Cumquat or Kumquat

[buzzard]

I was wondering if you guys could help me out? I am just getting into bonsai and have very limited experience. My mum is living in Melbourne and is looking at getting rid of two large cumquat trees which are approximately 30 years old which have been in large pots all there life. They stand about 5 feet high including the pot. I would like to turn these trees into bonsai and move them to Brisbane where i live. This leads to my first question, are these citrus trees suitable to bonsai?, secondly, would they flourish in Brisbane? If the answer is yes to both questions, then I was wondering where i could take them in Melbourne to get scalped in master pieces? I believe all the pruning needs to be done during the winter when the plant is dormant so I will have to get a mate to look after them until winter.

Thanks in advanced for all your help!!

[bonsaibruce]

Greetings,
Yes you can keep them in sunny Queensland. They need lots of water and fertilizer, more than you think. They do shoot back from old wood. New branches can be very stiff and hard to bend. New growth can also have a very vertical habit, growing straight up out of the trunk.
The trees will be stressed when they are pruned and transport will add to the stress. They will also take up lots of room in a car and the air conditioning will dry them out. It is too hot in the boot. You may need a van. It will take a minimum of two days drive and may be more in a removalist truck and hotter/colder with more movement.
They need to be in top shape and wired very well into the pot. Movement will break the fine roots. Make sure there are no ants or bugs in the soil, ants will explore your car by the thousands. They should not be repotted just before the long road trip.
Look and see if they are grafted. The lower trunk may be thicker or a slightly different colour. If the graft is noticeable a bonsai may not look so good.
I've made it sound very attractive to move them, sorry. Maybe you could consider a commercial tree/nursery transport firm.
Good luck, I would seek advice from a Melbourne bonsai club/nursery and when you get them to Brizvagas seek local advice.
Happy bonsai,
Bruce.

[shibui]

I hace seen pictures of cumquat as bonsai. the fruit size suits bonsai sized trees and you already know they can survive in containers however we have had some disappointing results with them in pots here and the 1 I have started to work on as bonsai is very slow to develop. maybe I'm just not holding my mouth right?

Cumquat are citrus which are mostly subtropical plants so should do well in Brisbane.
I think pruning these in summer would be a better time than winter. They grow back faster in summer. I think Citrus are a bit more like figs - they don't really like winters.

[buzzard]

Thank you very much for your prompt replies. It seems like it would be a worth while excercise to try to bonsai these trees. Its not everyday you get offered a 30 years old pot plant, which have been at the family home as long a I remember. The bonsai shop I contact told me to bring them in in winter so I'm now concerned that they are not very bonsai Cumquat savvy. I know you can't include any commercial advertising on this site but i was wondering if someone could point me in the right direction of a citrus capable person that would be happy to work on these plants for me.

[buzzard]

Maybe it would be better to transport the plants up in there original state and then get them worked on in Queensland??? I am just worried about the cost of freight. Anyone got any ideas who would be good to contact about such transportation?

[Paulneill]

Have you got any photos.

Have you concidered airlayering them it could be the best option to develop them into bonsai. And would make it a lot easier to transport .

[Ren]

Some photos would be good.

Posted some progress on a small grafted Cumquat I have been working on lately. Would love to see what an old one can look like.


Good luck.

Regards

[buzzard]

I took some photo's with my iPhone but cannot post them. The error message read
'The image file you tried to attach is invalid.'

[shibui]

Most general carriers will not transport plants or livestock. You could try some of the specialist plant carriers. I could not find any that cover Vic to Qld but they might have contacts that could make the delivery??

Vanberkel are the ones I know of in Vic but the website says they just cover Vic and Southern NSW - http://www.vanberkeltransport.com.au/

Rangeview have depots in Melb, Adeliade and Sydney. They may be able to arrange further transport to QLD? - http://www.rangeviewtransport.com.au/