Mimosa Tree (Albizia julibrissin - Persian Silk Tree)

[LiddleBuddha]

Hello ynot, Gnome and everyone...

Okay, so last night I had an idea. I don't know if it is too advanced for a total beginner like me, or not. Also, if it is possible, I'm not entirely sure how to go about it.

I've really been trying to think of a good first tree for me. As I was drifting to sleep my mind wandered to the large Mimosa tree that lived in my backyard during my childhood. I practically lived in that tree as a kid. Snap I woke up and thought, "That's it!" A Mimosa would be great!

I am very fond of this tree. Therefore I thought it might make a fitting first bonsai for me. But I don't know if it is possible for someone with my total beginner status and naivete.

My mom still lives at that same house. The original tree trunk split in half and the whole tree died. However, it then sprouted new growth right out of the dead trunk stump and years later is a large Mimosa tree reborn!

So... would there happen to be a simple(ish) way to make a bonsai somehow from this existing tree in my mom's yard?

Sorry for the extended back-story. I just wanted to point out how I arrived at this idea. A Mimosa bonsai would be very special. And if I kill it, I know where I could get another started! hehe

I'm including a couple of Mimosa bonsai pics that I found on Google. Any ideas, thoughts, advice, suggestions would absolutely be greatly appreciated!

Thanks much!
- LB

[url=https://img127.imageshack.us/my.php?image=mimosabonsaigb6.jpg][img]https://img127.imageshack.us/img127/4373/mimosabonsaigb6.th.jpg[/img][/url]

[url=https://img236.imageshack.us/my.php?image=mimosatreepo3.jpg][img]https://img236.imageshack.us/img236/6463/mimosatreepo3.th.jpg[/img][/url]

[ynot]

LB,
I don't know much about them...

A quick Google of 'air-layer' in combo with Mimosa and it comes up as being a species that will air-layer.

I didn't find much though...

https://coolexotics.com/plant-315.html

https://www.bio.miami.edu/mimosa/mimosa.html

ynot

[LiddleBuddha]

Hey ynot,

Happy Friday! Thanks much for your reply, and for posting those links! That Mimosa Pudica looks pretty cool!

I got a chance to poke around a little bit about Mimosa yesterday. Mostly I am discovering that it seems Mimosa does not make the best bonsai tree. Furthermore I've read that it supposedly can grow to be quite a large bonsai tree. And I want a little tree! (Stomps feet) hehe...

I'm definitely going to look into air layering for Mimosa. While I'm definitely not going to give up on this one at all, I am currently unsure if I will try Mimosa as a first tree. We'll see though.

Tomorrow we're going to the Longwood Gardens, and then Sunday I'm going to try to do some "window shopping" for potentsai. I have a feeling that after this weekend I'll have a pretty definitive grasp on which tree I'd like to start out with.

Until next time...
- LB

[ynot]

Hey ynot,

Happy Friday! Thanks much for your reply, and for posting those links! That Mimosa Pudica looks pretty cool!

I got a chance to poke around a little bit about Mimosa yesterday. Mostly I am discovering that it seems Mimosa does not make the best bonsai tree. Furthermore I've read that it supposedly can grow to be quite a large bonsai tree. And I want a little tree! (Stomps feet) hehe...

Yeah, Often you will discover species that are suggested for larger sized bonsai due to [primarily] either their leaves don't reduce well [A common thing with species that have compound leaves...People do still attempt them though..And succeed .] or perhaps they are prone to having unsuitable long internodes. Both of these can make a smaller tree look all out of scale.....Solution?= Bigger bonsai...

I'm definitely going to look into air layering for Mimosa. While I'm definitely not going to give up on this one at all, I am currently unsure if I will try Mimosa as a first tree. We'll see though.

...You've got nothing but time my man.

Tomorrow we're going to the Longwood Gardens, and then Sunday I'm going to try to do some "window shopping" for potentsai. I have a feeling that after this weekend I'll have a pretty definitive grasp on which tree I'd like to start out with.

Sweet...Enjoy the gardens.

Later on,

ynot

[Bonsaimatt]

get a mimi air layer off the tough tree at your moms house. It won't hurt. Just don't take all the air layer cuttings you can, just one or two. That way if you mess up....there will be more later

One super easy tree to practice crazy stuff with is willow....cuz it grows like mad!!!

[LiddleBuddha]

Hey ynot and Bonsaimatt,

Thanks for your replies!

Often you will discover species that are suggested for larger sized bonsai due to [primarily] either their leaves don't reduce well

ynot, this is exactly the type of stuff that I was discovering. Per your advice I'm definitely not going to give up on the idea. I think it'd be fun to try air layering and see how it goes for me!

Sweet...Enjoy the gardens.

