Trident Maple Advice

[her0d]

Hello,
Recently I have received this Trident maple. My friend had taken some branches off, and attempted to wire it (around 2 months ago). I have only been watering it these past 2 weeks and gave it some fertilizer yesterday.
Now that it is mine I will obviously remove the wiring. is there any advice for branch shaping/cut backs that I should do? if so would it be wise to re-pot the plant in a larger container, or just leave it in it's original nursery pot?

Thank you

[Brian]

If you are careful not to disturb the roots you can slip it into a larger pot. Its the wrong time to cut roots and disturb the rootball. I would then just add some osmocote and water everyday. Certainly let the branches grow to thicken them up.

[her0d]

Thanks Brian, I will postpone re-potting. Do you think any branches need to be removed? towards the top of the trunk a cut has been made where a branch had formed, it has formed a sort of swollen look to it. is that necessarily a good trait or should that be cut back?

thank you

[Brian]

Just feed it once a week with liquid fertiliser ( Charlie Carp or seasol ) and lots of water everyday and let it shoot all over and grow until winter when dormant. Then make a decision on branch removal. You should view this as a five year project to achieve a great bonsai. The variety of tree you have is excellent material for bonsai.

[LLK]

Best thing is to join a bonsai club and take this tree along, for an experienced bonsai person to have a look at it and give advice. The fact is that the condition of this tree isn't all that good; at this time of year it should be in full leaf with an dense, deep green crown. The' main branches are ratrher frail and far too long, which won't contribute to anything and isn't necessary. There is still plenty of growing time left before winter. The main problem, however, is that the upper half (or thereabouts) of the tree is thicker than the lower half, as can be seen in the close-up of view 1, which means an inverse taper. The lower half has nice smooth bark and a pleasing, slight movement. The best thing would be to remove the upper half and rebuild the tree from the lower half. An experienced bonsai adviser would show you where to cut and how to proceed after that.
Next: there is no such rule in bonsai that says "water every day and fertilise every week". We water when necessary, so that the rooot ball stays moist, not sopping wet, and we fertilise when necessary. One of the first things a good adviser would do is to have a look at your soil mix.
By the way, Charlie Carp is a good fertiliser (one among many), but Seasol is NOT a fertiliser, it's a soil conditioner, and an excellent one at that. Look it up on Wiki or Google it.
At a club you would get a mass of advice which can't be given in detail here. There are several excellent ones in or near Sydney. Look in Wiki. In the meantime, here is a website which is as good as a top class bonsai book. Make the most of it!
http://www.bonsai4me.com/

Brian, sorry I couldn't agree with you!

Best wishes,

Lisa

[Brian]

Well I don't know why you want to jump all over me, Lisa.

1/ Seasol is liquid seaweed fertiliser ( kelp ).

2/ It summer here and daily watering is what I would do with a tree in a small pot.

3/ Yes you can chop the trunk but its not that extreme reverse taper and could level out with future growth.

I would normally take offence at your ill informed comments comments but merry Christmas to you..

[LLK]

To make sure there are no misunderstandings: Seasol is not a fertiliser and contains no NPK. Seasol Powerfeed is a fertiliser. See http://www.bunnings.com.au/products_pro ... 12943.aspx

I hope that herOd and his Trident find the way to a good club soon.

Apart from that I have no wish to enter into an argument. Best wishes for a Merry Christmas to you too, Brian!

Lisa

[Bougy Fan]

OK Brian and Lisa I think that's enough Christmas wishes to each other !

G'Day her0d I think the best advice is to get the tree healthy with some seasol and join a club. Not sure how much experience you have but I would leave it until winter before deciding on anything. It is easier to make a decision when you are looking at the tree in bark rather than at photos. I wouldn't cut back atm and especially not down low if you can get a branch to use as a sacrifice.

[kcpoole]

Hi Hero
I unless is is seriously potbound, just feed regularly and let it grow mad till next winter.
The 4th photo shows some nice movement in the trunk line, so you may have a nice tree in there somewhere the come out over time with work.

The front will possibly be dictated by the roots you may have, but as they are buried you will not really be sure till next winter repot.
For branch removed you will be looking at those in the inside of bends to remove and promote the outside ones.

I note some of the branches are angled up and others out flat, but whatever angle they are, all the branches need to be similar shape. I also see some of the higher ones are thicker than those below, so will probably be removed later.

for the moment, make user all the cuts and wounds are cleaned up nicely so they heal well and are covered with putty to aid healing.

Ken

[reddoggy]

Where has the quote button gone
I don`t know who is right or wrong about seasol or do I care, it is Christmas time.
That`s all I use on my trees and they look healthy enough,what is the definition of a tonic then, it seems to make the trees look healthier, so who cares.
Merry Christmas everyone.

[Bougy Fan]

A liitle bit of topic but as Lisa stated seasol is not a fertiliser because it does not have and NPK components. So while it is great for your trees and you can use it weekly if you want it will not promote growth as well as a fertiliser will.

[reddoggy]

Look up the Seasol website and find the retail product (typical concentration) Seasol does have some NPK to it, it maybe low but it is there, so in my opinion Brian is right, my trees have thrived on it for years
Look at shibui`s comment ,he is also no mug, so the debate goes on.
viewtopic.php?f=12&t=13797#p144166

[kcpoole]

Where has the quote button gone
I don`t know who is right or wrong about seasol or do I care, it is Christmas time.
That`s all I use on my trees and they look healthy enough,what is the definition of a tonic then, it seems to make the trees look healthier, so who cares.
Merry Christmas everyone.

My Quote Button is where it should be so you get a merry christmas back

I knwo of people who use no fertiliser at all! and the trees do OK.
They do not have startling growth, but have not passed on either!. they get what they need to survive from the water and repotting it seems
Seasol will not hurt any tree, but if a "real fertilizer' is used, you shodu see much better growth.

Ken

[Brian]

So we have a novice grower asking for advice for a trident maple and I recommended Seasol once a week and daily watering. I stand by my comments.

[her0d]

Yes i like this tree for its curved trunk and bark. it does need a lot of work. Thanks for the advice guys.