Baeckea Linifolia - Potting Advice

[Jason]

Hey folks,

As most will know, I'm still learning the basics of bonsai and beleive I may have made a slight mistake in potting up my Baeckea Linifolia (pretty sure its not a virgata).

I've potted it up into a training pot with a 'brunnings' bonsai potting mix that I picked up from the green shed back when I had no idea what I was doing. Since doing so about a month and a half ago I've learnt that this isn't the best soil for a native, as it seems to stay quite moist and does not have good drainage at all (the water actually pools on top when I water).

So I'm wondering, should I repot this into some better soil (i've now got a much better soil mix lol), or should I let it settle in this soil before I move it over? I just don't want to leave it in the soil if its going to kill it, but then I don't to kill it repotting it so soon either! lol

Please help with my rookie mistake

Cheers
Jason

[Boics]

G'day Jason.

IF one is very careful I'm of the opinion that a re-pot won't spell the death of your tree.
Just be careful to disturb as little roots as possible and maybe even just up the pot size a little to accommodate a bit more free draining mix.
The free draining mix on the outer of the pot will at the very least markedly help to drain your pot..

Alternatively you might even opt NOT to repot and make a few holes in the soil to the bottom of the pot and fill these with rock.
This will also help to drain your current mix..

At the end of the day I'm not so sure that now is such a terrible time to re-pot Baeckea anyway..
I repotted mine just a couple of weeks ago and even did a bit of a root chop in the process - no dramas.

Also search the forums for Babingtonia as I understand that this was the previous name for Baeckea.
Keep us posted with your technique and results.

[Jason]

Thanks very much for the reply Boics. I might give it a go with repotting, as I think it'll be better in the long run. I've got a couple of mild days coming up, so figure I may as well.

Last time I buy that soil, that's for sure. Normally I would just leave it, but I like the look of this one and would rather keep it healthy

Also, it is a Baechea Virgata Dwarf

thanks again for the reply

[shibui]

I would also repot as soon as possible.
The genus Baeckea has been split into a number of new genera. The plants previously known as Baeckea virgata are NOW called Babingtonia virgata so search both names to get all the info available

[kcpoole]

like has already been advised, I would repot now too.

Water pooling on the surface may mean the mix is drying to much and becoming less "wettable"

I fyou have some more of that mix you may just need to add more Gravel ( decomposed Granite) to open it up some more

Ken

[dennismc]

Jason

A good mix for all Bonsai including natives is the following:
50% Good quality potting mix
50% River sand

At potting time add a small handful of Blood and Bone and mix thoroughly. This serves to make the mix more habitable for the soil micro-organisms and in turn they make the environment better for the tree. Add also your preferred fertiliser at potting time. As in all things balance is highly desirable and I believe the use of native fertilisers is undesirable for thus reason. So use a balanced fertiliser that includes trace elements (often forgotten by Bonsai-ists). I have never had any adverse effects from balanced fertilisers. Some fertiliser pellets are available with trace elements.

I have used this basic mix on ALL my natives for over 20 years with total success. It provides excellent draining and an appropriate mechanical design to encourage both the development of roots and the division thereof. Should you live in a area of extreme rainfall a higher proportion of sand could be incorporated. I do not recommend adding pebbles to the soil as often recommended for drainage for the following reasons:
There is no evidence that it works
The pebbles are inert and just reduce the soil capacity of the pot (sand is a proven drainage improver and contributes soil engineering).

As all of our environments vary a little, experimentation to suit your individual needs may be necessary. For example, Azaleas need good watering but with extensive near surface roots that hate being over wet. Additional sand in this mix would meet their needs.

Despite popular opinion my long experience has demonstrated that natives on the whole like extra watering but not necessarily continuously wet feet.

Hope this is of some help. There are almost as many soil mixes as there are Bonsai-ists what works for us is best in the long term.

Dennis Mc

[Jason]

Thankyou all for the replies, really appreciate the advice.

I've potted it up today into a much better mix, and think he'll be happier for it.

Was very careful to disturb the roots as little as possible, which was actually a little hard as the soil was pretty much a solid block!

Although made another rookie mistake and didn't place the 'front' facing the right way was too intent on not damaging the roots... but I can live with that as its in a large training pot

[Pup]

Lees Bonsai World in Bedford sell good Bonsai mix as does the Bonsai Emporium in West Swan.

Cheers Pup

Ps Babingtonia (Baekia) can be repotted at this time of the year.