples-and-cats]

A lot of work here....great job!

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

Thanks a lot! And thanks 🙏 for watching!!

[@lisawagner6076]

Very nice collection Tom! My favorite was the rainbow one! So pretty! Very cozy little oasis you have there and it was very nice seeing Mable. We are dog lovers here too, I have a chihuahua and my husband has a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. I really, really love the look of your benches with the black paint and natural wood! Very striking!

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

Thanks for all the kind comments Lisa! The rainbow always gets attention from guests - the color and the white leaves that look like flowers grab everyone’s attention. His and her dogs? I’m liking the idea!! 🤣. The benches are so easy and flexible to make. I’ve helped a few friends make them who have hundreds of trees. Since they are so easy to reconfigure and expand it really works well for large collections. We did his 5 rows across and he loves it. Thanks for watching and commenting, it is very much appreciated!

[@harrietb2141]

🥰🌳👍

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

❤️🌲👍😀

[@lilicesar8386]

Tenho todas menos a Cork Bark... tenho que ir aí roubar uma 😊 Muito lindas ❤

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

I love them all - so many interesting varieties! Thanks for watching and commenting and good luck 🍀 finding a cork bark!

[@paulnguyen2425]

😎

[@dkstott29]

We're having a brief encounter with fall here in Connecticut...nighttime Temps in the upper 40's F. I'm moving everything inside to our sunroom at sunset for the next few nights...summer returns on Friday..

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

I get ya, it’s always a little melancholy when the long reliably warm days of summer start to get fade. That’s about the same temperature that I bring them in. What concerns me most here in the Seattle area are the cold frequent rains that we get starting mid fall or so. I have a plastic tarp that I hang above the bench to keep the rain out. I’ve found that they can deal with the cool temperatures, but not if they are also wet. Best of luck with summers return and thanks for watching and the great comments.

[@dkstott29]

@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom we had a long stretch of rainy days mixed with hot days and high humidity. The crassula jades weren't happy at all. I moved all the crassula jades into the sunroom to control the weather and water.

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

@@dkstott29 We don’t get very hot weather here often, but I have noticed that my jades seem to much prefer cooler temperatures. We had 2 weeks of regularly hitting 90+ with intense sun and they just seemed to go dormant during that period. As soon as it cooled down - boom, they started growing fiercely again.

[@dkstott29]

Wow, simply amazing....my collection is almost opposite of yours...the majority of mine are variations of Crassula ( crosby, hobbit, gollum, tri-color, lemon lime and a few rarer types, mosaic, variegated minima) vs a small amount of PA...

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

Thanks Dave!! That’s cool that you have so many jades - I love jades. I have not been able to find too many varieties here. I’ve been wanting to get a tricolor to sort of match my rainbow 🌈 PA. I’ve seen some pictures of some of the more rare varieties like you have - they are amazing. I saw a variegated Gollum Jade that just looked so impressive. I think it was on Etsy and they wanted a large amount for it. It could be a great combination and I’ll keep my eye out. I’ve found fall can be a good time here to get some interesting jades since the nurseries are clearing their inventory.

[@dkstott29]

@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom I've had a small Indonesian variegated gollum that started as a small cutting...its still small and extremely slow growing.

[@dkstott29]

@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom Tri- color are very susceptible to too much sunlight. They develop rust coloring. I keep mine indoors, and it never gets direct sun.

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

@@dkstott29 Very interesting. So, much different than rainbow ports which seem to love as much sun as you can give them.

[@dkstott29]

The jade experts tell me that ripple jades don't like wet leaves and full sun...🤷‍♂️

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

I’ve almost given that one away so many times, but it’s finally looking like something I have some faith in now. It grows very quickly - my last attempt before giving it away I drastically cut it back and, almost as if defiant, it shot out new growth very quickly. It seems to like our weather here.

[@n8tyler]

Is that Osmcote I see? I have been regretting using a well known organic pellet fertilizer because it is causing an issue with Fungus Gnats. I've knocked them down put I think replacing the soil in my pots maybe the only way to eradicate them completely...Osmcote should get me slow release fertilization without that buggy side-effect...Hmm, if someone in the know could make a video on this topic...Thanks for sharing...

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

I do use osmocote - my only complaint with it is that it’s ugly, but it works very well. Ports love fertilizer so I put it on in June when I put them outside and then more in September. That way, when I don’t water due to rain, they still get fertilizer. I also always add fertilizer to my water so they get some whenever I water. I was concerned that the regular Crassula jades would not like this, but they seem to do very well with it. I think the fact that the soil is primarily inorganic means that they need to grab the food when it’s wet! 🤣 Great question.

[@Rob-jv1kr]

Not sure exactly what a river jade is. Do you have a Latin name for it? Is it a crassula or portulaca?

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

It’s a portulacaria afra variety - I think this one might be some prostrate variation. I just call it a ‘river jade’ because it reminds me of a tree yoursee on the banks of a river. 😂 Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@Rob-jv1kr]

Not sure about Manny either. Thought I had all of them. Any chance you would sell a cutting of both types. Thanks Rob

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

Send me an email at [e-mail] I’ve been sending cuttings to folks as I have some to send. I don’t charge anything for them, but ask that you cover shipping for a flat $10. US only at the moment. I just add people to the list and send some as I have them.

[@swimmingfree8485]

How fast would a guy have to talk to get a cutting of a little put I think that's how you say it?????

[@CoffeeandBonsaiwithTom]

She’s such a sweetheart! She’s a rescue pug - I still can’t believe that someone could give her up. She’s also my bonsai protector and chases all the squirrels away from my bench. 🙏 for watching.

[@swimmingfree8485]

Lol... no like the dog but I don't need more pets.... lol I wood like a cutting of the little leaf jade plant the little put or whatever it's called..