Serrissa

[paddles]

When is it the best time of year to repot a serrisa, and how much root prunning will they take/need?

How touchy a plant are they?? I would rather wait longer, than risk killing the tree. I have no idea how long it has been since it was last potted.

[alpineart]

Hi Paddles , i have just removed my Serrisa from a styrene box and put it into a tray. I have done quite a few with no ill effects , even gone to the extreme of using roundup to maintain control of the one in the garden . It slowed the plant but most certainly didn't kill it . I liken the root growth to a Willow or Chinese Elm , invasive and hard to kill with round- up , 10 years and i still haven't eradicated it yet .Mine is a Serissa Foetida .Cheers

[hugh grant]

Funny you say that cuz the first time I repotted my serissa it just died, ok a for a few days and then it died. But I wasn't too worried I didn't even really like it at all.

Hugh

[paddles]

yes, in the past, all my serrissas have just dropped dead on me.... sometimes after potting, sometimes (i think) just for the spite of it. I'd really like to keep this one alive.

[Ron]

On the subject of Serissa, I noticed these shoots which I gather are suckers around the base of a Serissa I have. I read recently that suckers should be removed as they inhibit the growth of the main plant. I would rather not as I think they look quite attractive around the base, but I'll act on advice with them. If they should be removed, is it best to wait for the spring repot?

(I know the white stones are ugly but they were on it when I bought it and will go at first repot.)

[Greth]

You will just make it a harder job for later if you don't remove them now Ron, if you are really fond of them, try using some as cuttings material.
Otherwise your tree will be looking more like a shrubbery!

[Ron]

You will just make it a harder job for later if you don't remove them now Ron, ...

Thanks, Greth. Now this is a basic question (I'm not only new to bonsai but also to gardening in general) and I don't want to make any mistakes as I like this tree as it was one of the first I bought.

Do I just snip those suckers off at ground level or do I have to dig underground (so to speak ) and cut them off the roots or wherever they're attached?

Cheers, Ron

[Greth]

Find out where they attach and snip em as far back as you can - for the trunk ones this will be close to the trunk, some are coming up from roots as well, snip em close to the root. Dont let the little darlings take over your tree ( I edited buggers to put darlings) Good news is that your tree is growing fast and healthy, bad news is that it wants to be a shrubbery, you must correct it, explain clearly that there will be one and only one trunk)
If you want to try cuttings, then a dip in hormone powder or gel and into some good mix and see what happens.

[Jester]

Hi Ron, great to see you decided to buy a Serissa. In case you are not aware there are two general types of Serissa. Serissa Serissoides (Which is what I believe you have in those photos), and Serissa Foetida which contains within it's group several cultivars such as Mt. Fuji , Double Floro Pleno, Kyoto, as well as and Pink Snowrose and White Snowrose. The easiest what to tell if you have a Serissa Serissoides is that it has a much larger and elongated leaf compared to the Foetida family.

As for cuttings, well , have a look at the photos and you will see that some have been potted up. (Sorry if the photos are not in order Ron) I think cuttings are not a good idea right now. I think you well get a strike rate of about 80-90% if you wait until Spring so just be patient mate. At the moment, cuttings will hardly grow at all. Typically in Spring and early Summer they will take about 4 weeks to take root.

As far as the suckers go, well, um, let me say this. "IF" you need to cut the suckers off, a millimetre or two below the soil is fine. There seems to be this belief though that suckers on a Serissa are bad news. I have to disagree with this. The reason why Serissas are such excellent specimens for bonsai Ron is primarily because of their versatlity. Suckers can actually be utilised very effectively to create branches that cannot otherwise be created. One of the photos you will see there is a work in progress where I have platted 2 suckers and have one of them wrapping around a main branch and then continuing upwards to eventually fill in a bit of a gap . Now......if I want to , once the new sucker "fuses" with that branch, I can either cut it at the point at which it has fused with the branch and only leave the section that continues upwards, or, I can leave it as is and have the sucker still originating from the soil to mimic something like an aerial root from a strangler fig.

Also , suckers are useful if you want to fatten the base of the trunk. If for example, you have suckers coming up close to the base of the trunk, you can let this grow just a little and then continue to cut just above a pair of leaves. Over time, this shoot will harden and grow broad and stubby. Multiply this technique with many suckers close to the base of the trunk and you will effectively be creating a broad mound around the base of the trunk.

Naturally the suckers , as mentioned can be used for propagation.

[Ron]

Hi Jester,

Thanks for taking the time to provide all that info and the plant identification. I've printed it out and will give it serious study.

I do like Serissas and have two others - one is labelled Serissa foetida and is currently flowering with double white flowers. The other is a variegated one and now has single pink flowers.

It's interesting that while you were typing up your post, I was reading about Serissas at Bonsai4me where Harry says, "the Serissa is notorious for being hard to keep for both experienced hobbyists and beginners alike."

http://www.bonsai4me.com/SpeciesGuide/Serissa.html

I'm kinda glad I don't live in the Northern Hemisphere with the freezing winters. Australia seems to have much kinder although still defined seasons.

[Jester]

Hi Ron, have a look at my post again as the photos should now be there....well most anyway..I do not have the benefit of a fast internet line so adding photos is painfully slow but as we speak, i am still adding photos so have a look and tell me what you think.

All the best

John

[Ron]

I'm impressed. I didn't think Serissas grew that big and with thick trunks. The only ones I've seen (all bonsai-potted) have been small examples like mine (20cm height/5cm trunk).

I'm sorry the main season's ending now (temp here today has been around 9-10 and I've two jumpers on) as there are so many things I want to try such as growing cuttings (I've got some wisteria and Chinese elm going which I hope will take). Anyway, plenty of time to plan for Spring.

I was talking to Ray Nesci last week and he said I should look at around a month's difference in the seasons between Sydney and the Mountains.

[Jester]

Hi Ron, Serissa Serissoides can grow larger than elms if you treat them with some TLC, especially if they are field grown. Unfortunately Serissa Foetida will not. They will remain as a very spindly kind of shrub. That's not to say that they can't thicken but you would be looking at many many years. By the way. I have just finished adding photos to that post so have one more look Ron.

Regards
'

John

[Jester]

Hi Ron , on the topic of suckers I also meant to mention that they can also be handy if you are planning on creating a forest arrangement. I found the following in a book I have. If this photo does'nt convince you nothing will. Now you are starting to see the true versatility of Serissa. No planting required here!!!!

Make sure you enlarge the photo so you can see the beautiful figurine. If only I could find one like this !! It just looks so tranquil does'nt it???

Cheers

John

[Ron]

That's so beautiful, John. Thanks for putting it up. If only I had started bonsai when I was younger!!!!

Guess whose going to be looking around for Serissa serissoides, hopefully advanced, on his next round of the nurseries?