AusBonsai

Hey all!
I'm both new to bonsais and this forum, and i'm looking for some basic care tips for my newly acquired Trident Maple bonsai that me and my girlfriend have bought. We are really excited about our tree but are somewhat confused about a few things, mainly watering though.

I have looked around the net for suggestions on how often, how much and the method with which to keep our little friend hydrated enough to thrive but not so much as to develop root rot etc etc.
However there are so many contradictions and confusing suggestions, i'm hoping that someone here may be able to give me some more straight answers to the following questions:

-what tool should we be using to water? a hose? watering can? spray bottle? with a tap? submerging underwater?

-how does watering vary in each season? obviously summer requires more than winter but how much? i'd like something more than the 'don't over water in winter, don't let it dry out in summer' response i see all over the net

-when do we water? we have figured out that our bonsai must remain damp, not soaked/wet, and to only water when the soil is anything less than damp. I am more curious as to finding a method with which to test the dryness of the soil/plant if possible or a way to determine where 'damp' becomes 'dry'

-any other helpful suggestions for a bonsai 'noob' i.e. pruning, how to encourage growth both in foliage and for a strong thick trunk, when to give fertilizer, whether of not moss is a good idea etc etc.

Some of these things may seem obvious to some people but we are both very new to bonsais and indeed gardening on the whole. The reason we would love to learn more about these things in a more in depth and succinct manner is because we have already become very attached to the little fella after only a few days of ownership (purchased him only 2 days ago) even naming him Leonardo....because, well, its an awesome name.

I am well aware some of the questions i have asked probably HAVE been addressed in other posts on the forum or sites on the net, but we really just would like straight answers that relate as much as possible to our specific bonsai.
I have provided a picture below as well as pot/ plant dimensions:

Trident Maple
Height: 38 cm
Pot Width: 16cm
Pot Length: 19cm
(dimensions are approximate)



Thank you very much anyone who is able to give a response to any of my queries.


Kind Regards,

Luis

Hi Anubis,

Welcome to the site and congrats on starting the path of bonsai, I'm happy to have a crack at your questions but im open to being corrected by people

your question in regards to watering i guess the correct answer is as often as needed. By that i mean the general rule of thumb that ive picked up is when the surface soil is dry its time for a watering. More difficult to do with the pebbles you've got in the pot there so i would just dig down a little to see if it was drying out or not.

depending on what your trying to achieve from your tree will depend on what fertiliser to give it. If you were after a new shoots & branches ive found a nitrogen based one to work best. If you were trying thicken pads and create twigging you'll want to hold back on nitrogen and bump up the phosphorus to keep the buds closer together. If you were trying to thicken the base roots and encourage root growth potassium is the key

Best way to thicken that trunk tho is to plant it either into a bigger pot or the ground to give it room to grow otherwise the process in a bonsai pot will be a slow one. The more branches each part has the more it feeds whats connecting to it. So for example the more branches on the trunk the thicker it will get. I like to think of it somewhat like plumming if water was flowing from the tip of a stem to the roots then the pipe width would need to increase at each connecting point to handle the flow.

I find you learn the most from doing. If you dont want to mess up your first tree then get some practise ones everything takes time. Old dogs can still learn new tricks.

Hi Anubis and welcome.

Get your self a wooden ChopStick
Push it into the soil, and if it comes out damp the do not water, if dry then do so.

I water with a watering can with a fine rose on it. I fill it and then water the soil only. Water slowly till the water runs off, then leave for a minute then repeat.
Repeat again and you should have water running out the drain holes.
Leave the tree till the next watering.

You will learn to know the trees requirements depending on where you live, how humid it is and how much sunshine etc., If the leaves start to droop then it is too long.

