As children we all played in the mud. Now, as adults, sophisticated adults (because we do bonsai), we can again play in the mud with clean minds. Let’s make some muck!

[Muck can be made in several ways. Here are some: 1. Wet sedge peat alone; 2. Equal parts clay and peat; 3. Equal parts of clay or akadama dust (left over after sifting), shredded white sphagnum, kanuma (processed soil from Kanuma, Japan) or potting soil; 4. Sifted peat. All use water as needed. JP]

There are so many ways to use it. A favorite way of mine is to make an island planting on a slab. Build walls around the outside limits of the slab, but vary the height, and don’t follow the outline too closely. Make it look natural. Use some of the same material as the slab is made of to incorporate in the walls of the muck. This ties the slab and the planting together better visually. It also keeps the muck walls from looking like a mound of soil when it’s finished and covered with moss. That would be boring. How many times have we seen demonstrations that wind up with a piece of granite or slate and this pile of moss-covered blob on top?

Slate is easiest to find, and I would recommend Mexican slate because of the color and thickness. Irregularity is the key to making a successful planting on a slab. Look for a crescent shape or short dog leg one. This adds interest and movement to the planting.

Look for a tall or upright rock that can be planted in a mountain scene. This should be a zigzag shape so that the trees can be mucked onto the rock in such a way as to keep movement in the planting and not just a blob of stuff on a dead rock. The trees do not give the movement to a planting. It is the rock that does that; the trees just respond to the rock.

Another type is a hollow rock with the trees hanging out of or in between crevasses in the sides of the rock. Some rocks have holes in the sides; use these to put trees in, and anchor them with muck.

Find that perfect rock that is hard and also has fissures down the sides. Plant roots on top of the fissures, not in them. If you plant in the fissures the planting will be smooth and the fissures will be lost. The exposure of the fissures and the roots alongside accent the depth of the fissures and add movement to the planting.

If this kind of planting is put into a pot, then gradually remove the muck and you will have an exposed root planting. When removing muck from roots, take off only about a half inch every six months, or roots may dry out.

Rocks that are tall can have a larger top than the base. You must balance them carefully, but they are so much more dramatic than otherwise. Dark colored rocks are best, but there is always the exception—a light colored rock that is a prize winner. Use your imagination.

(January 1998)

Tags: landscapes, muck, rock planting