Starter trees? Help.

[Rosaelyn]

I read that Aralias like lots of humidity and lots of sun. This is the only reason I can think that it might be giving you problems. Is it sitting near a vent where it is getting hit with dry air?

As for the ficus trimming. Don't worry about the oozing from the cuts. It's normal and latex-like so it tends to cover its own wounds for the most part. I still prefer to use cut paste on large cuts, but it's probably not necessary.

Training pots are usually the same basic shape as a bonsai pot, but deeper. If you trim the roots in the spring, you could cut off the bottom of a water or soda bottle and repot the tree on top of that to begin training the roots to grow out rather than down.

[builder0101]

No hot air. lots of artificial light. I move it or east win in morning and west win in afternoon and artificial light in eve. I cut it down by 2/3 a few days after I got it home. The top I cut was the green healthy part of the plant the bottom 1/3 was not that happy looking to begin with. ???

Well maby I will prune some more it is a 8ish stem unit don't know if I should just choose one or leave a few? Maby I shold get rid of everything I don't need and then wait a few weeks andlet it talk to me. It is fantastically healthy and groning like crazy right now. Am I misteken or are there ariel roots hanging from the branches?



Thanks.

Mike.

[Rosaelyn]

It's very likely. In humid conditions, ficus grow aerial roots very easily. If you leave multiple trunks for your ficus, they are likely to grow together with the right conditions.

https://www.tropicalbonsai.com/images/Plaza%20del%20Sol%202002%20sept/Ficus_Banyan.jpg

For inspiration.

[builder0101]

Nice maby I will keave the three or four largest trunks remove all else & see how it looks. My issue I guess us that I can not see it yet I guess I wil probably do it wrong and learn. I do not have a humidifier on my furnace although I intend to install one hopefully I can afford one this year. Will a humidity tray underneath the pot and daily misting be sufficient? I like the idea of the sriel roots kind of like spanish moss-ish. I know it is all subjective but are the ariel roots typically desirable?.

Thanks,
Mike.

[Rosaelyn]

Well, the aerial roots make it look more like what occurs in nature, which is usually the goal with a bonsai - recreating a tree that looks like an old, normal-sized tree growing in nature, only in miniature.

But, like you said, everything is relative. Like with any plant or garden you keep, it should be pleasing to you first and foremost.

But for it to truly be a bonsai, there are guidelines. One of these is to have an odd number of trees in a group planting - which is what your ficus will be until they begin to grow together. Just something to think about.

As for creating a humid environment for your ficus, the humidity tray and misting are good. To help this along a lil bit more, I have moist, long-strand sphagnum moss wrapped loosely around the base of my ficus. It won't promote the aerial roots from the branches, but it does help strengthen the aerial roots already started and improves the nebari.

[builder0101]

[img]https://i956.photobucket.com/albums/ae46/builder0101/weepinglarch.jpg[/img]

This as if you did not know is a weeping larch. A deciduous conifer. What an awesome Bonsai it would make have you ever seen one?

Thanks for the stuff onr the ariel roots and the nebari should I weave the moss through the multiple trunks or just around them in general?

Thanks and thanks,

Mike.

[Rosaelyn]

Any tree is possible to train, but some are more difficult than others. I adore the idea of a weeping bonsai of any species (especially a Mexican Weeping Pine), but the more I look into the idea, the more such a bonsai looks difficult to train.

https://www.bonsaiboy.com/catalog/product1882.html

That is a 17 year old version of the bonsai you'd like. It appears to be a great start to something beautiful, but from the look of the development it would take several more years and quite a tall bonsai to perfect the cascading branches and foliage.

I hope this does not discourage you. Just realize, as I am, that it would be quite a long undertaking, requiring much patience.

[builder0101]

Yea they are slow. I have a weeping larch in my yard it is a 7'-8' unit. It was so butiful and lush when I bought it unfortunately it took a devastating hit in the transition from nursey stock to establishing itself in my lawn. now 6 years later it still has only recovered about 1/3 of its former glory. Theis El Ninio winter should bring some milder temps hopefully it will help. I need to wrap it in burlap for the winter this year and hope that helps. I have carpet juniper at its base wich gives it a nice blanket although I do not know if the juniper is of any other benefit or negative consequence. Maby I will take a photo of it if you would be interested.

[builder0101]

Aralias like lots of water but I have to beleive that they do not want to be constantly wet. The medium they are in from the nursery will not dry. I think I may want to re-pot it in my soil less mix. If I do not it will prob die anyway. I am thinking abput removing the soil medium throught a process of rinsing in water and combing. I do not think I should root prune except maby just a little. I have a pot to change it into which is the same size pot but just a smidge larger I mean just a tiny bit. Only problem is it has a tray attached maby not good will reatin water. What do you guys think.

[builder0101]

Well here is my Ficus after a haircut. Don't know what I am doing. I read a lot of stuff about No branches botton 1/3 then branches then no branches next 1/3 and no branches crossing eachother and no branches going in front etc. I cut my most important branch while making a chop of the main (front) trunk oops. Nkot to mention the fact that I wanted to make the cut from front to back on an angle downward and I made the cut from bac to front leaving the wound at the front oops. Design change. Any advice?

[img]https://i956.photobucket.com/albums/ae46/builder0101/Haircut.jpg[/img]

This is the soil the Ficus came in Should I change it now? Can I change it now? I have only watered it twice in two weeks it stays wet for at least a week, and the air is dry in my home. I pulled a tiny bit of soil off a very small ammount of roots at the base. I want to thicken/harden off the roots. I would like a rot over rock style eventually. Any advice?

[img]https://i956.photobucket.com/albums/ae46/builder0101/Soil.jpg[/img]

Thanks.

[Gnome]

builder0101

I read a lot of stuff about No branches botton 1/3 then branches then no branches next 1/3 and no branches crossing eachother and no branches going in front etc. I cut my most important branch while making a chop of the main (front) trunk oops. Nkot to mention the fact that I wanted to make the cut from front to back on an angle downward and I made the cut from bac to front leaving the wound at the front oops.

The stuff about no branches on the bottom third of a bonsai is intended as a guideline for finished trees, not that they are ever really finished.

For trees still in development it is almost always better to leave lower branches. They serve to help thicken the trunk, thereby helping with the illusion of age. Also it is possible that one, or more, of the lower branches can be utilized in the finished design. For instance, one branch could become a new leader. By using a smaller branch that emerges at an angle as a new leader you help to impart movement and taper, two more elements that are desirable.

Ficus can be re-potted 'out of season' since they have no dormancy as such. Summer is probably the optimum time though. If you want R.O.R. then you will probably want to encourage the roots to acquire some length. I have accomplished this by potted the victim, err subject, on an inverted pot inside of a larger pot. The extra length will come in handy when fitting the tree to the rock later.

https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=18867

Norm

[builder0101]

Thanks Norm,

Will the ficus back bud then I can leave those on for thickening of the trunk as I have gone and pruned most of the lower branches. I guess I did not read enough. Funny. What do you think of my hack job?

Thanks,

Mike.