Cutting a Branch

punkamafunk · Thu Jul 03, 2008 2:25 pm

I have been growing a tree for about a year now. I believe I am ready to cut my first branch. I would like to take the whole branch off right up to the trunk so as the tree grows it looks like there never was a branch there to begin with. Now what ways would you go about doing this.

I keep the plant outdoors right now. It is bright and sunny where I am and my bonzai seems to be thriving at the moment. I would just like to hear some opinions on how I should go about pruning a actual branch one centimeter in diameter. I want to minimize the trauma to my bonzai.

Kenshin14435 · Thu Jul 03, 2008 2:40 pm

If the tree is only a year old then you need to wait a couple years before doing anything to it.
How old is it?

punkamafunk · Thu Jul 03, 2008 3:01 pm

I started the plant in July last year starting it from a seed. It is a fast growing Acasi Mimosa.

Kenshin14435 · Thu Jul 03, 2008 3:21 pm

I'm not so sure about cutting anythnig yet. I am not familiar with this tree but from what I have been told about Japanese Maples, I would wait for a couple more years. Wait for more posts from some mor experienced folks.
Good Luck

bonsaiboy · Thu Jul 03, 2008 4:29 pm

It would be a good idea to post some pictures of it. To remove the branch probably requires plenty of leafs on the tree, so when you remove the branch your not stripping it of its foilage.

punkamafunk · Thu Jul 03, 2008 5:32 pm

My camera does not work so no can do with the pictures. I would just like to get information on how to go about cutting the branch. What are the procedures you follow in cutting a branch.

Kenshin14435 · Thu Jul 03, 2008 5:47 pm

Slow Down. Patience is the key. It's probably too early to cut the branch. As was said in another post, there needs to be enough foliage. If you cut the branch it may shock the tree so much it'll go into a downward spiral. As I said earlier, wait for somenoe like Norm or alisios or someone with more experience.
They might be on vacation so it could take a couple days.

Gnome · Thu Jul 03, 2008 5:55 pm

punkamafunk,

What are the procedures you follow in cutting a branch.

With some species you can cut it back with a slight hollow, others like azaleas are best cut no deeper than flush. Some species die back, so a stub is usually left to dry out naturally. It all depends upon the species, unfortunately I have no experience with this species. Perhaps some others can help.

I suppose a safe route would be to cut it back leaving a stub and after it dries you can come back later and clean it up. After a little experimenting you will know what is best.

Norm

alisios · Thu Jul 03, 2008 7:15 pm

Kenshin14435 wrote:wait for somenoe like Norm or alisios or someone with more experience.

me? ah shucks!

I don't even give myself good advice!

Kenshin14435 · Thu Jul 03, 2008 8:46 pm

bonsaiboy · Thu Jul 03, 2008 9:51 pm

I know that most most mimosa trees like to have branches pruned with a slight hollow; or flush to the trunk, and there bark can heal quite fast. However, I would wait to prune it. If you want to, you cold gradualy defoilate the branch, as this will 1) slow its thickening rate, and 2) reduce the stress when it is finaly removed.

punkamafunk · Fri Jul 04, 2008 2:20 am

thank you bonsaiboy. I have been testing the dieback on my bonzai for awhile and I think the best route would be to slowly defolliate the branch and then cut it to a midsized stump.

I do have a question regarding when the best time to cut a branch would be. Which season is best from pruning the branches.

kdodds · Sat Jul 05, 2008 7:52 am

Depends on the individual tree. Right now, in growing season, is not the best time to remove an entire branch. But, again, depends on the individual tree. I agree that a concave cut is probably best. Can you post a picture of the tree and which branch it is that you wish to remove?

moulman · Tue Jul 08, 2008 11:53 am

If the tree was grown from seed planted last season, I doubt there is any need for concern about bark or how it will heal over. It probably doesn't have any real bark yet.

But I have to ask, why are you wanting to cut off a branch from such a young sapling? It is counter productive to what should be your short term goal - getting a trunk to thicken up. Branches can always be removed later.
Let it grow for a few seasons. Remember, everything cut now will slow the process.

Matt

punkamafunk · Tue Jul 29, 2008 5:12 pm

So I finally got myself a new camera so here are the pictures. I am looking at the box my plant came in right now so here is all the info.

I bought this kit from Urban Outfitters a little over one year ago. It is titled Miniature Indoor Bonsai Tree Garden. The type of tree is a Mimosa Acacia Tree, underneath that title it says it is a Dealbata Silver Wattle. Underneath that it says Abundant Fragrant Silver Blossom. I grew it from seeds and this is what it looks like now.

[img]https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v236/PunkamaFunk/001.jpg[/img]

[img]https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v236/PunkamaFunk/002.jpg[/img]

[img]https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v236/PunkamaFunk/004.jpg[/img]

[img]https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v236/PunkamaFunk/006.jpg[/img]

[img]https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v236/PunkamaFunk/007.jpg[/img]
When I took my plant out of the pot and examined the roots I noticed these very tiny white bugs. There were by no means alot of them but I did notice a few crawling on the outside of the soil. Also the roots of my plant smells very bad. I cant really describe the smell other then nose tingling.

bonsaiboy · Wed Jul 30, 2008 6:25 pm

I wouln't worry about it. The roots look healthy, and the tree seems fine. The bugs are likley to be a side effect of having the tree outside.

punkamafunk · Thu Jul 31, 2008 1:03 pm

Thank you for the response. I figured my baby would get some bugs with it being outside but i will be going back to college in a month and the tree will remain inside my dorm room for the rest of the school year. I plan on repotting the plant into a smaller pot toi conserve space in the next few weeks. I was wondering what the necessary steps would be for taking the plant inside as to avoid shocking it.

Also is that smell normal?

punkamafunk · Fri Aug 01, 2008 12:57 pm

I noticed my leaves are starting to yellow.

bonsaiboy · Sat Aug 02, 2008 3:03 pm

Yellow leafs are probably the result of over watering. Let the soil become bearly damp before you water it. Also, I the smell is probably normal (remember, legumes have a sybiotic relationship with a species of nitrogen-fixing bacteria).

I plan on repotting the plant into a smaller pot toi conserve space in the next few weeks. I was wondering what the necessary steps would be for taking the plant inside as to avoid shocking it.

To do this, you would take it from its current pot when the soil is just only damp, remove the soil, trim its roots, place it in the smaller pot, and fill it with fresh soil. Do this when the tree is not actively growing.