repot Callistemon
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repot Callistemon
I know I've posted this tree before but the search function doesn't turn any up so here's a new thread for this year's prune and repot.
callistemon flower at the tips of last season's shoots so, in order to have flowers I need to allow the shoots to grow after Feb. That means the tree gets bit shaggy by this time of year. After flowering the tree can be cut back really hard to start the cycle again. While thick and bushy is great for many bonsai styles this tree is styled after the waterswept trees growing in our rivers and creeks where spring floods break off excess branching each year leaving long, thin trunks all flowing downstream. That means this tree needs a really hard trim and thinning out.
Fortunately C. sieberii bud really well. So well that it frequently produces buds on really old trunks without being pruned. All those new buds are rubbed off to preserve the open shape and bare branches. After initial shortening and thinning: it still looks a little more crowded than I want so I cut a few more parts off. Now for a repot. Plenty of healthy roots. Roots on this species can be cut back quite hard at this time of year. Can't show you that because i forgot to take that shot
Prepare the pot. That's plastering tape covering the drain holes. Quick, easy, effective and really cheap. and the tree is back in the pot for another year or 2 Final shot of the base after repotting. I'll cover most of the potting mix with gravel as a way to express the river flowing around this tree and rock plus the gravel will help retain the mix when the tree is watered.
callistemon flower at the tips of last season's shoots so, in order to have flowers I need to allow the shoots to grow after Feb. That means the tree gets bit shaggy by this time of year. After flowering the tree can be cut back really hard to start the cycle again. While thick and bushy is great for many bonsai styles this tree is styled after the waterswept trees growing in our rivers and creeks where spring floods break off excess branching each year leaving long, thin trunks all flowing downstream. That means this tree needs a really hard trim and thinning out.
Fortunately C. sieberii bud really well. So well that it frequently produces buds on really old trunks without being pruned. All those new buds are rubbed off to preserve the open shape and bare branches. After initial shortening and thinning: it still looks a little more crowded than I want so I cut a few more parts off. Now for a repot. Plenty of healthy roots. Roots on this species can be cut back quite hard at this time of year. Can't show you that because i forgot to take that shot
Prepare the pot. That's plastering tape covering the drain holes. Quick, easy, effective and really cheap. and the tree is back in the pot for another year or 2 Final shot of the base after repotting. I'll cover most of the potting mix with gravel as a way to express the river flowing around this tree and rock plus the gravel will help retain the mix when the tree is watered.
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- Raging Bull
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Re: repot Callistemon
Beautifully aged looking tree. Love the jins and bleached dead wood, looks very natural IMHO it would look great to have that side as the front. This tree inspires me to make something of my humble c. citrinus.
Cheers, Frank.
Cheers, Frank.
- Ryceman3
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Re: repot Callistemon
Hi shibui... just FYI
I found this link to a previous repot a few years back.
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=23338&hilit=Watersw ... 15#p235368
I also found another link for a thread that is specifically about this tree but it came up with errors when I clicked to open...
Always good to see a new shot of this tree and the work you’re doing on it.
"NO CUTS, NO GLORY"
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Re: repot Callistemon
I've noticed this happens when the "/forum/" bit is missing from the URL, eg. for this thread the error-y link would be
ausbonsai.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=27831
to fix, change to:
ausbonsai.com.au/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=27831
Fixing this up would be pretty simple - again offering my web dev services (for free, I can't contribute with bonsai knowledge yet...) if the admins see this!
- Ryceman3
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Re: repot Callistemon
I didn’t find the broken link when a I went back to look for it so couldn’t have a go at fixing as you suggested and see if that did the trick ... but it’s still good info, thanks greg27!
Anyhow... I did find this one :
viewtopic.php?f=55&t=13749&hilit=Waterswept#p143621
Anyhow... I did find this one :
viewtopic.php?f=55&t=13749&hilit=Waterswept#p143621
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Re: repot Callistemon
An update on the callistemon after repotting.
We've just had a week of daytime high temps around and above 40C with record high temps throughout South-east Aus. The tree has been back where it normally grows, under 35% shade since the repot. I've kept it relatively wet, often sitting in a cm of water so that it won't dry out.
There are now new buds sprouting along the smaller twigs. There's also buds popping out on older parts of the branches.
And also on the main trunk.
We've just had a week of daytime high temps around and above 40C with record high temps throughout South-east Aus. The tree has been back where it normally grows, under 35% shade since the repot. I've kept it relatively wet, often sitting in a cm of water so that it won't dry out.
There are now new buds sprouting along the smaller twigs. There's also buds popping out on older parts of the branches.
And also on the main trunk.
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- Keels
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Re: repot Callistemon
Such a fantastic example of a river bottlebrush. I'm pretty sure I've seen some like that at the local swimming spot.
- kcpoole
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Re: repot Callistemon
greg27 wrote: ↑December 9th, 2019, 6:57 amI've noticed this happens when the "/forum/" bit is missing from the URL, eg. for this thread the error-y link would be
ausbonsai.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=27831
to fix, change to:
ausbonsai.com.au/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=27831
Fixing this up would be pretty simple - again offering my web dev services (for free, I can't contribute with bonsai knowledge yet...) if the admins see this!
Thanks Greg, Will raise it with Steven and hopefully we can work out a solution
No doubt broke as part of the version updates
Ken
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What should I do now? http://www.ausbonsai.com.au/wiki/index.php?title=Newbie
How do I grow a Bonsai? http://www.ausbonsai.com.au/wiki/index. ... _a_Bonsai?
Visit a Bonsai nursery to see some real nice trees http://www.ausbonsai.com.au/wiki/index. ... _Nurseries
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Re: repot Callistemon
Another couple of photos to update progress on this callistemon. It is now 3 weeks after pruning and repotting.
Many shoots have grown well.
Time to pinch the new growth. I've rubbed off all the shoots that have popped on older wood because I want to keep the tree open and sparse. Then removed some new shoots entirely where there were a few growing close together.
Finally trimmed all the rest back to 1 or 2 leaves. That will cause further budding in a few weeks and probably another round of selection and trimming.
After
new shoots cut back to 1 or 2 leaves
Many shoots have grown well.
Time to pinch the new growth. I've rubbed off all the shoots that have popped on older wood because I want to keep the tree open and sparse. Then removed some new shoots entirely where there were a few growing close together.
Finally trimmed all the rest back to 1 or 2 leaves. That will cause further budding in a few weeks and probably another round of selection and trimming.
After
new shoots cut back to 1 or 2 leaves
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