Some questions about my Juniper

[Kier]

I hope this is the right place to ask, apologies if not.

I just bought this Juniper over the weekend and have a few questions. I'm new to bonsai and I'd really love to keep this lil guy alive.

PSX_20230301_162026.jpg

I noticed a bit of old scarring on the trunk of my plant, not sure if it was intentional. There was already some wiring on some of the outer limbs, where part of the wire was also cutting into the trunk where it was anchored, so I've just fully removed all the wiring today.

Now what I'm wondering is, since there is some scarring left on the trunk, should I bother rewiring it again any time soon, or should I let it do it's thing and heal up for a bit? I would like to keep the limbs bending the same direction over time, but don't want to be harming the tree unnecessarily. Most of the damage just seems to be on the trunk. Should wait until a certain time of year?

Also, a question on watering junipers... I previously had a juniper years ago that I'm pretty sure died to root rot, so I'm slightly cautious about over watering. I've read that in summer, it's best to water them twice a day in general. But even though I've been watering only once a day so far, the soil has still been very moist on top, even after a full day of sun (36 degree days) and hot wind the past few days. The stones seem to be keeping the water in quite well and maybe I shouldn't water it twice unnecessarily? Is it possible to over water, even when it has adequate drainage as far as I can tell? It's still very moist always and not even close to being dry on top.

Thanks for any help!

[shibui]

Hi Kier.
Starting with wiring:
Wire does not make it a bonsai. Wire is only needed to move branches to a more desirable location. After some time the branches become set in the new position and will stay there so wire can be removed and left off. Only wire if you need to change position of any sections.
if you do need to wire to change branches wind the new wire in the opposite direction so it won't put pressure on existing scars. Keep a close eye on it and remove wire if it looks like the branch has thickened and wire is likely to mark the bark in future. Wire should only be required for 3-6 months at a time to achieve the desired results.
In a perfect world the wires would come off before they put marks on the bark but sometimes we forget. Commercial trees like this little juniper are often not given the attention they really should have so wire scars are common. Over time, as the tree grows and puts on new layers of wood the marks will gradually disappear but that could take 3-10 years depending on how well it is looked after and how well it grows.

Try not to rely on a schedule for watering. Water needs can be very different in different places, climates, pots, potting mix species, etc so there is no set timing for watering. We need to let the soil and the tree guide how often. Check the soil moisture each morning and evening to decide if it neds water. Only water when the soil starts to get dryer. A wood skewer or chop stick inserted in the soil gives an even better indication because sometimes the surface may appear dry when there's still lots of water deeper in the pot. Pull out the skewer to check soil moisture then put it back in the soil for next time.
I certainly water my bonsai twice a day through hot weather but I do use a very open, fast draining mix. The seasons are slowly changing and I'm sometimes able to skip 1 or 2 waterings in the last couple of weeks. Eventually I'll be back to 1 a day and through winter my trees get by on rain.

[TimIAm]

Often scarring is inevitable; some trees you can't get a position to stick without getting some scarring. As your tree is young it's still got plenty of growth to look forward too, it's going to grow out eventually. Some people avoid scars, but with young and fast growing trees scarring is more likely but also grow out faster.

Typically if you wire and bend a branch and it sets it should hold its shape, so not necessary to keep it wired or re-wire it once its set. But sometimes growth habit or just general growth can push it out of shape, then you can consider again if you want to add wire.

Usually wiring is done when the tree is actively growing during the warmer months.

It may be a hassle, but whenever I get a new tree I want to get a good look at what's in the pot to know what it's growing in, how much water it holds and how fast it drains. Having your decorative stones on top makes that a bit tricky, but you can remove them for a couple of weeks to see what you are dealing with. At the same time you should have a look to make sure it's not root bound.

"It's still very moist always and not even close to being dry on top." If it is constantly damp, that may not be good in the long term.

[dansai]

As shibui says, watering is case by case. Your tree looks very healthy and so while the weather is warm will be using plenty of water. However it is in quite a large pot for the size of the tree. A very bushy large juniper may well need 2 waterings a day, a very large juniper in a small container may even need more. I highly doubt this tree would need 2 waters a day, and as the weather cools may not even need it daily. This again depends on soil mix.

It is very important to check where any information you read or hear comes from. Different climates can affect strategies quite profoundly. Also there can be assumptions about what stage a tree is at. A collected Rocky Mountain Juniper will need vastly different care that a small young store bought juniper.

[Kier]

Thank you all for the answers They're a big help.

I may remove the gravel on the weekend and let it air out a bit and see what the soil is like. Was bought from a bonsai nursery, so I assume it's fairly well draining mix. Certainly seems to drain quite well when I water it. I had removed a small section to check if it's root bound, but it looks pretty good to me.

I popped a wooden skewer in and it's definitely moist through and through. So whether I should give it one day without water, just to tone it down a bit, I'm sure it probably wouldn't hurt.

I'll wait until later in the year, maybe spring to see if I want to rewire it again. I think it looks pretty good at the moment and there's only a couple of branches I'd like to try bend slightly.

Appreciate the info!

[Grant Bowie]

Once the major wire has accomplished its goal of placing the major branches and trunk shape, it may be easier as a novice just to pull the branch tip down lightly after it has grown a bit more and healed the scars and set the branches and trunk in position. Lightly loop some approx 2mm wire around /over branch and find a tie off point . If none exists then use an external piece of wire under the pot and tie off to that. Or you can learn to wire each branch and be able to minutely position everything you want, but don’t sweat it too much, We all learnt and made mistakes on this type of tree. Perfect material,

Grant