Fertilising, use "Charlie Carp" once a fortnight in Summer and every 4 weeks in winter. Mix in with your regular watering and you should be fine

Ken

Your trident looks healthy. Don't attempt any styling changes until it has got used to its new surroundings, which should of course be outside. Hopefully, you only brought it in to take the photograph. At the moment, it is a healthy tree in a pot, not yet the complete bonsai which is 20% horticulture and 80" artistry. When you next photograph it take shots from the front, back and both sides. The plain background is good to show it off. We will then evaluate it for the best front view and advise on any pruning which is needed. Meanwhile, keep the planting medium just moist at all times. Frequency of watering can only be calculated by trial and error in situ. As Istari mentioned this is as needed rather then by rota. Water should drain out through the drain holes in the pot within ten seconds of being applied, otherwise the planting medium is not sufficiently open in texture. Nice start buddies. =Don.

Hi Anubis , welcome to Ausbonsai . Research the species , research the styles , all the info is at your finger-tips on this site thats for sure .When you feel confident in your own ability then begin to take the plunge . As with any container grown tree i simple lift them out of the pot check the condition of the roots and make the decision then . If you find some issues ie pot bound , too dry then post up some questions , the help is always on-site .Cheers Alpineart

Thank you very much everyone for responding
I'll be sure to take into account all you're very useful responses.
I am glad to say i'm a lot less worried about caring for the little guy now

stymie, that photo was taken outside under the veranda.
is this a bad position then?
does he need more light?

alpineart, what do you mean by pot bound.
are you talking about the reluctance for the plant to be removed from the pot due to soil sticking to the sides?
is this a sign of it being too wet then?
i haven't yet attempted this but i may when i 'man-up' a bit and stop worrying about hurting him haha

kcpoole, ill be sure to use a watering can with a fine rose and check the soil with a chopstick now
thanks for the much needed assistance there.

istari, thank you for your very detailed response.
in regards to the fertilizers, are there specific fertilizers that are high in nitrogen/phosphorus/potassium?
can you reccomened any brands or should i just go to the local nursery and ask there?
are there fertilizers that can only be used on bonsais specifically or will any do?

also when you say 'thicken pads and create twigging', what is mean there?
yes im a gardening noob haha sorry if that sounds rather foolish
im presuming this is to do with the 'framework' of the tree essentially bulking up the number of branches etc?
also what are the advantages of 'thickening base roots'?

in regards to thickening the trunk, will planting him in a larger pot do the same job as planting him in the ground?
and when you say bigger pot do you mean depth or width/length?

thank you everyone for your fast and very precise responses, and im sorry for somehow asking almost more questions than my original post haha

kind regards,


Luis

G'day Luis and welcome to AusBonsai!

With advice like you have just received you can't go wrong mate.
Is your trident undercover? If so you would be better off keeping it in a position where it is in the open and exposed to the elements. Trees need sun, air and water to grow and limiting any of these can be detrimental to their health.

Alpineart, Don, Istari and Ken, thanks very much for providing Luis with such detailed advice. Rookies will be off to a great start with leadership like you guy's are providing. Goodonya!

Regards,
Steven

Anubis815 wrote:..........alpineart, what do you mean by pot bound.
are you talking about the reluctance for the plant to be removed from the pot due to soil sticking to the sides?
is this a sign of it being too wet then?
i haven't yet attempted this but i may when i 'man-up' a bit and stop worrying about hurting him haha......
Luis

Hi Luis, as a noob myself not so long ago, I can understand your frustration with jargonese. Please guys, explain in plain layman's terms!

Potbound (if I understand it correctly) is when the roots have grown so much there is no room in the pot for soil to trap moisture and nutrients. When you take the plant out of the pot, there is a huge tangle of roots and very little soil. This is not good for encouraging good nebari (thick surface roots that should fan out evenly around the tree, giving the tree a very 'aged' llok), and not good for the plant in general.

