AusBonsai

This is my new Juniper!
My friend bought it as a present for me today. Its my first bonsai ever so I wanted to ask about watering and trimming etc. so I dont do anything silly to hurt my tree. Ive done a bit of reading but other thn that i have no idea what im doing so any help would be appreciated!
Thanks!

Do you have any other experience with plants? Here are some tips:

1,join a nearby bonsai club if you can - talking to people face to face and learning from other memebers is invaluable.
2, Keep your juniper outside
3, At this point I suggest you don't do any wiring or pruning until you know a bit more about bonsai upkeep, just enjoy it.
4, Bonsai need a lot of care, you can't ignore them even for a couple of days, check it every day which is a good habit to get into.
5, Water it when the dirt feels fairly dry, stick your finger in it.
6, Junipers are pretty tough. Don't worry too much, you will learn what you need to know before it is harmed.

Don't get hung up on any of the technical stuff right now, just learn how to keep it alive, the rest will come as you get more interested in bonsai

Welcome,
Rowan

Hi Mushman,

Very nice first tree

As rowan has explained, forget all the technical stuff at the moment and just focus on keeping it alive (which you will be fine with).
So long as you check on it daily, keep it outside, and water it when it needs watering, everything should be a-ok.

I agree with Rowan that you should definitely find your local bonsai club and join that. Depending on where you live, there are a number of excellent Bonsai Clubs in Sydney and from experience joining your local Bonsai club is by far the best step in developing your new found hobby.

The fascination with Bonsai for me took hold in a big way, and i went out and bought every starter plant i could find. The owner of the nursery i go to, knows me by first name now and asks me how my business is going a little disconcerting.
If i could go back a year, i would probably not have bought a single one of the starter trees i purchased. Instead i should be buying some stock now, when my understanding of what i should be looking for is fractionally better. I can clearly see that the purchase i made last week is so much better than of those purchases a year ago. Thats just my thoughts from a fellow beginner.

Thanks heaps for the tips. Ive got it on the back deck at the moment where it gets a few hours of direct sunlight in the morning each day. It came with a little pamphlet thing explaining how to care for it, it said that to water it i should completely submerge the soil in water for about 10 min. Does that sound right to you guys?

There are many opinions about watering right, I personally don't believe there is only one way to do anything. In the summer I do dunk many of my bonsai to water them, use a hose or sprinkler system at other times of the year. Some people don't like dunking. Whatever works for you. I like dunking at dryer times of the year to make sure that the whole rootball is watered but those who use a soiless mix (similar to hydroponics mix) can water with a hose as the water will easily penetrate the whole root zone.
The main thing is to never overwater, and to fertilise regularly with liquid feed as the constant watering does wash the nutrients from the soil, and because the tree is in a small amount of soil it does use it up quickly.

I hope this answers your question.

Mushman wrote:Thanks heaps for the tips. Ive got it on the back deck at the moment where it gets a few hours of direct sunlight in the morning each day. It came with a little pamphlet thing explaining how to care for it, it said that to water it i should completely submerge the soil in water for about 10 min. