Will E. tereticornis make a viable bonsai specimen?

[Jow]

I think we new to go back to the original question. Will it make a good bonsai specimen. The answer is probably. But it may also prove to be a poor investment of time if it doesn't and you are after a bonsai rather than an species experiment.

If you want a bonsai, go for a proven species.

If you are willing to experiment knowing you have a chance of not ending up with a bonsai suitable tree then grow it.

[Kevin]

Hello everyone,
I collected the seed yesterday from a few remnant Eucalyptus tereticornis trees in my area.
I do realise the seeds will throw out to 'whatever' - but at least the parent wasn't force fed in a nursery. The seeds are the maturation of a survivor. (something like that) I will sow the seeds over the weekend, hopefully.

Maybe - The spirit of Endurance

Thank-you everyone who have assisted me with my question to this thread.
You have given me some great advice, which i'd like to very briefly quote individually at the beginning of the new thread - Eucalyptus tereticornis and Eucalyptus microcorys Bonsai Trials.
I am looking forward to the challenge.
Hopefully, I will be successful and bring at least one Eucalypt to an acceptable standard of bonsai.
I will definitely be giving the trial my full commitment and if i can produce anything half as good as Mr Flybri achieved several years ago, i will be proud.
I will record my efforts for future AusBonsai Members.
Kevin

[Bebbas]

O--k.... I think I might just start a new thread..........

[Kevin]

O--k.... I think I might just start a new thread..........

Hello Bebbas,
Sorry, new to Eucalypts myself.
Do that, start a new thread under natives - Eucalyptus. Include a photo too, it always helps.
Good Luck.
Kevin

[Rory]

G'day everone, I have a Eucalyptus that I want to put in its first Bonsai pot. Its certainly hot enough in Perth at the moment. Would I be better rearranging the roots from the standard nursery pot into a larger than needed bonsai pot and let it grow into it or should I cut some of the rootball off and put it into a smaller pot?

Sorry I didn't reply earlier mate.
When you say you want to put it in its forst bonsai pot, are you happy with the trunk thickness?

If yes, don't put it into a huge bonsai pot no. Just put it into a pot where the roots take up about 80% of the pot.
You then only need to concentrate on branch and ramifications development. Eucs (most) will always try to shoot up and thicken quick, so when u are happy with overall size just give roots small area to grow and pinch back growth during warmer months and fertilize with native fertilizer power feed and osmocote slow release for natives.
Make sure it drains well as eucs don't like to be constantly wet.

If no, then put it into a grow pot and work the roots a bit too. In other words you want to encourage trunk growth and maximize growing. A grow pot is like an orchid pot with plenty of holes for drainage, and day about 50% of the tub with the roots, the rest with very good free draining mix, and eucs will love it.

Full sun for both options and when you say out of a nursery pot I assume it had never been repotted? If so, it may be pot bound and will need a lot of care to separate roots and may need removal of large tap root or large roots.
Don't ever cut off more than say 40% of roots on a euc. Do it over the years gradually. Don't leave all leaves on it if roots are cut back. Don't bury the lingo tuber. And don't do anything once you have repotted. Don't fertilize for about 2 months. Let it recover. Water well after repot.

Don't let them dry out and occasionally spray confidor as bugs and animals love the fresh leaves of new growth.

EDIT - some species tolerate wet conditions but being in Perth you'll probably find that the heat is your most dangerous thing. In the wild they tolerate the heat well because their roots go down like a jack hammer and absorb water from far below, but in a pot there is only so much water to acquire in that much room. So if it's going to be a scorcher, might be best to give part shade, and be careful of wind, it will dry the soil out very quickly.
Don't train the branches down from the trunk. Eucs naturally grow up and out. Occasionally branches go out and down but not that common.and most importantly don't continually prune. They need to grow. They will suffer die back if you keep cutting back the same area. Cut back once, then allow it to form buds and grow again for a few seasons.

The best species for Bonsai in my opinion is Corymbia citriodora and eucalyptus robusta and eucalyptus saligna. Very hardy, but not sure about WA. Angophora hispida is another little gem. There are a tonne more I have been trialling but too soon to say how good they are.... Just like tereticornis

[Kevin]

Thanks and Sorry Rory,
Kevin

[Rory]

Thanks and Sorry Rory,
Kevin

Don't be silly. I got ur message and was happy to help. The only thing I love more than growing natives is seeing new learners attempting them

[Bebbas]

Wow, thanks for the info Rory, To answer some questions, yes it has never been out of the nursery pot that I purchased it in. I bought it as a young tree and immediately cut it down to a stump. it feels like it is quite pot bound when I poke the soil. It will have all its original roots. What is the "don't bury the lingo tuber"? So if I take it out of this pot, do I tease the roots out and cut the tap root out completely? or do I just tease the roots out of the nursery pot shape without cutting any and make it fit into a bonsai pot?

[treeman]

Not understanding you here Mike. In your profile you list your favourite Bonsai specie's as "Any" but are canning the people attempting Euc's? Not sure you are voicing your message with any clarity or are just wanting to give it to one of the Mod's

Well I'm not exactly sure how you are reading it bohi but I'm not or have never canned anyone for attempting to bonsai Eucalyptus. What I did say is I have yet to see one which has truly impressed me. This could be for any number of reasons from poor material or species selection to lack of time in developing them to the unsuitability of the genus in general. I tried a couple of species in the early years and gave up after a couple of seasons because they just did not do what I expected/wanted them to. The main reason for this was their habit of activating epicormic buds at the slightest sign of injury (removal) to higher parts of the plant. I came to the conclusion that their growth response was not conducive to bonsai training the way I wanted to train them so I gave up. I'm certainly not ''canning'' anyone for attempting the same. It may well turn out that there is a perfect eucalypt species for bonsai. I'll leave that to others to find. (BTW I love eucalyptus. I have 3 books on the genus)
However, what I won't hesitate to can is anyone's suggestion that ones' disagreement with material selection or that time has been wasted following a particular path should ''go elsewhere''
This is purely an attempt at suppression of another view for no valid reason.

