Gifted my first Bonsai (Yay!) ... and it's a 'mall bonsai'

[hinokicypress]

Hey there everyone! Newbie here. I am way out of my depth (and I guess recognising that is a good thing...?)

The topic title explains my predicament quite well. Three days ago I requested a Bonsai Tree on my Christmas wish-list after seeing one of those nice stands in a lovely, airconditioned shopping center and well, my young, eleven-year-old sister decided it would be a sweet gesture to buy one for me.

Two days ago she told me, I started doing my research and discovered the absolute world-wide ... cult (for lack of a better word) that is the decade long art of bonsai growing, wiring and creating. During this time I learned that my sister had made a grave mistake, with lots of information from many different sources indicating that shopping center bonsais are not made for this world.

But I love it. I love my little Dwarf Hinoki Cypress and I want to save it. I'll give you the run-down and then launch some questions and if you can help with any or all of my problems I would greatly appreciate it.

From what I can tell the 'potting mix' is actually pretty good. I was granted exactly 5 minutes yesterday to see this plant and care for it however I could (younger sister attempting to preserve the christmas feel of the present) and stuck my fingers in knuckle deep, as advised, to find the primary roots. I was really nervous about damaging the plant, so it was a fairly weak effort (I fingered through a lot of fragile surface roots... It's a small plant so it would be worse than another plant.) There is a thin layer of what I think are just ornamental rock pieces, not glued down or retaining water - so I've left them there for now. Underneath that there is mostly tambark with some soil mixed in.

In terms of watering I have only been misting the surface of the soil and plant occasionally, scared to death about root-rot. The plant has been getting plenty of direct sun between the hours of 8-12 and 4-9. Apparently the Hinoki is prone to going brown in the inner-leaves because of not receiving enough sun. In Melbourne the last few days have been very warm so I'm not too worried.

But here is what I am worried about.

1) I want this plant to become a true bonsai. If it isn't against the rules, I'll link you a photo on my blog of the plant (if it is, moderator feel free to delete this, many forums of all kinds are so touchy about "advertising") http://parchmentgarden.blogspot.com.au/ ... onsai.html. And by 'true' I mean a few things. I want it to have a bigger trunk, so that it can taper. At it's current small size, I'm reluctant to cut any branches or even trim leaves because I read the cypress is adamant about not growing back from old wood. If I remove some surface roots to elongate the trunk, will I be harming the plant? Also I recognise that at the moment it looks more like a barely manicured shrub than a bonsai, but I don't want to butcher the poor thing... at least not until after Christmas.

2) IT'S GOING BROWN. The tips of the uppermost 'leaves' (they're more like buds) are going brown and it's spreading.I think this is a result of too much sun and or a jumpy transition. This shouldn't be permanent/widespread damage, it's very few buds but I'm afraid it might get worse.

3) Should I repot it to grow the trunk bigger or plant it in the ground (I have space), I'm just worried about the roots growing TOO much and then not being able to pot it again (I may have also read bonsai roots in general are sensitive).

At the moment I might just be killing my bonsai with too much love, but I'm worried. Please help?

I love bonsai, they are so beautiful and I look forward to getting to know many of you, if you'll have me haha

Thank you, Chris.

[Isitangus]

Hi Chris I think the browning is probably due to not enough water! Misting is fine but they still require a good drink. See the wiki on the website for watering tips but generally a good drink in the afternoon or morning (or both) especially if it is In full sun. You could also add a hit of seasol to it-not every day-maybe once every week or two.(Seasol is like a multivitamin for plants)
Hinoki cypress are generally slow growing, but best/fastest growing will occur when either in the ground or biggest nursery pot possible. Being a Xmas gift though I would leave it in its current pot until late next year. In the mean time you can start acquiring plants in different stages of growing etc so by the the time it's ready to repot or work on the hinoki you will have something else you can keep in a bonsai pot.
Join your local club-members are welcoming of newbies into the cult! Members also tend to sell of their trees at club meets so this is the best place to grab your bargains.
Welcome, enjoy your reading, and feel free to post any questions etc. however highly advise that you take a read or bookmark the wiki. Also use the search function-someone will have asked before so you may get an answer without asking a question!

[Bougy Fan]

Chris and welcome. Yes absolutely watering is the problem - and the hardest thing to learn. You have to water the pot until water comes out the holes, and at least once a day in summer and possibly more on really hoy days. If the rootball dries out the tree is dead. And seasol is a great suggestion and part shade at the moment would be good too. A photo would also be a great help to us trying to help you

EDIT Just saw your link - it is better to post photos here and it's usually easier to look at them. From what I can see the soil looks free draining enough. I think most mallsai die from underwatering by newbies thining a small tree in a small pot only needs a little bit of water. The root ball has to be completely wet - but then slowly dry out before the next watering.

[time8theuniverse]

My first bonsai was a Juniper Christmas present from my dad brought at the local mall. Its taken a few years and I learnt the skills to keep it alive and cared for. Its an enjoyable tree for me and its 80% of the way to looking good as a true bonsai, despite were it came from.

The first thinks you'll need to learn is the "just keeping it alive" set of skills. Watering being the most important to get right first off. If you stick a bamboo stick into the pot and level it the for a few hours you will have a gauge to the water level. The plant has also come through a long supply chain and you wont know what stresses it faced before, so gently is best for a while.

Cleaning off the most on the trunk with a toothbrush is good too.

Oh! There is the universal recommendation of going a bonsai club because they are fun and helpful places to learn.

[Isitangus]

In addition with yours a good indicator would be the moss. If the moss looks dry and not lush etc I would suggest some h2o

[hinokicypress]

Thanks everyone for all the advice.

I'm sixteen, maybe a little worried I wouldn't fit in at a more 'adult-centric' bonsai club, but nonetheless I'll look into it!

Okay, so admittedly I had not watered it through until just 5 minutes ago, definite dehydration, will water again when it feels right this time. How real a threat is root rot anyway? Haha

If I plant it in the ground will I have to damage to repot it when it reaches the desirable size?

Cheers, Chris.

[Isitangus]

Root rot is only a prob when the roots are kept wet for extended periods. Start by watering every second day. If you plant into the ground it will most likely require root pruning to go back into bonsai pot.
Most bonsai clubs welcome younger members as they are the future.