A silly question perhaps re natives?

[paul smedley]

HI all.

When i first came to this country and went to repot an Australian native i was told never to touch the roots. Now i see that people are using them as Bonsai material that i would never have thought of.

My ridiculous question is: Are there any special things I need to know? IE: don't touch the root ball, chop only half of it, repot only every 5 years, things like that. I guess what i want to know is whether a native can be treated exactly the same as any other tree. I grew a Kunzea, bush tick and native persimmon from seed and they are out the back relaxing at the moment thinking i wasn't going to touch them. I may need to have stern words with them depending on the answer.

Many thanks. P

[Keels]

Have a good read of this article that was posted after the 2020 Australian Plants as Bonsai Symposium in Canberra. It'll give you a bit of an idea.

https://www.ausbonsai.com.au/forum/view ... 68#p275468

This forum is proof that alot of natives can be bonsai'ed if you know how.

[shibui]

Given that there is a lot of difference between how we treat different exotics - how much roots can be cut, leaving foliage or shoot from bare wood just to name a couple - you would also expect differences between Aussie natives too.
There's a huge range of natives. From tropicals to cool mountain, from desert to swamp and everything in between so there is lots to learn about how individual species react to pruning and root pruning.

In the old days we were indeed told not to touch the roots of natives. I believe that came from trying to root prune in winter like we do with exotic species. Turns out that many of our Aussie plants do not like having roots cut in cool weather and many die as a result but some persistent Aussies discovered that those same natives can be root pruned in warmer weather without missing a beat. a simple change of timing opened up a whole new pallet of plants for bonsai and I am grateful to those who worked this out for us.
There are still differences with how much root to remove from different species. There's still the issue that some species will bud on bare wood while others only bud reliably where there is healthy foliage but it is certainly viable to do bonsai with Aussie plants with changes to timing.
We are gradually building up a store of knowledge about timing and techniques appropriate to different Australian plants. Some of that data can be gathered here on Ausbonsai. More is available from Vic native Bonsai Club and other growers at other clubs.

[paul smedley]

Have a good read of this article that was posted after the 2020 Australian Plants as Bonsai Symposium in Canberra. It'll give you a bit of an idea.

https://www.ausbonsai.com.au/forum/view ... 68#p275468

This forum is proof that alot of natives can be bonsai'ed if you know how.

Thanks Keels.
That was a great read and has left me questioning whether i was in my right mind or not!
the detail that Rory put in is spectacular and i see why this type of symposium is the best place to get this type of info.
Now bookmarked in case i feel the need to attach the kunzea.
Thanks again. P

[paul smedley]

Given that there is a lot of difference between how we treat different exotics - how much roots can be cut, leaving foliage or shoot from bare wood just to name a couple - you would also expect differences between Aussie natives too.
There's a huge range of natives. From tropicals to cool mountain, from desert to swamp and everything in between so there is lots to learn about how individual species react to pruning and root pruning.

In the old days we were indeed told not to touch the roots of natives. I believe that came from trying to root prune in winter like we do with exotic species. Turns out that many of our Aussie plants do not like having roots cut in cool weather and many die as a result but some persistent Aussies discovered that those same natives can be root pruned in warmer weather without missing a beat. a simple change of timing opened up a whole new pallet of plants for bonsai and I am grateful to those who worked this out for us.
There are still differences with how much root to remove from different species. There's still the issue that some species will bud on bare wood while others only bud reliably where there is healthy foliage but it is certainly viable to do bonsai with Aussie plants with changes to timing.
We are gradually building up a store of knowledge about timing and techniques appropriate to different Australian plants. Some of that data can be gathered here on Ausbonsai. More is available from Vic native Bonsai Club and other growers at other clubs.

Thanks Shibui.
it seems only yesterday i was thinking that when people said "in the old days" they were well and truely over the hill. Now i am saying it and it don't half feel like it when i now look at the native question. Perhaps starting out is a direction taken towards beginners planting and not more advanced things like natives. must learn to crawl first they say and see where that takes us instead of hoping in a car when i don't know my left from my right foot!
As always your knowledge is priceless and appreciated.
cheers P