Hi,
I have a liquid amber I trunk-chopped in late winter. it has pretty good base but had a straight trunk therefore I have chopped with the view of building some taper. It lives in a large oval bonsai pot and appears to be healthy. But it hasn't yet developed any buds. I have fertilised with slow release and give it some liquid food every couple of weeks or so. everything else is budding, from junipers, figs to a large olive.
the soil seems to be ok although there is a dense cover of some sort of small grass like weeds over the top of the pot. the soil contains course material although I have noticed that under the covering of moss/weeds the soil smells very earthy and not really nice. Would this be a factor in the continuing dormancy of my tree? should I repot the tree into a new mix or at least remove the weeds? would this retard the growth or bud swell?
or is it just a matter of hurry up and wait?
My large maple trees only just started budding out last week by my smaller bonsai ones already started a few weeks ago (maybe the smaller pots got them warmer fast). I am also yet to see the appearance of my crepe myrtles or oak trees. Where are you located? I am in Sydney so give it a bit more time i say.......
I trunk chopped a large trident maple and it is only just showing the bumps for new buds under the bark. Actually i might post some images of the chop and my plans on the weekend for all to see.
Last edited by k2bonsai on September 11th, 2012, 1:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"The problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people's money."
I know I'm in a different climate to you, but the Liquid Amber's around here still haven't budded. They're always one of the last trees to start growing and some of the other tree's started around a month ago - this includes the LA's as street trees and my bonsai LA. If the soil smells putrid now may be a good time to replace it.
thanks for the replies and advice. I am in Perth W.A .
would it be detrimental to the tree and its ability to start producing buds if i change the soil and ore bare root the tree? At the very least I should get rid of the covering of weeds/grass.?
It is now the perfect opportunity to repot and bare root - being deciduous now is the ONLY time to bare root in fact. I have lost a couple of LA to what I believe was a poorly drained and aerated mix so make sure the new mix is open and coarse
Regards Tony
"The problem with quotes found on the Internet is that it's hard to be sure of their authenticity." Abraham Lincoln
Bougy Fan wrote:It is now the perfect opportunity to repot and bare root - being deciduous now is the ONLY time to bare root in fact. I have lost a couple of LA to what I believe was a poorly drained and aerated mix so make sure the new mix is open and coarse
thanks mate. I'll repot this week and see how it goes.
I have fertilised with slow release and give it some liquid food every couple of weeks or so.
Why did you do that? Plants that are dormant do not need any food. We fertilise in Autumn and again in Spring, at sap rise. Non-absorbed or non-decomposed fertiliser may well be responsible for the poor smell of your potting mix. And that cover of fine grass makes me wonder if perhaps you also overwatered.
Whether you should repot your tree now depends partly on how long it is since you repotted last. If it is less than a year the tree should really be left alone for another year. However, since it seems that it's sitting in an undesirable soil mix, if you think thaqt the tree is vulnerable take it carefully out of the pot and gently shake off as much soil as you can. That will also allow you to have a good look at the roots. If these are dark and feel quishy, you have a case of root rot. That's a whole new chapter! If the roots are normal, just repot the tree in a well-draining mix that doesn't contain any water saving pellets!! And if it contains slow release fertiliser, be sure not to add your own. Wait until the tree is growing strongly before you re-fertilise.
Good luck!
I have fertilised with slow release and give it some liquid food every couple of weeks or so.
Why did you do that? Plants that are dormant do not need any food. We fertilise in Autumn and again in Spring, at sap rise. Non-absorbed or non-decomposed fertiliser may well be responsible for the poor smell of your potting mix. And that cover of fine grass makes me wonder if perhaps you also overwatered.
Whether you should repot your tree now depends partly on how long it is since you repotted last. If it is less than a year the tree should really be left alone for another year. However, since it seems that it's sitting in an undesirable soil mix, if you think thaqt the tree is vulnerable take it carefully out of the pot and gently shake off as much soil as you can. That will also allow you to have a good look at the roots. If these are dark and feel quishy, you have a case of root rot. That's a whole new chapter! If the roots are normal, just repot the tree in a well-draining mix that doesn't contain any water saving pellets!! And if it contains slow release fertiliser, be sure not to add your own. Wait until the tree is growing strongly before you re-fertilise.
