Cotoneaster issues

[Hprelude]

Hey everyone,

I'm having problems with my Cotoneaster bonsai.

Recently I've noticed my bonsai Isn't doing so well with its leaves are half going brown and dry and its new growth is not looking the best.
I have no idea what is happening to it and its only getting worse so I was wondering what everyone thinks the issue could be.

Attached are photos which show what is happening to it.

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Thanks in advance

[shibui]

I can think of several possibilities.
1. The speckled leaves look like a mite problem. Mites are very small and usually under the leaves so you often don't see them. Look for tiny spiderlike webbing or tiny moving dots under the leaves. Spray with a miticide from your nursery.
2. Nutrient deficiency? is another possibility for speckeled leaves. Feed regularly with a balanced fert with trace elements.

The burnt edges are probably something different. They can be caused by too little water (very easy in summer for the pot to dry out during the day) or too much water or salt buildup or fertiliser burn from too strong fert - (roots can be damaged by these so the tree cannot take up water and the tree dehydrates)

[Hprelude]

Thanks for the reply

When I first noticed this issue in February, I sprayed the leaves well with Yates rose gun advanced.

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As I'm new to this, I'm honestly not sure if it's the correct product to use. Which miticide would you recommend if the product I'm using currently should not be used?

I fertilize the tree with a standard fertilizer, that i purchased from the bonsai nursery, every three months. Should I be using something else?
My tree has never produced red berries but only makes a few flowers in early summer.

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With the burnt edges, yes its been hot in Melbourne and there has been times where I've come home from work and the pot has dried out but have watered it as soon as I could. Could this have caused permanent damage to the tree?

[Daluke]

Hot weather - sun and wind has caused this on my cotoneaster before. Plenty of water and removal of dead and dying leaves gets rid of the problem.

[shibui]

The rose gun should have dealt with any mites at the time. Sometimes you need to spray again after a few weeks because more have hatched out.
The fert you are getting looks like osmocote controlled release which usually gives a background nutrient level but not always enough for optimum growth. I would recommend additional fert, probably a liquid which is easy and quick acting. I use Powerfeed and Thrive alternating very 2-3 weeks and get good results but any commercial fert will be good.

My tree has never produced red berries but only makes a few flowers in early summer.

This can be related to the species but more likely to nutrient levels. Starving trees cannot afford to waste energy on flowers and seeds. Extra fert may make a difference. I also use a 'flowers and fruit' fertiliser on all my flowering plants from mid summer through to autumn. The higher K levels promote flowering and fruit production. It does seem to make a difference when I use it. Any high K fert will do the same job - Tomato, citrus, azalea, 'flowers and fruit' are all basically the same and should help flowering bonsai.

[/With the burnt edges, yes its been hot in Melbourne and there has been times where I've come home from work and the pot has dried out but have watered it as soon as I could. Could this have caused permanent damage to the tree?quote]Temporary dry does not usually cause permanent damage but may inhibit flowering the following spring if growth has been set back enough. Badly burnt leaves will drop off and new ones will grow. Partly burnt leaves can be left on the tree or cut off and new ones will grow to replace them. You need to mange water better for your bonsai. Often when we water the inside of the mix stays dry beacuse we don't water effectively. When watering in summer water once then wait 5-10 minutes then water again. first water does not always soak right in. The second water penetrates better. Also soaking the pot in water once a week will make sure the mix is properly wet and will give you better soil moisture for a few days. A gravel tray can also help if small pots dry out too quick.

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Cotoneaster is very tough species. I think your tree will survive this year.

[Hprelude]

Hot weather - sun and wind has caused this on my cotoneaster before. Plenty of water and removal of dead and dying leaves gets rid of the problem.

Okay awesome, ill make sure i don't make the soil dry out anymore. Thanks

The rose gun should have dealt with any mites at the time. Sometimes you need to spray again after a few weeks because more have hatched out.

Okay well i sprayed the leaves today and in 14 days ill spray it again. Noticed that there were little black dots on the back side of the leaves so assuming they are mites.

The fert you are getting looks like osmocote controlled release which usually gives a background nutrient level but not always enough for optimum growth. I would recommend additional fert, probably a liquid which is easy and quick acting. I use Powerfeed and Thrive alternating very 2-3 weeks and get good results but any commercial fert will be good.

Would I use the Powerfeed flower fruit and citrus together with my current fertilizer? Also if i purchase Powerfeed flower fruit and citrus, what amount would i mix up to fertilize the tree and can i use it like I'm normally watering the tree?

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is there any other furtilizer i should be buying?

When watering in summer water once then wait 5-10 minutes then water again. first water does not always soak right in. The second water penetrates better. Also soaking the pot in water once a week will make sure the mix is properly wet and will give you better soil moisture for a few days. A gravel tray can also help if small pots dry out too quick.

Okay i will wait 5-10 minutes and re water and also occasional soak the pot in a tub.

This is my tree, please excuse the lack of pruning. I don't know much about pruning trees at this stage and will have to take it to my local bonsai nursery to get it done as i do not want to ruin the tree and hopefully they can shape it nicely.

Pot is approximately 18cm long. Is this pot too small for the tree? Ive owned the tree for two years now and have not changed it since i bought it.

Sorry for all the questions and for the limited knowledge, trying to read/search/ask questions to get a better understanding.

