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Hi thread! Can you help me with my bonsai? I'm not sure what tree it is, unfortunately. When I bought it, it had lovely deep red leaves, most of them are now greenish and they curl up around the edges. New leaves also do that, and once they're completely shriveled up they fall down. I don't know what I'm doing wrong, the branches and stems grow upwards and it seems energetic enough. I water it 2-3 times a week, depending on how moist the soil is. It gets a few hours of afternoon sun, partly diffused by white blinds. I used to keep it there with the blinds drawn, so it got more direct light, but it doesn't seem to make a difference. Any ideas on what I'm doing wrong? It's kept indoors, so I'm not sure if climate information is relevant, but I live in Greece.  
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Jun 25, 2019 16:33
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| # ? Apr 28, 2024 05:12 |
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I don't think you can keep a japanese maple indoors like that but I hope for your sake I'm wrong
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Jun 25, 2019 16:40
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Pooper Trooper posted:Hi thread! Can you help me with my bonsai? I'm not sure what tree it is, unfortunately. When I bought it, it had lovely deep red leaves, most of them are now greenish and they curl up around the edges. New leaves also do that, and once they're completely shriveled up they fall down. I don't know what I'm doing wrong, the branches and stems grow upwards and it seems energetic enough. I water it 2-3 times a week, depending on how moist the soil is. It gets a few hours of afternoon sun, partly diffused by white blinds. I used to keep it there with the blinds drawn, so it got more direct light, but it doesn't seem to make a difference. Any ideas on what I'm doing wrong? It's kept indoors, so I'm not sure if climate information is relevant, but I live in Greece. Needs to be outside, it's a Japanese maple. Be prepared to water frequently.
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Jun 25, 2019 18:41
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Pooper Trooper posted:Hi thread! Can you help me with my bonsai? I'm not sure what tree it is, unfortunately. When I bought it, it had lovely deep red leaves, most of them are now greenish and they curl up around the edges. New leaves also do that, and once they're completely shriveled up they fall down. I don't know what I'm doing wrong, the branches and stems grow upwards and it seems energetic enough. I water it 2-3 times a week, depending on how moist the soil is. It gets a few hours of afternoon sun, partly diffused by white blinds. I used to keep it there with the blinds drawn, so it got more direct light, but it doesn't seem to make a difference. Any ideas on what I'm doing wrong? It's kept indoors, so I'm not sure if climate information is relevant, but I live in Greece. How long have you had it? It needs a true cold period to induce dormancy for one. However, (correct me if I am wrong someone) leaves will go from green to red in low light -- going from red to green and then curling at the tips sounds like scorch from *too much* sun. I think there's also some color variance with the age of the leaves, going from more red for juvenile leaves tending towards more green as it ages. Some degree of color shift is just to be expected depending on the variety.
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Jun 25, 2019 19:05
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Hubis posted:How long have you had it? It needs a true cold period to induce dormancy for one. I've had it for like 2 months... So I should take it outside and hope for the best?
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Jun 25, 2019 19:52
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Pooper Trooper posted:I've had it for like 2 months... So I should take it outside and hope for the best? 100% Since you've had it inside you probably want to "acclimate" it by keeping it in a shady spot outside for a few days. I think with a tree like that you'd actually want to avoid full sun if possible -- something that gets dappled light throughout the day or is in shade part of the day would help to balance the leaf coloration. It definitely needs more sun than shade overall, though. Watering based on soil feel is definitely the best way to go, but you should probably expect to be watering it every 1-2 days if you move it outside. Depending on where you are in Greece it might have a hard time with the heat. From what I've read it does best in zones 5-8 (which get cold enough to give it a good winter dormancy). If you don't get too cold in the winter, maybe put it in a place that won't get a lot of sun from October thru May to keep it as cool as possible and hope for the best.
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Jun 25, 2019 20:36
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Peter Chan's Guide to Bonsai: 1) Have a nursery with decades-old trees just laying around forgotten in pots everywhere 2) Go hog-wild! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djYRJAr9eF8
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Jun 26, 2019 20:05
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We are going to be coming out of winter in a month or so and I'm goin' to repot my root on rock after a few months of good growth. Two things. 1. Any should recommend soil blends for a ficus (ginseng?) I'm thinking some mix of pumice, sand, coir or perlite with a top dressing of some sort? effectively hydroponicly growing with fertilizer. But I'm a little lost. 2. I'm trying to emphasize the root on rock features and I don't want to shock (and potentially kill) the aerial roots. I'm thinking of wrapping some moss or other moist covering over them and slowly removing it. Thoughts?
