Top 5 Reasons Why Bonsai Hobbyists Should Love Philippine Holly
The Philippines is known for its numerous broadleaf and deciduous species of plants/trees, which are highly priced for bonsai art and other horticultural purposes. Being a tropical Indo-Pacific country, most of the trees here are experiencing harsh meteorological events such as extreme typhoons and floods, thus, being able to withstand the ever-changing tides of nature. Not only that, but the extremities of human doings also affect these trees; the slash-and-burn (kaingin), continuous logging, quarrying, mining, and urbanization projects, are some human activities that add to the factors that affect the trees and their habitat. Some of the trees die or dry out due to these happenings, while some are able to survive and adapt to their unforgiving environment. One known species of tree that can persevere in such intense cruel terrain is the Philippine Holly (Ilex palawanica), commonly known as ‘kuyos-kuyos’ here in our province of Oriental Mindoro.
Nowadays, many of us bonsai hobbyists are quite aware/familiarised with this kind of tree, which is really one of the best materials for bonsai training. Based on my experiences in growing and training this so-called Philippine Holly, I can say that it is one of the best materials to grab and spend money on in the bonsai market.
Here are the five reasons why we bonsai hobbyists should love Ilex palawanica:
1. Philippine Holly’s Attractive Leaves
The glittering serrated leaves of this tree, which produce a good glow of green when exposed to full sunlight, will surely amuse the likes of us bonsai hobbyists. These leaves have a slightly hard structure yet a smooth texture of lamina.
The color of the leaves may vary from velvet green and deep green to yellowish and mint green tones. There are also two types of this ‘ilex’ species; one produces bright-colored red shoots, and the other one produces lemon-yellow colored shoots.
Note:
When training your Philippine holly bonsai tree/material at its early stages, you should only perform a series of partial defoliation processes and not full defoliation; this procedure is repeatedly done throughout the years until you achieve a good and satisfying size of branches for the tree.
We can’t fully defoliate this type of tree because it requires a great amount of foliage for the branches to quickly thicken and become firm in structure.
Pruning methods may also apply to the tree; removing the overaged leaves may give way for new shoots of leaves to appear and develop. Add to this, reducing enough foliage can also help prevent the tree from destroying organisms such as ‘aphids’ etc.
2. Philippine Holly’s Good Quality Bark & Wood Structure
Philippine holly is also listed as one of the numerous hardwood species of trees in the Philippines.
Their compact wood structure provides them firmness and enough durability to withstand harsh weather and other environmental conditions. Due to the harsh environmental conditions and manmade effects, the bark and wood of this tree produce hollows and scars, which become deadwood (shari, jin, sabamiki) in the long run.
The color of its deadwood varies from dark red and brown to mat black color, which defines the deadwood’s hardness. The bark of a young philippine holly consists of pale green color, while the old one’s color ranges from brownish to yellowish brown.
3. Resiliency
Philippine Holly, when defined, is just the same as our fellow Filipino people. The resiliency of this tree compares to our undying Filipino spirit; whatever the hindrances are and the harshness of circumstances, this holy species is able to strive for survival.
The secret to its resiliency lies within its wood which is regenerative in its structure. Based on my experiences in dealing with this kind of tree, I can say that it possesses a great ability to recover from stress.
4. Easy to Plant and Train
When collecting a Philippine holly from the wild, cut the roots from its parts that dug out of the ground. A root of the tree that is exposed directly to the atmosphere /environment is not a very effective root to use when planting a philippine holly. All you need are the roots which are dug out of the ground.
The best months for collecting an Ilex palawanica start from November until February, according to my experience and observation. Some bonsai friends might discourage you and say “Don’t plant a philippine holly, talo ang inip sa punong yan.” This is because when we collect the trees during the wrong or not-so-typical season, it might take many months(usually up to 9 months or even a year) before the first shoots of the planted philippine holly appear.
Hence, most of us may experience boredom and mistakenly think the material we collected is dead or has dried out. In planting a philippine holly, ICU may also apply; but in my case, I’m quite comfortable not using ICU for my ilex trees.
While on the other hand, training a Philippine holly tree as a bonsai is not so hard to deal with. The flexibility and durability of its branches won’t let you down; always keep in check that when you are wiring a branch of a philippine holly, you’d have to carefully support the collar of its branch to avoid cracking, which might ruin the branch you are training.
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5. Easy to Maintain
This type of tree can be maintained through regular pruning and removal of overaged leaves, and some other overgrown(oversized) leaves for the sunlight to be able to pass through the branches and avoid the occurrence of aphids and fungi. Not only that, regular pruning and cleaning of the branches may also help the new shoots to develop in the future, hence, keeping the tree in a stable condition.
Regular scrubbing and cleaning of the bark may also apply to the tree so that the bark will always remain fresh and healthy; cleaning and removing the soft parts of the deadwood also prevent it from rotting or decaying, which might also affect the remaining live wood of the tree.
A yearly check of your soil mixture helps you monitor the tree’s roots’ condition, whether in a good stable condition or you’ll have to re-pot and change the soil medium due to particle breakdown, possible root bounds, or even nutrient shortage. Regular fertilizing provides the tree with a boost in its growth and beauty as well.
Using fertilizers like COMPLETE 14-14-14 and OSMOCOTE 14-14-14, which have an equal ratio of N-P-K components, is the best option; or otherwise, you can also use some organic foliar fertilizers.
Philippine Holly in Training Artist: Jan Cueto
FINAL THOUGHTS
Now, there we have the top five reasons why we should love Ilex palawanica; and I hope this helps you guys. Still, numerous trees are even more resilient than a Philippine holly. But one of the great lessons in bonsai making is that we should always start with HORTICULTURE itself. We should be able to deal with and meet the particular needs of the trees so that, in the future, these trees could become our own bonsai masterpieces.
So what are you waiting for? Let’s get our hands dirty and start to plant our own Philippine holly bonsai.
Thanks, readers, and see you all in the next updates. 🙏
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