Thanks! They were incredible! I took a few pictures of their bonsai trees. But I stupidly left the memory card at home, D'OH! (kicks self )... I'll bring it tomorrow so I can post some of the pics for everyone to check out.

Just don't take all the air layer cuttings you can, just one or two. That way if you mess up....there will be more later

Bonsaimatt, I like this idea, thanks! Since I'm such a newb, it probably would be best to start small and not bite off more than I can chew, (no pun intended).

Thanks again for your posts, ideas, advice, and time, ynot and Bonsaimatt!

Peace,
-LB

[Bonsaimatt]

no prob dude!

[LiddleBuddha]

Hey Bonsaimatt,

I completely forgot to mention... Thanks also for the tip regarding practicing on willow! I will definitely check into that. Is there a specific type of willow that you might recommend I check out, by chance?

Thanks again for your time and assistance!

Best,
- LB

[ynot]

Hey Bonsaimatt,

I completely forgot to mention... Thanks also for the tip regarding practicing on willow! I will definitely check into that. Is there a specific type of willow that you might recommend I check out, by chance?

Thanks again for your time and assistance!

Best,
- LB

Use a weeping willow [Salix- They root like crazy and you just about can't drown one] also check [url=https://www.bonsai4me.com/AdvTech/ATwillow%20water.html]this out.[/url]

ynot

[LiddleBuddha]

ynot,

Use a weeping willow [Salix- They root like crazy and you just about can't drown one] also check this out.

Awesome! Thanks for the heads up! That was a cool article too! Now to find a weeping willow tree that I'd be allowed to take a few cuttings from! hehe...

- LB

[calebessent]

This guy's compiled an impressive collection, including a mimosa near the bottom of the page.

https://www.artofbonsai.org/galleries/valavanis.php

Also, the seeds from the tree in your mother's back yard should germinate easily from seed. Just collect the long yellow pods when they have dried out, get the little brown seeds out of the pods, put them in a cup of water, and they will expand to twice their size over night. Then put them in potting soil that is always moist. You can put them on the surface or up to 2 centimeters deep. I've had some outside in a bowl of potting soil that stayed constantly saturated with water because of the rain. Now I've got about 10 little trees a couple of inches tall opening and closing their leaves with the sunshine.

This route would take longer than air layering, but these are fast growing trees. Perhaps you'd have a potensai before you know it. One website from the Southern Group of State Foresters suggested that this species would only live between 10 and 20 years at the most, under normal gowing conditions. However, we know rules are meant to be broken.

Good luck.

[ynot]

This guy's compiled an impressive collection, including a mimosa near the bottom of the page.

Yes he has,

Bill Valavanis is a world class bonsai grower, Teacher, Demonstrator and Publisher.

He has put out his own bonsai magazine for nearly 30 years and is a frequent and welcome contributer on several forums about Bonsai Care on the net as well.

ynot

[Bonsaimatt]

Yeah dudes, Bill is awesome!

Willows: I like willows, there easy to do just about anything to. You can learn to graft with them, read up in bonsai books about this then as soon as you understand the basics....you pretty much just have to start doing it.

take cuttings: take a cutting from 6 inches long to 6 feet long; so...any size you want really...put the trunk side of the branch cutting into water ....the depth of the water depends on how shallow you want the roots, keep in mind you want to start the tree with some roots so don't make it too shallow..say....2-6inches deep...also keep in mind that a newly rooted willow can get rootbound in the first year if your pot is too small. Try using a pot thats good for training, plastic. If your cutting is big, use a really big pot, if your cutting is small (say a 1 inch wide, 6 inch long cutting) use a pot about 10inches across and 6 to 10 inches deep (for this size I'd say root the tree in 2-3 inches of water, and plant as deep as the biggest topmost root after rooting. BTW, rooting takes about 2 weeks and all you need is water...thats it...a glass of water and in two weeks you can plant it in a pot (just keep it wet). And thats that. Experiment with sizes and amounts of water but a little rule of thumb, the roots will be slighty different (in postion/placement) after a few years, so don't fret about the depth of the water thing to much, just about 1/3rd of the trees length.

Species to use: Salix. That's sci talk for willow. Get a curly willow, there cooler (to me) cuz they get all twisty. Straight ones are cool too. So pretty much, in a nut shell, use whatever willow you want, they all do good.

Special tricks about willows: water, water, water, water, water, etc. Oh and after the 2 week rooting phase, there should be a layer of white-ish stuff floating on the top of the rooting water...that stuff is asprin {sp?}, the headache med. Thats where that stuff came from, willow bark...the native americans used willow bark to eat and cure headaches. I'm not saying cure your head with that rooting water, but you can pour it on other cuttings (from any other species of tree or other plant) and it will help them root too. Just don't take the cutting out of the rooting water until it's done rooting, then dump the water over your garden. DON'T DRINK IT! Although your headache may go away .

