Young Ficus Nerifolia
Posted: Sun Jul 01, 2007 3:01 pm
Hi!
I just bought a young tree to grow. This is my first foray into the bonsai art but I've done a lot of reading, so hopefully within a few years I will be able to make something acceptable.
When I first got the tree is was growing in a 4 inch square nursury pot, and quite root bound. The roots were mostly growing downwards, although the surface roots weren't bad. I pruned the thicker roots pointing downwards.
Here is the result.
[img]https://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb307/hsigall/0630071504.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb307/hsigall/0630071504a.jpg[/img]
Sorry about the poor photography, I'll do better next time.
I also removed about half to a third of the foliage to compensate. It grows very full and dense. I also raised the trunk in the pot slightly to reveal the flair at the base of the trunk. The bottom is a bit.. round, particularly before I took off the down-growing roots.
It's now planted in a 6in pot with hoffman's bonsai soil over 1in gravel plus perlite for drainage. Incedently, I'm thinking I probably should have screened the soil before I used it. It seems a bit muddy. Anyone have any experience with that sort of pre mixed soil? It's grit, expanded shale, turface and composted pine bark I think.
My general strategy is to grow this in larger containers without pruning much until it grows a larger trunk, then cut it down. Maybe repeat that again with a large branch to create a taper, I'm not sure. I think I want to go for a broom form in the end. Is this a good strategy? Will this species grow back reliably if I cut it down to the trunk and leave only one maybe two sacrifice branches? That's not until at least a year down the road anyway I suppose. What can I do to encourage a robust nebari other than good soil and watering habits?
[img]https://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb307/hsigall/0630071552.jpg[/img]
Also, how soon can I get this out into the full sun after such a big operation? I'd like to have it outdoors for it's health durring the summer months.
Thanks in advance!
Henry.
I just bought a young tree to grow. This is my first foray into the bonsai art but I've done a lot of reading, so hopefully within a few years I will be able to make something acceptable.
When I first got the tree is was growing in a 4 inch square nursury pot, and quite root bound. The roots were mostly growing downwards, although the surface roots weren't bad. I pruned the thicker roots pointing downwards.
Here is the result.
[img]https://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb307/hsigall/0630071504.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb307/hsigall/0630071504a.jpg[/img]
Sorry about the poor photography, I'll do better next time.
I also removed about half to a third of the foliage to compensate. It grows very full and dense. I also raised the trunk in the pot slightly to reveal the flair at the base of the trunk. The bottom is a bit.. round, particularly before I took off the down-growing roots.
It's now planted in a 6in pot with hoffman's bonsai soil over 1in gravel plus perlite for drainage. Incedently, I'm thinking I probably should have screened the soil before I used it. It seems a bit muddy. Anyone have any experience with that sort of pre mixed soil? It's grit, expanded shale, turface and composted pine bark I think.
My general strategy is to grow this in larger containers without pruning much until it grows a larger trunk, then cut it down. Maybe repeat that again with a large branch to create a taper, I'm not sure. I think I want to go for a broom form in the end. Is this a good strategy? Will this species grow back reliably if I cut it down to the trunk and leave only one maybe two sacrifice branches? That's not until at least a year down the road anyway I suppose. What can I do to encourage a robust nebari other than good soil and watering habits?
[img]https://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb307/hsigall/0630071552.jpg[/img]
Also, how soon can I get this out into the full sun after such a big operation? I'd like to have it outdoors for it's health durring the summer months.
Thanks in advance!
Henry.