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[shibui]

I am not surprised that it has dried out. That's a lot of branches to be getting water out of a little pot Just go ahead and shorten some of the longer shoots. You can't ruin a tree just by cutting the long bits.
Powerfeed flowers and fruit will b fine. You can mix it up according to the instructions (potted plants or shrubs and trees) and water on the tree like you are watering the tree (water with plain water first to wet the soil though) and it is fine to use as well as the 'bonsai food' you are already using.
Those 2 together should be fine for your cotoneaster.

Don't apologise for questions. We are here to help.

[Hprelude]

I am not surprised that it has dried out. Powerfeed flowers and fruit will b fine. You can mix it up according to the instructions (potted plants or shrubs and trees) and water on the tree like you are watering the tree (water with plain water first to wet the soil though) and it is fine to use as well as the 'bonsai food' you are already using.

Okay perfect. Do bonsai's need to be re-potted every two years or can I leave my tree in its current pot?

I will purchase the Powerfeed during the week and start the tree on liquid fertilizer, and I will shorten some branches also.
Ill post an update to let everyone know how its going, thanks for the help. Really appreciate it!

[shibui]

Most things bonsai don't follow a rigid calendar. You need to repot your tree when it needs it. Sometimes that will be every year, sometimes 3-5 years. The longer you leave it the more roots will be packed into the pot and it will get increasingly difficult to water properly because the roots will be taking up all the spaces where water should get into the soil.
I find it is better to do young trees and smaller trees more often. Trees that have grown a lot will also have grown more roots and need repotting sooner.
Yours is a young, small tree that has grown a lot this year. I'd guess it should be repotted this winter/spring.

[Hprelude]

Okay perfect, Ill get it repotted around that time.

Does it have to go in a larger pot though?
Id like to keep the tree small and also when searching online, it seems that there are larger tree's in much smaller pots or does it get to a stage where you stop increasing the pot size?

Can a tree remain in the same pot but the roots trimmed every two years (as an example) or will that cause trouble to the tree?
Obviously if the roots aren't trimmed, the tree will get pot bound and will eventually kill the tree. I don't quiet understand the importance of repotting at this stage.

[shibui]

OK. Lots of different questions on the same topic so I'll try to break it up into manageable bits.
In bonsai there are always lots of options and choices, rarely only on way to proceed so you need to decide what you want to achieve then make choices that will move toward that goal.

1. Only the tip of the roots can absorb nutrient and water so roots must keep growing to maintain healthy, active root tips. If roots keep growing in a pot, eventually the roots will fill all the spaces in the mix. Spaces are vital for water and air to get into the mix. When roots have filled all the spaces, water and air cannot penetrate and tree will suffer. How soon this happens depends on the species, how well it has grown, size of pot and lots more so you cannot predict when a bonsai will need to be repotted by the calendar. Need to look at and feel the potting mix for clues to how crowded the roots are. Generally, every year for trees in small pots, every year or 2 for fast growing trees and 2-5 years for older trees that are trimmed regularly and don't grow much.
1b. Potting mix breaks down. The organic components (pine bark, sawdust, etc) rot away and break down into very fine sludge. The finer particles fill the spaces in the mix and stop water from entering or draining out of the pot so plants suffer. So even if the roots don't grow enough to block all the sapces it is vital that older mix is replaced with fresh mix before the old mix breaks down too much. Again, how soon depends on the mix and what it is made of, how much fertiliser has ben used, watering, climate, etc and a definite timespan cannot be given. 4-8 years would be average for most good potting mixes?

2. Theoretically a bonsai can be put back into the same pot after repotting for many years. Pots are chosen to complement the size of the tree. It should look balanced. If the tree is too large it will look like it might overbalance. Time for a larger pot. If you trim your tree properly to keep its size constant you can keep putting it back into the same pot but you have been allowing yours to grow larger. Need to keep trimming if you want to maintain a small tree. Pot size is a combination of how it looks and large enough to keep the tree healthy. At the moment your tree looks out of balance. Far too big for the pot. It looks like a gently breeze would blow it away because it has so much growth on to and only a little pot. When you trim it back it may look good but we have not seen that yet so can't comment. Looking at the thin trunk I suspect that your tree will be Ok in that same pot for a few more years at least if you want to keep the top small.

3. Trunks continue to get thicker each year. This can be very slow in a bonsai but it does still occur. Eventually the trunk will thicken to the point the tree will not be able to fit into the pot or looks ridiculous in the pot - time (actually way past time) to move it into a larger pot so the tree looks more balanced.

4. If you want your tree to develop - get larger or trunk to grow thicker, more branches or ramification a larger pot will allow the tree to grow more and develop quicker. Many growers who want better trees quicker plant trees into very large containers or in the garden for maximum growth.
5. Very small pots (in relation to the size of the tree) make it hard to keep your tree alive and healthy. I recommend that beginners use slightly oversized pots until they learn how to water and maintain their bonsai properly before trying to use smaller pots. In hotter climates like Aust larger/ deeper pots are important to beat our very dry climate.

Hope that gives you some background to work with so you can make the decisions that will help get to your bonsai goals.

[Hprelude]

Thank you for the detailed information Shibui! You are awesome!

This gives me a better understanding of re potting.

Ill definitely have to get the soil changed in spring (as the water does not drain fast when watering) and will most likely put the tree in a bigger pot as I can see the pot compared to the tree is not in proportion.
I might prune the tree first and then look at the proportions and decide.

Thanks again!
ill keep you updated