Young Chinese Elm + Serissa - How to Proceed

[luivco]

Hey all,
I picked up a nice little Chinese Elm and Serissa from a bonsai nursery the other day and am confused about how to proceed with them.

What would a 5-year plan be for these trees, is it best to plant them in the ground/large pot for a few years and then style them? If so, is a regular bonsai mix suitable or can I use a potting mix?
And is there anything to be done to them now?

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[Jarad]

What size trees are you hoping for? And do you have a style you like?

My little serissa is exploding with new growth at the moment too. I am just leaving it to grow as its a little small at the moment.

[luivco]

No size in particular, but larger than a shohin.
As the elm has some movement to it already, I was thinking informal-upright would work well. I'm not wholly sure about the serissa yet though, but looking at examples I really like the ones with lots of movement in the trunk and branches.

So is your serissa of a similar size?

[Jarad]

I would recommend getting some orchid pots and potting them up. The only place I can find orchid pots is at ray nescis or online. If you go to rays, grab some of his dirt.

Add water, regular fert and plenty of sun. The elm will do well with all day sun, the serissa would be best suited to morning and afternoon sun.

Get some wire around them and give them some more aggressive bends, as the ones they have will grow out as they thicken up. Be careful about snapping branches if you do play with some wire.

My serissa is a tadd smaller than yours. I've been trying to find some more advanced stock, but I've been unsuccessful.

[luivco]

Great, thanks for that. Is there a reason orchid pots are better than say, a plastic one?

I got mine from Bonsai South in Caringbah, there's quite a bit of varied stock there. Living on the Central Coast though, it may be a bit far.

[Jarad]

The plastic orchid pots aren't as deep as the regular plastic pots, which promotes lateral root growth.

Bonsai South is on my list of places to visit, just haven't made it that far south yet.

[dansai]

The orchid pots are wide and shallow as has been mentioned and also have excellent drainage. Both promote good root growth. They are also heavier plastic than nursery pots and will last a lot longer as they are designed for repeated use rather than through away. Here's a link to the producer. I got a range of the 200 x 100, 250 x 150 and 300 x 120.

[luivco]

I've ordered some 200 x 100 orchid pots, I found a different seller as well as they are a little more convenient for me: http://orchidtrays.com.au/products.php? ... ort%20Pots

Thanks for the help