Soil after rooting: for me, a more heavy organic soil works best. Like 60-70% "PINE BARK SOIL CONDITIONER" and 30-40% whatever you use. I like it just because pine bark holds more water. but not so much that you'll get root rot or anything (with willows), no matter what though, water is still important to trees, but too much can kill. Willows on the other hand love the stuff, they'll grow wild next to lakes with most of their roots in the water and be just fine...and pretty.

Willows and the war in Iraq: I don't think they'll help any. But you could try if you want.

Any more questions after this just post em dude!! Later -matt

[LiddleBuddha]

calebessent...

This guy's compiled an impressive collection, including a mimosa near the bottom of the page.

https://www.artofbonsai.org/galleries/valavanis.php

Thanks for reminding me about William Valavanis! I had seen a tree of his featured on another site, which prompted me to check out his website. AWESOME!!!

Thanks also for the tips about the Mimosa seeds, etc. I still haven't tried anything with Mimosa yet. But at the moment I've got to first figure out how I can add a couple acres to my backyard for MORE TREES! hehe... Unfortunately, I'm pretty much out of room right now. But I've got a pretty good idea for being able to add some more trees in the near future, so it's still in the works!

ynot...

Bill Valavanis is a world class bonsai grower, Teacher, Demonstrator and Publisher.

I was checking out his stuff recently and noticed a seminar/workshop series coming up in autumn. Thinking about attending. Posted something on another site.

He has put out his own bonsai magazine for nearly 30 years and is a frequent and welcome contributer on several forums about Bonsai Care on the net as well.

hehe... I dig. Hey, as far as magazines go, any recommendations possibly?

Bonsaimatt...

Yeah dudes, Bill is awesome!

Definitely VERY cool and on the ball, just based on his website. Incredibly impressive.

Thanks for the additional info about rooting Salix! I will definitely water lots and I won't drink the willow water! hehe

I've had a few willow cuttings sitting in a pot of water in my yard for a couple weeks now. I've been monitoring and no roots yet, but it'll probably be just another minute. If it works out I think one of them will make a cool raft style tree.

Thanks also for the soil recipe recommendation. I figured they would need more pine bark than my junipers, but I wasn't actually sure of percentages, so that's a big help.

Willows and the war in Iraq: I don't think they'll help any. But you could try if you want.

Oh darn, too bad. What about willows and Rosie, Beyonce, Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, David Hasselhoff and Simon Cowell? Any chance there? hehe

Thanks again for the help and recommendations, everyone! I'll keep you posted on the willows' progress and hopefully I'll have some cool (and worthy) pics of everything very soon.

Peace...
- LB

[sandman]

deff cant drown a willow ive had one in a bucket of water for about 6 months now and is growning like a weed no yellow leaves or anything

[Gnome]

LiddleBuddha,

Oh darn, too bad. What about willows and Rosie, Beyonce, Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, David Hasselhoff and Simon Cowell? Any chance there? hehe

How about George Bush, Dick 'the shooter' Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Alberto Gonzales, Paul Wolfowitz, Condoleeza Rice, etc, etc.

Norm

[Bonsaimatt]

I've had a few willow cuttings sitting in a pot of water in my yard for a couple weeks now. I've been monitoring and no roots yet, but it'll probably be just another minute.

Oh darn, too bad. What about willows and Rosie, Beyonce, Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, David Hasselhoff and Simon Cowell? Any chance there? hehe

Thanks again for the help and recommendations, everyone!
Peace...
- LB

No roots yet? Do you have them sitting in sun? If so, I've had better luck rooting them indoors away from direct sun light, then after two weeks (and the potting up) moving them outside.

Maybe Paris Hilton or David Hasselhoff, I can see David's experiance in the sand helping out. But some how I think seeing him run the combat zones in slow motion won't help. And Paris would be better off "helping" me out before shes goes to jail. ha ha. She's jail bait. ha ha

Your Welcome

[ynot]

Rosie, Beyonce, Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, David Hasselhoff and Simon Cowell? Any chance there? hehe

How about George Bush, Dick 'the shooter' Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Alberto Gonzales, Paul Wolfowitz, Condoleeza Rice, etc, etc.

How did we get on the topic of organic fertilizer producers:?:...

[Bonsaimatt]

How did we get on the topic of organic fertilizer producers:?:...

I thought they had problems with sewage runoff going into the ocean there in California. Caused by "Non Combatants" otherwise known as "Celebrities". They always have something to say...but no trigger finger. But...on the other hand, I can see the Olsen twins helping out. Man they got ugly.