Azalea Sao-tome

[Bonsaiforest]

Hi all... I have an Azalea Sao-tome & looking at it seems to be pretty root bound, and has pushed up slightly on one side of the pot. It has quite a lot of new growth & I was wondering if it would be possible to go ahead and re-pot. I suppose if I gently comb out the roots with out much trimming & then move it to a larger pot, then I think it should be ok...? If not please advise

[kcpoole]

Now is the time to depot azalea anyway. I am dong all mine at the moment
I am tasking off 1/3 of the root mass all the way around, the repotting into Kanuma

Ken

[Bonsaiforest]

Fantastic News...Thanks Ken...I'll get onto it tomorrow....Do you use different grades of kanuma when re-potting...? I have a small bag of Kanuma 3-5mm. I haven't used it before but was wondering if it would be ok if I mixed it in with general bonsai mix when re-potting my Sao-tome. If I was to go ahead it would probably work out to be 1/3 Kanuma to 2/3rd's bonsai mix.

[kcpoole]

I use Kanuma straight, do not know if anyone mixes it with anything else

Ken

[Bonsaiforest]

I use Kanuma straight, do not know if anyone mixes it with anything else

Ken

Hey Ken...Just wondering if Kanuma has good water retention? Does it dry out faster than general bonsai soil & do you have to water twice daily...?

[Black Knight]

Hi Bonsaiforest
Since I have used total Kanuma on my Azaleas this year, I am watering them a lot less than previous. Once settled in after the re-pots, I am now out to 2-3 day watering on the Azaleas, yet all my other trees are as much as daily in this weather.
Kind regards,
Black Knight

[Bonsaiforest]

Thanks BK...Will pick up some Kanuma ASAP and go ahead with the repot.

[kcpoole]

I use Kanuma straight, do not know if anyone mixes it with anything else

Ken

Hey Ken...Just wondering if Kanuma has good water retention? Does it dry out faster than general bonsai soil & do you have to water twice daily...?

I water once a day regardless of soil type.
All my pots contain well draining substrate. So do not sty too wet

You can use a single sized particle. No need to have different grades of material

Ken