Glenda

thanks glenda for that explanation
ill be sure to look out for that!

so then steven, you're saying i should be putting him out in full sun and open to wind/rain etc?
i am just a tad worried as it IS summer right now and the sun and climate where i am (outer east in Victoria) is rather hot.
if you think it would be better off being exposed in such a manner, i'll go right ahead and move it out into the open more

kind regards,


Luis

Anubis815 wrote:thanks glenda for that explanation
ill be sure to look out for that!

so then steven, you're saying i should be putting him out in full sun and open to wind/rain etc?
i am just a tad worried as it IS summer right now and the sun and climate where i am (outer east in Victoria) is rather hot.
if you think it would be better off being exposed in such a manner, i'll go right ahead and move it out into the open more

kind regards,


Luis

Luis, again I could be corrected by those more knowledgeable than mysef, but I believe tridents can suffer from windburn, so sun but out of the wind if you can. Up here in Nth Qld I have a very healthy though young maple seedling, and it needs to be kept out of our sun - I keep it under shade cloth. But maples grow well in your area on footpaths etc so should not be too much bother. Windburn only affects the leaves and does not kill the tree.

Glenda

I have to agree with Glenda. Keep it simple.
The two most important things for Anubis his girlfriend and this Trident to have a great relationship will be watering and placement. The tree will flourish for at least the next 8 months with nothing more so it is best to get those two things right.
I like your questions alot Anubis it shows you have learnt alot already and as Glenda I still remember asking them myself.
I would not concern yourself with fertilising at all at the moment. The soil it is in will most definatly have plenty of nutrients to keep the tree out of trouble for now.

It is very important that you find the right place in the garden for the tree and that is not always that easy. I grow some Trident in Full Sun but I would recommend part shade to start with. What is part shade
Part shade is when the tree spends some of the day under shade out of direct sunlight. Morning sun is generally the best idea. Morning sun in our hot climate is generally nothing past late morning. Edit; lets say 10am daylight savings here? Also you must be very careful to avoid areas where hot wind may come through the yard.
Think of a place that gets morning sun but would be cool enough to sit down and have a beer in the afternoon and you will be on a winner. For the best advice you should take some pictures of your yard so we can get a good look at your options. Even then you may not get the best spot on the first try.

Watering is just as tricky to start with. With any new tree in our collections we watch the tree very closely to monitor the water usage of the tree. It is good to remember that a tree can be overwatered for a number of weeks with little to no harm but can die in hours in the heat of the day from being under watered in Summer.
Once you have found a spot in the garden for your tree water it thoroughly in the morning until all the soil is drenched and the water is running out the bottom of the pot. Think of it as flushing out stale air from the soil and you are on the right track. Then you will need to watch the tree and soil very carefully taking note of how wet the soil is. The best way to do this is to wriggle your finger into the soil feeling the wetness. The soil will dry out from the surface down. For the trident in this type of soil mix I would let the soil almost totally dry out before flushing with water agian. There are many variables and it may dry out within hours or days. This time will fluctuate dramatically with the variable of the weather. Over time you will not have to watch so closely as you get to know the routine of the tree and how the weather affects it.
Edit: If you generally water at the same time every day(morning is good) it makes it easier to work out the water usage habits of the tree.

Taking the weather into account through the seasons the watering principle stays mostly the same except the tree will also use very little water once the leaves drop. Also rain will water the tree often for you in Winter and it may need checking only every other week but agian that is something you need to work out by your own observation. Don't worry too much about always being wet in Winter if there is alot of rain. It usually does not bother them.

Oh and come early Autumn maybe we can help with some pruning then come spring it will be time for repotting.......

thanks again glenda

so then brett, just confirming, full sun in the morning till 10 am, then shade for the rest of the day?
i'm not sure if i have anywhere that will actually provide that kind of environment?
i may have to move him around then..
but ill go and check and take photos later on and post here.
also is wind a large issue then for tridents?

and so let him dry out completely also before watering?
so we talking super crazy insane dry?! or just kind of?
i know im using very vague descriptive language but im not too good with this stuff haha

once again, thank you all for your help
ill post pictures of the yard so you can get a better idea of the places i could put him

also just a quick reminder, me and my girlfriend are both only still in yr 10 so from feb onwards we will be at school from 8-9 in the morning till 3-3:30 in the afternoon.
do you think this will cause major issues or just water before school and check him after school?