[Bebbas]

This is the tree that I want to repot.

[Kevin]

After nearly 30 years experimenting with this group I have developed some guidelines for training them. (Note the Angophora specimen in my identity pane it is about thirty years old as trained as a bonsai and has a circumference of about 30 cm at the base.)

They are relatively easy if you follow these guidelines:

1. Can be re-potted at any time but it is best done in Autumn
2. Can remove at least 50% of roots provided that the soil remains wet for 3 weeks after re potting
3. Normal watering for the rest of the year
4. Do not shorten new growth until it has matured somewhat. (new shoots tend to die back if pruned too soon)
5. Defoliation, regular shoot pruning and keeping in a smaller pot will over time reduce leaf size naturally
6. Always remove any vertical shoots as soon as they appear.

Hope this is of some help. Please email me if I can be of any further help.
Dennis Mc

Wow, thanks for the info Rory, To answer some questions, yes it has never been out of the nursery pot that I purchased it in. I bought it as a young tree and immediately cut it down to a stump. it feels like it is quite pot bound when I poke the soil. It will have all its original roots. What is the "don't bury the lingo tuber"? So if I take it out of this pot, do I tease the roots out and cut the tap root out completely? or do I just tease the roots out of the nursery pot shape without cutting any and make it fit into a bonsai pot?

Hello Bebbas,
You have been busy with that eucalyptus, how long have you had the tree for?
What species is it?

Attached above is a post from dennismc, he mentions he has been growing the Eucalyptus for 30 years and developed the above guidelines.

And yes he says repotting is OK now, but there is certain aftercare required, lots and lots of water for approximately 3 weeks after re pot AND keep it in the shade. No fertilizers for now, wait till spring.
Re pot means root prune too - again follow Dennismc guidelines above.
Yes, gently tease the roots out and try to wash some of the nursery mix away - be careful, don't force roots, gently tease. Dennismc's guide says to remove 50% maximum at one time so do that after hosing, you want the roots as untangled and straight as possible without force.
It is difficult to advise exactly which roots to remove without physically being there. However, as a guide removing 50% of total roots - being damaged roots first, wonky, curly roots are gone too, excessively large roots are gone. You don't need to get it into the show sized pot now - this may take several years worth of root pruning to acieive that tiny pot required for your shohin sized Eucalyptus. Try and have an evenish flat is area when completed.

The ligno tuber is the Eucalypts Heart (that is my expression = not official). When replanting after root prune, just ensure you replant at the exact height in which the nursery sold it to you. The ligno tuber is between the trunk and the roots. It needs to stay just above ground level.

But looking at your tree, you have shaped your tree as per the bonsai principals mentioned above in Wiki. You are doing a good job with the Eucalyptus,

Have you read Wiki at the top of the screen? Wiki gives good advice on how to select the pot for your plant. It is all about proportions and depends on the size of your Eucalyptus - height / width / trunk thickness, etc.

I noticed Rory edited his post earlier to you.

Good luck,

Post a photo of your Eucalyptus in your new pot - don't forget the species.

If i have forgotten anything or ill advised - someone will chime in - usually quickly - But it is Sunday family day. Check back for new notes before you repot.

Be careful and have fun.
Kevin

[Rory]

~As an example of what Mike is referring to.~



I purchased this from a native nursery quite a while back (can't remember how long ago), but the leaves are .... quite big. You can see how big they are from the comparison of the fence. Anyway, I like a challenge. So I persevered and cut very conservatively to encourage new growth. It has shot new growth so once it has hardened up after a while I will confidently cut much lower.

However! Wow. The internodes are about 15 - 20 cm. You can't even pinch the new growth initially, as this shot so fast overnight it took me by surprise, so me thinks this is not going to make for such great material. It grows very, very quickly. It didn't have the name of the species when I purchased it, but I tried to pinch a few of the new growth, but it just died back on those. Lovely colours on the trunk though, the photo doesn't do it justice.

This will be more of an experiment with leaf reduction than anything else. There are still oodles of great Euc for bonsai, but this along with others may not be. I will keep trying though, and see after more pinching whether it will reduce and give shorter internodes.

EDIT - forgot to include the picture.

[Kevin]

Rory,
A photo of Bebbas's Eucalypt is posted above - pretty impressive for 12 months??
I'll try and copy to here - if not scroll up to view.


Bebbass' Eucalyptus

IMAG0570.jpg

OR

Flybri Eucalyptus

Flybri Eucalyptus.jpg

There are plenty of good Eucalyptus for bonsai - don't know if i will be skilled enough - but others certainly are producing good bonsai from Eucalyptus.
Thanks, that's my 2 bobs worth.
Kevin

[Rory]

Yes I saw it earlier but I didn't feel the need to give my opinion on its styling.

To be honest I'm not a fan of the styling of either of them no. But this is just my opinion, as they do not resemble nor show the start of a eucalyptus to me.

[Pearcy001]

Great pot choice for Flybris' Will look good once it grows into it.

Unfortunately I cannot help with the original question as eucs are yet to get me overly excited. I look forward to finding out the ultimate answer in hopes it will change my mind.

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