Azalea contest 2020-2025

[Pitoon]

Would anyone here be interested in participating in an Azalea contest to last 5yrs (2020-2025)?

Purpose of this contest would help document the conversion process of a landscape bush into a bonsai tree.

Rules would be pretty simple.....

* preferred material would be one (1) "untouched" azalea from any nursery or big box store, evergreen or deciduous is ok
* Cuttings, air layerings, urban yamadori, bare rooted permitted
* no size limit or style restriction
* any colored flower allowed
* must document entire process...ie…. chops, pruning, wiring, repotting....etc
* present your bonsai in 2025 in an actual bonsai pot
*Whatever plant you start with must start untouched with no branches cut, basically a bush
*NO prebonsai permitted

Members here will cast a vote on what they feel is their top 3 trees via a poll (not sure if the polls is set to allow up to 3 selections)

Top 3 winners would get a small prize (I should be producing pots by then or have some plants available) or maybe others could donate a prize as well? Maybe @Bonsai Nut could create a small badge to be added to your name/profile?

Post on the thread if you are interested, and maybe we can get it official?

 

[Forrestford]

sounds fun, im in!

 

[Hack Yeah!]

I'll play if I can dig one from my landscape

 

[Potsofgreen]

im in! should be fun

 

[PABonsai]

 

[canoeguide]

I know nothing about working with Azalea (other than keeping them alive, which I can do), but I'd participate.

 

[Mike Hennigan]

I’d be down if we can change the rules to include deciduous azalea. I just picked up this swamp azalea from a landscape nursery this past fall. Interested in working with a native azalea despite reports on it not being the best subject. Haven’t touched it at all yet. Planning to repot it in spring. I would offer one of my pots as a prize.

 

[KLSbonsai]

I'm in if landscape dug material is allowed. I dug approximately 20 recently.

 

[Pitoon]

I'll play if I can dig one from my landscape

Everyone that wants to participate will have to go scope out a nice bush and use those attributes as their foundation. Not everyone has one planted in their yard. Basically we start with a potted plant and end with a potted plant.

I’d be down if we can change the rules to include deciduous azalea. I just picked up this swamp azalea from a landscape nursery this past fall. Interested in working with a native azalea despite reports on it not being the best subject. Haven’t touched it at all yet. Planning to repot it in spring. I would offer one of my pots as a prize.

If we mix species it just wouldn't be an equal playing field. I dig the yellows of the deciduous species, but I have never really seen them in my area (Maryland). They are more common down south. Though you can find evergreens everywhere.

A donated pot would be great!

I'm in if landscape dug material is allowed. I dug approximately 20 recently.

We all need to search for one at a nursery that has potential and then work it from there. I have some 30+yrs old azaleas in my yard it wouldn't be fair for every one if I dug one up and used that. If we are all forced to buy one we all basically have to chop it down and then build it back up....that's the fun part and where we can put our skills to the test.

 

[Punky]

What if there were a few categories? Such as:
Best Azalea
Best Evergreen Azalea
Best Deciduous Azalea
Most Improved Azalea
Best Nursery Stock Azalea
Best Yamadori Azalea
Best Azalea Structure
Best Azalea Flower Display
Most Creative Azalea (that looks good)
Best Newcomer (for those who join after the first season)
Miss Congeniality

Hmm... maybe I went a little too far with it, but pick a few categories you find appealing?

 

[Pitoon]

What if there were a few categories? Such as:
Best Azalea
Best Evergreen Azalea
Best Deciduous Azalea
Most Improved Azalea
Best Nursery Stock Azalea
Best Yamadori Azalea
Best Azalea Structure
Best Azalea Flower Display
Most Creative Azalea (that looks good)
Best Newcomer (for those who join after the first season)
Miss Congeniality

Hmm... maybe I went a little too far with it, but pick a few categories you find appealing?

Lol, are you going to provide the prizes for all these categories?

The rules are simple.....top 3 azaleas win, voted by the members here. This is not an everyone wins contest. Whomever participates has a lot of work to do to get a chopped bush into a bonsai in 5yrs.

 

[Pitoon]

@Adair M I know you like contests you interested?

 

[Adair M]

@Adair M I know you like contests you interested?

Sure. I gotta find some place that has something other than “Encore” azaleas! Lol!!!

 

[Harry Bushwhacker]

Just started bonsai as a hobby, but I’d be in

 

[Mike Hennigan]

Sure. I gotta find some place that has something other than “Encore” azaleas! Lol!!!

That’s my biggest turn off to this too. Don’t really have any interest in developing most box store or general nursery’s azaleas. I’ll just start a thread on the swamp azalea and pretend I’m in the contest . I feel like going in with a swamp azalea shouldn’t be prohibited because if anything it could be considered a handicap

 

[Schmikah]

Everyone that wants to participate will have to go scope out a nice bush and use those attributes as their foundation. Not everyone has one planted in their yard. Basically we start with a potted plant and end with a potted plant.



If we mix species it just wouldn't be an equal playing field. I dig the yellows of the deciduous species, but I have never really seen them in my area (Maryland). They are more common down south. Though you can find evergreens everywhere.

A donated pot would be great!



We all need to search for one at a nursery that has potential and then work it from there. I have some 30+yrs old azaleas in my yard it wouldn't be fair for every one if I dug one up and used that. If we are all forced to buy one we all basically have to chop it down and then build it back up....that's the fun part and where we can put our skills to the test.

I have a twig that I got recently from a bonsai buddy, but it hasn't been trained or anything done to it. Are we cool with non-store bought specimens?

 

[TyroTinker]

I’m in. Azaleas are cool but I’m not sure I’ll find one with anything going for it in my area. But I’ll try!

 

[BunjaeKorea]

I'm in. We don't have box stores but is bare rooted okay?

 

[eryk2kartman]

Im in!,
Good idea, really like it. I will check couple of garden centers

 

[KHarris]

Well I have yet to even start with bonsai, as in I have a couple of seeds and a little juniper I picked u for $5 dollars sitting outside at the moment with a vague idea of what to do BUT this seems like a fun way (and excuse) to get another plant to try things out on!