It is possible to move trees around during the day but best left for the experts.
Best off to try and find a permanent spot. Have a good look around and put your mind to it I am sure you will come up with something. Pics would be great.
Wind is not a big issue with Tridents in general but with Bonsai in general. Trees in a pot will not handle the elements quite as well as trees in the ground so keeping most out of hot drying winds is usually a good thing.
Wind movement or ventilation is important to have for the tree but in the garden there will often be areas that tend to get hot dry wind blow through and these places need to be avoided. It will probably take some time to work out where they are in your garden so don't panic too much just try to keep this in mind.

Never super crazy insane dry Just Kinda dry will be fine.

also just a quick reminder, me and my girlfriend are both only still in yr 10 so from feb onwards we will be at school from 8-9 in the morning till 3-3:30 in the afternoon.
do you think this will cause major issues or just water before school and check him after school?

Just forget it the tree is doomed. You and your girlfriend will head to the beach for the weekend leaving the poor guy to fend for itself in the middle of the Summer heat and Mum will have chucked it in the bin by the time you remember to check on it.
Ok lets say that won't happen. By the time you guys get back to school you should have a good idea of the water usage of the tree. If you think it will need water before you get home there are a few things you can do such as permanently moving the tree to a more shady area, get Dad to water it, or you can add sphagnum moss to the soil surface to keep it wet longer. Also if it is going to be an exceptionally hot day then you can just put it under cover for the day or maybe take it to class for the day with you to show it off
But chances are it would be fine until you get home from school unless it was an extremely hot day or very root bound. (over due for repotting)

Oh I forgot maybe you would enjoy this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1LtbBj7Bqc

Hi Luis, wecome to AusBonsai
Just to clatify, When you say outer East, do you mean Eastern Melbourne or Eastern VIC?

Position
If you are going to move the tree to a sunnier position, it needs to be a gradual change. At the moment, the tree is in a quite sheltered position, if you were to introduce the tree to a much sunnier situation straight away, leaf burn would be likely, regardless of what the wind is doing or how hot it is. It is worth noting that bonsai, especially deciduous trees, are often kept in relatively soft conditions in nurseries. In a few years if you are still growing bonsai, I would encourage you to grow all of your trees in the sunniest position that they can tolerate, full sun year round if you like, but for the time being, yoiu need to be a little cautious. With that in mind, the absolute prime position for this tree is in dappled sunlight until early afternoon or morning sun until 11am and shade from then on, progressing in a couple of weeks to full sun until midday then shade.

Feeding
Your priority with feeding at the moment should be to brovide good nutrition for your tree, nothing more, nothing less. If you were to buy some Osmocote Plus for Pots and Indoors and spread a couple of teaspoons on the soil surface, your tree will be fine and healthy. There will be plenty of time in the not to distant future on to get this tree flying along and no shotage of different ways to achieve that.

Watering
The advice that Ken, Don and the others have given is pretty sound advice. When I weas a newbie, the best thing that I did (due to good advice) was get in the habit of watering or checking my trees to see if they needed to be watered every morning at the same time. So before you go to school every morning, check your tree and decide whether it needs watering based on the time of year, the weather forecast, current conditions. If you have any doubts that the tree can make it through until the next time that you or your girlfriend can water, then water anyway. Check your tree again in the afternoon or evening when you get home and apply the same strategy. Watering by immersing the tree in a bath of water on a regular basis is not great, especially if you do not know what the soil quality is. Use a watering can with a fine rose or a good hose nozzle.

These are the ones I use .

As Don has said previously, watering technique will come with trial and error, my advice is to keep the shower of water moving to avoid washing out soil and stoned from the pot surface.

Pruning and Training
Basically, just let it grow and keep it alive. If the tree gets obviously overgrown at the top and at the extents of the branches, than you can remove the excess growth.


I think that is enough info for you for the time being.

Cheers,
Mojo