When do YOU repot your cedar?

cre8ivbonsai · Post by **cre8ivbonsai** » March 1st, 2013, 12:21 pm

I have a couple of Cedars (grafted Glauca and an Atlantica) and I was first told to wait until summer to repot, then summer came and I was told 'oh no you should do that in late winter/early spring'

I can't seem to get a consistent answer and yet everyone I've asked follows their answer with 'but I don't actually have one, so I don't know for sure', which has left me quite unsure

Sooo... when do you repot your Cedars (in Vic)?

Thanks in advance,
Ryan

emi93m · Post by **emi93m** » March 1st, 2013, 12:52 pm

Hi Ryan I have two mature Cedar ( both Lebanese I believe ) and have had great results repotting in August - September. I live in Sydney so I guess october november for the cooler areas ( Vic ) I was told by a very reliable cedar grower in Victoria that when morning temps dont drop below 10 Degrees. Just my

Regards Mick

Watto · Post by **Watto** » March 1st, 2013, 3:56 pm

I agree with Mick. I have a few Cedars and I repot in mid October, sometimes late October depending on the temps. I believe they need some warmer weather to stimulate their roots.
I'm in Goulburn, might be similar to Melbourne weather wise, or maybe even a bit cooler.

FEX · Post by **FEX** » March 1st, 2013, 4:27 pm

hi, i'm in Adelaide, i have also had good results repotting cedars (libani) , in late August, cheers,joe

MoGanic · Post by **MoGanic** » March 1st, 2013, 5:37 pm

Hi mate I live in Melb and my lebanese cedar guy gave me the advice to root prune and repot my lebanese cedars late autumn or early spring. Ive never had issues doing so. If your repotting to get it in a nicer pot and your not doing any root work you can do it pretty much year round but avoid any extreme cold and extreme heat if your putting them in a smaller pot.

Andrew Legg · Post by **Andrew Legg** » March 1st, 2013, 6:10 pm

Hey Ryan,

Stop watching the calendar and start watching the tree! Watch for the first signs of bud swelling in spring and then wait a week or to to let the tree get a bit of momentum, and then repot. This is global advice that I try to follow and it seems to be fairly sound. The cedar that I bent big time with Bodhi's post was repotted in this way and it didn't skip a beat!

Cheers,

Andrew

shibui · Post by **shibui** » March 2nd, 2013, 8:14 pm

I was first told to wait until summer to repot, then summer came and I was told 'oh no you should do that in late winter/early spring' I can't seem to get a consistent answer and yet everyone I've asked follows their answer with 'but I don't actually have one, so I don't know for sure', which has left me quite unsure

Ryan I am coming to believe that this means that possible repotting times are much wider than previously believed and both are correct (though many growers will still loudly declare that only their way is right) and that it is possible to successfully repot cedars (and many other species) right through from spring to autumn.
I have personally repotted my advanced deodar in spring without any problem but Craig W is a very successful and experienced grower and has repotted his cedars for many years in midsummer so both must be ok.
You will find lots of conflicting advice about bonsai. When you get conflicting advice look at the experience of those giving advice and decide but be aware that it is possible (probable??) that both may be correct.

Andrew Legg · Post by **Andrew Legg** » March 2nd, 2013, 11:03 pm

shibui wrote:
I was first told to wait until summer to repot, then summer came and I was told 'oh no you should do that in late winter/early spring' I can't seem to get a consistent answer and yet everyone I've asked follows their answer with 'but I don't actually have one, so I don't know for sure', which has left me quite unsure
Ryan I am coming to believe that this means that possible repotting times are much wider than previously believed and both are correct (though many growers will still loudly declare that only their way is right) and that it is possible to successfully repot cedars (and many other species) right through from spring to autumn.
I have personally repotted my advanced deodar in spring without any problem but Craig W is a very successful and experienced grower and has repotted his cedars for many years in midsummer so both must be ok.
You will find lots of conflicting advice about bonsai. When you get conflicting advice look at the experience of those giving advice and decide but be aware that it is possible (probable??) that both may be correct.

There's lotsa sense in what Shibui says Ryan!! I think that there probably is an optimum time to repot anything, but I also believe that if you can supply good aftercare and the plant is healthy to start with, the window is far wider than we like to think! I suspect the more root work you need to do, the better you want to time it, and if you're just doing a small amount of root work, then the window's nice 'n wide.

Cheers,

Andrew

maple · Post by **maple** » March 3rd, 2013, 4:39 am

[quote="Andrew Legg"]Hey Ryan,

Stop watching the calendar and start watching the tree! Watch for the first signs of bud swelling in spring and then wait a week or to to let the tree get a bit of momentum, and then repot.

This is what a number of good growers I have spoken to in Melbourne have suggested over the years. October,November have been suggested if you're looking for months but our seasons change so do what's already been suggested and watch the tree.
The degree of work you want to do at the time and your aftercare techniques are the variables.

Brian · Post by **Brian** » March 3rd, 2013, 8:52 am

I remember many ears ago an elderly bonsai exponent and professional botanist ( Ian Edwards ) telling me to wait until the new needles are fully open before repotting. This would be late October early November.

Cedars can be a bit touchy and I have seen trees die after repotting if not done at the correct time..

LLK · Post by **LLK** » March 3rd, 2013, 9:43 am

Cedars can be a bit touchy and I have seen trees die after repotting if not done at the correct time..

Maybe it's a combination of species, location and climate that makes them more or less touchy? I have always had the impression that C. deodara is the more sturdy of the cedars. Anyway, I repotted an advanced, grafted dwarf Lebanese cedar in the Spring of 2011 and it sulked for a whole year. It is only in Nov.-Dec. of 2012 that I noticed the start of good new growth.

Lisa

Andrew Legg · Post by **Andrew Legg** » March 3rd, 2013, 7:55 pm

Brian wrote:I remember many ears ago an elderly bonsai exponent and professional botanist ( Ian Edwards ) telling me to wait until the new needles are fully open before repotting. This would be late October early November.

Cedars can be a bit touchy and I have seen trees die after repotting if not done at the correct time..

Interesting post Brian. So I guess what we're saying then is that you need to watch the tree for your timing, but that different trees will have optimal repotting times at different growth stages. That said, if you look at when people are saying they repot, we seem to have a pretty broad range.

Cheers,

Andrew

bodhidharma · Post by **bodhidharma** » March 4th, 2013, 8:23 pm

I have repotted in late November and the tree did not miss a beat. It is (as stated) a large window for Cedars.

cre8ivbonsai · Post by **cre8ivbonsai** » March 4th, 2013, 9:01 pm

Thankyou one and all for explaining your personal experiences, very interesting range of responses. As it appears that the 'window' is a lot more open than with deciduous, I'll wait and watch both the trees and the weather through next spring and make my move then.

Thanks

Ryan

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