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Jun 26, 2019 23:54
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Soil blend - use normal bonsai mix from superflybonsai.com. Moss over rock sounds good, could also use muck. Really proud of this tree. 
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Jun 30, 2019 00:24
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That deadwood is gorgeous. Great work
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Jun 30, 2019 02:23
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Went to a shohin show today and had to be a goon and buy a tiny olive shaped like a cock and balls:
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Jun 30, 2019 03:01
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^^Very nice^^ I'm hoping this thread can help me. A woman who I know through a friend had a husband who was a gardener, unfortunately he passed away over a year ago and she has taken a while to sort everything out. She gave me two bonsai trees and I'm not sure what they're called, so here are some photos that I hope can help you identify them as well as any advice for their care.    
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Jun 30, 2019 10:19
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bessantj posted:^^Very nice^^ On my phone but I'm going to guess the top ones an azalea, bottom is ... apple? Crabapple?
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Jun 30, 2019 20:28
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fuzzy_logic posted:On my phone but I'm going to guess the top ones an azalea, bottom is ... apple? Crabapple? Thanks for your answers. I'm not sure the leaves are right for an azalea and I'll see if the apples come through for the possible crab apple.
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Jun 30, 2019 22:48
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Ok guys, since you all suggested my japanese maple needs to go out more, I took him to the beach Upon moving him, I noticed that there's roots coming out of the drainage holes in the bottom, like so:  Is this normal or should it be repotted?
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Jul 2, 2019 16:16
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Pooper Trooper posted:Ok guys, since you all suggested my japanese maple needs to go out more, I took him to the beach See, this is the kind of content I bookmarked this thread for Pooper Trooper posted:Upon moving him, I noticed that there's roots coming out of the drainage holes in the bottom, like so: Normal, maybe could use to be repotted but now not the right time and (personally, as someone who knows next to nothing) I'd wait until next spring.
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Jul 2, 2019 19:40
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bessantj posted:Thanks for your answers. I'm not sure the leaves are right for an azalea and I'll see if the apples come through for the possible crab apple. I've seen bonsai of all kinds of Rhododendron (which includes azaleas, but also the larger leafed varieties). It does look kind of like one of the larger Rhodos.
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Jul 2, 2019 19:41
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Pooper Trooper posted:Ok guys, since you all suggested my japanese maple needs to go out more, I took him to the beach Cool looking tree Hubis posted:I've seen bonsai of all kinds of Rhododendron (which includes azaleas, but also the larger leafed varieties). It does look kind of like one of the larger Rhodos. Then I think you and fuzzy_logic I thank you as well  If you look at the picture of it again you can see some of the branches on the right look dead, am I OK to take them off at any time? bessantj fucked around with this message at 20:38 on Jul 2, 2019 |
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Jul 2, 2019 20:32
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 Saw this today and thought of you guys. 
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Jul 4, 2019 02:01
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Nettle Soup posted:
At what point is it just a tree again?
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Jul 4, 2019 03:53
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Nettle Soup posted:
Step 1: chop off the trunk about 1/3 the way up Step 2: train a new leader and wait 10 years
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Jul 4, 2019 03:57
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TheMightyHandful posted:At what point is it just a tree again? I feel like depth of pot needs to be involved in the calculation somewhere
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Jul 4, 2019 04:15
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TheMightyHandful posted:At what point is it just a tree again? I've got one tree that's taller than I am. As long as it's in a pot and trained artfully, it's still a bonsai.
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Jul 4, 2019 06:40
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Crocoduck posted:I've got one tree that's taller than I am. As long as it's in a pot and trained artfully, it's still a bonsai. This sounds ripe for some "earth-sandwich" style rules lawyering
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Jul 4, 2019 08:21
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Nettle Soup posted:
Going to regret missing leg day when I have to carry that to the car.
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Jul 4, 2019 11:21
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Crocoduck posted:I've got one tree that's taller than I am. As long as it's in a pot and trained artfully, it's still a bonsai. So to me Bonsai is 1) a tree artfully paired with a complementary pot 2) grown and pruned with proportions to not just look like a "small tree", but rather also give an impression of a large (and old) one. So for (1) the tree in that photo appears to be in a nursery pot of some sort. Fine, whatever, lots of "bonsai" people photograph are in grow or training pots. But to me the proportions look all off for (2). All the branches come off near the top and strike me as being way too thick relative to the trunk. Neither the trunk nor branches have much taper or an even branching structure. So I dunno, it's a big thicc leafy boi to be sure, but it strikes me as something intended to be an accent in a larger garden ("garden tree") rather than a work in itself ("bonsai").