Good luck!
Lisa.
Hi Lisa. I bought the tree over a year ago and have been watering but not fertilising until about 2 weeks ago. i only threw a little bit of slow release on top and gave it a liquid feed some time after. I am pretty green to bonsai so I am learning as I go.
I don't know how long it has been since the tree has been potted. the cover of grass may well may be over watering. Needless to say, I'm letting it dry out . My plan would be to bare root this tree and put it in a stryo grow box whilst it recovers as I dont think it needs to be in a bonsai pot until i have styled and am happy with its progress. below is the link of the original thread I posted about this tree to give you an idea of what it looked like before I chopped.
My shohin put out buds about 3 weeks ago so I repotted and cut back to make it back bud. It has since done nothing and I guess that is normal because of the repot and root prune.
ADO wrote:Hi,
I have a liquid amber I trunk-chopped in late winter. it has pretty good base but had a straight trunk therefore I have chopped with the view of building some taper. It lives in a large oval bonsai pot and appears to be healthy. But it hasn't yet developed any buds. I have fertilised with slow release and give it some liquid food every couple of weeks or so. everything else is budding, from junipers, figs to a large olive.
the soil seems to be ok although there is a dense cover of some sort of small grass like weeds over the top of the pot. the soil contains course material although I have noticed that under the covering of moss/weeds the soil smells very earthy and not really nice. Would this be a factor in the continuing dormancy of my tree? should I repot the tree into a new mix or at least remove the weeds? would this retard the growth or bud swell?
or is it just a matter of hurry up and wait?
cheers
Adrian
Adrian, My liquid ambers are about to burst their buds in a week or so. They are just about showing green now so it won't take long and i think we are expecting some nice warm temps soon which will help yours get going. Don't stress mate
Keep the ferts away until signs of recovery mate, just some seasol will do. catch up soon ,
ADO wrote:Hi,
I have a liquid amber I trunk-chopped in late winter. it has pretty good base but had a straight trunk therefore I have chopped with the view of building some taper. It lives in a large oval bonsai pot and appears to be healthy. But it hasn't yet developed any buds. I have fertilised with slow release and give it some liquid food every couple of weeks or so. everything else is budding, from junipers, figs to a large olive.
the soil seems to be ok although there is a dense cover of some sort of small grass like weeds over the top of the pot. the soil contains course material although I have noticed that under the covering of moss/weeds the soil smells very earthy and not really nice. Would this be a factor in the continuing dormancy of my tree? should I repot the tree into a new mix or at least remove the weeds? would this retard the growth or bud swell?
or is it just a matter of hurry up and wait?
cheers
Adrian
Adrian, My liquid ambers are about to burst their buds in a week or so. They are just about showing green now so it won't take long and i think we are expecting some nice warm temps soon which will help yours get going. Don't stress mate
Keep the ferts away until signs of recovery mate, just some seasol will do. catch up soon ,
Hi Craig - cool. - do you think I should still repot / bare root and get it into a grow box in some coarse mix? will this be bad for budding etc?
Yes, good advice above mate. I would just wait a little longer until you see the trunk producing some buds and then do as you please to it, as Tony say a fairly freedraining mix which will hold enough water for your tree through the coming summer,.
hello adrian your liquidambar is still sleeping a park where i walk my dog has 4 oak trees 1 has just lost its leaves the others are sending out new shoots on 2 the other is still dormant. so do not worry when it is time it will send out new shoots.
harry wrote:hello adrian your liquidambar is still sleeping a park where i walk my dog has 4 oak trees 1 has just lost its leaves the others are sending out new shoots on 2 the other is still dormant. so do not worry when it is time it will send out new shoots.
harry
thanks Harry, and others
this site is a great resource !!!
!!!
