Firstly, thank you Linda for bringing in the delicious mince pies and cream.
Richard brought an interesting pine with considerable potential that he is styling as a semi cascade. Roy gave him a few pointers regarding the crown of the tree.
Nigel also had an interesting pine that he worked on, also a yew that would probably benefit from a slightly different planting angle and a pyracantha with a nice trunk and plenty of potential.
Dave’s spruce has a pleasing shape, maybe a repot into a more free-draining mix would improve the health and foliage colour.
Berice’s chinese elm needed a trim and the wire was unfortunately biting into the trunk however the lonicera that she inherited from Pauline is taking shape nicely. I did a little trimming and wired a couple of branches to move it in the right direction. She also brought in a maple that Pauline’s son was hoping could be trimmed but I think it’s a job more suited to the spring.
Our new member, Tom, had a broom style chinese elm that Roy offered some advice on and did some maintenance pruning.
I brought in a scots pine that I collected in March this year to be viewed in it’s raw state before I repot in the spring. An unusual tree with a very thin, characterful trunk and quite sparse foliage confined to the top; I think it has great potential as a literati.
Roy’s excellent hawthorn with it’s busy trunk was nice to see again and he also had a tidy little windswept larch.
Star of the show was Alan’s scots pine that he bought at the Telford show in October. It’s a tricky tree to chose a front for but it was quite clear that the dead wood needed to be reduced so Alan made a start on that. I would suggest getting as many opinions as possible regarding the front.
Changing the subject, I have been informed that our club bank account will in future incur monthly charges, so I will pursue the possibility of moving our account to a different bank.
Don’t forget, the next meeting will be in February next year and will include a short AGM which will include measures to cover the increased rent of £35.
See you all then and have a pleasant holiday
Alan