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Jul 4, 2019 13:20
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 I did take a picture of the pot, but didn't bother uploading it. Repotting that thing looks like a fun job. They had another one, but I really didn't like it and my phone was running out, so I didn't take a picture. You can kinda see it in the background.
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Jul 4, 2019 14:42
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Hubis posted:But to me the proportions look all off for (2). All the branches come off near the top and strike me as being way too thick relative to the trunk. Neither the trunk nor branches have much taper or an even branching structure. Why are you so stuck on the tree being paired with a pot #1. Branches are regularly left thick and hidden by the canopy. It's just a bonsai that isn't actively being worked on, clearly its had some work on it in the past. It would have a great silhouette with a little love
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Jul 4, 2019 16:30
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Someone has suggested to me that this could be an olive tree and directed me to this site and maybe he's right. has anyone grown an Olive bonsai?
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Jul 4, 2019 20:08
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bessantj posted:Someone has suggested to me that this could be an olive tree and directed me to this site and maybe he's right. has anyone grown an Olive bonsai? So, basically, fuzzy logic is growing an olive bonsai, and I agree that yours looks to be one, although I know literally nothing about bonsai trees and just lurk this thread.
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Jul 5, 2019 01:14
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Slugworth posted:When you first posted your trees, I felt like I was taking crazy pills, because your mystery tree looked exactly to me like the olive tree in the post directly above yours, which you even replied to I really can't emphasize how high I am literally all the time I post. Yeah olive seems likely
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Jul 5, 2019 04:03
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Harry Potter on Ice posted:Why are you so stuck on the tree being paired with a pot #1. Branches are regularly left thick and hidden by the canopy. It's just a bonsai that isn't actively being worked on, clearly its had some work on it in the past. It would have a great silhouette with a little love Not stuck on it, like I said I kind of hand wave it away because there are lots of interesting trees in various growing/training pots. I don't mean to try and say anything authoritative -- as should be clear my experience is fairly shallow and I know next to nothing about olive trees. However, to my inexperienced eye it LOOKS like the work that's been done on it is a mostly just rough chops that would need a fair bit of clean up and secondary branches that need a few seasons to thicken up and balance the tree. The one thing about the pot I will say is that I have no idea what the root structure looks like -- is it flat, dense, lots of roots pointing downward to the bottom of the pot? I don't know anything about olives, I'm not sure how sensitive they are to root pruning and how hard that could be to fix if need be. I agree, sure it could be great with some love and effort, but it seems to me like that absent effort is what takes it from "raw material" to "bonsai". To put it another way, what makes this "bonsai" different from an equivalent Olive tree you'd find out in the wild? How much work has really been done on it, and how much would you need to do to get it to where you'd want to show it, for example? This isn't an attempt at judgment -- I honestly don't know. What do you think needs to be done?
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Jul 5, 2019 04:08
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Slugworth posted:When you first posted your trees, I felt like I was taking crazy pills, because your mystery tree looked exactly to me like the olive tree in the post directly above yours, which you even replied to Oh it does look exactly the same. Man, what a way to find out you're a moron, in the bonsai thread on the SA forum  Thankfully there are people like you around to do care in the community 
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Jul 5, 2019 08:33
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 I think I planted this upside down. Oh well, babby's first bonsai has sprouted! edit: Delonix regia sure does grow fast. 
cerror fucked around with this message at 20:25 on Jul 11, 2019 |
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Jul 9, 2019 00:28
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Itty bitty blue spruce committee!
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Jul 11, 2019 20:29
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Very nice.
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Jul 12, 2019 08:45
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X posting from the spring gardening thread I am slowly moving my plants to my new place. With circumstances it's easier for me to move via public transport And who greets me at my fig's exodus  Taking bonsai on public transport gets some funny looks  ---- Also, my girlfriend's ash recovering after a full prune 
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Jul 17, 2019 04:30
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Looking good, I like the look of the ash.
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Jul 17, 2019 09:11
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I have reported my bonsai finally, the root system was not as developed as I would have liked, but I have made do I decided to have it upright to show off the "brickyness" of the grow, also, I didn't like the horizontal appearence  I have wrapped it in alfoil and filled it with soil, the theory being that it will follow the constraint and I can very easily remove alfoil every few weeks to let the roots become more accustomed to air and callous somewhat.  I also repotted my Jade as a previous report into some wierd soil didn't take well and it became somewhat purple and gross. Obligatory SO's ash 
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Aug 16, 2019 09:11
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Any of you have experience in growing figs indoors? I live on the shore of Lake Michigan and want to grow a tree in my apartment. I’m not sure which cultivar is suitable.
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Aug 23, 2019 03:22
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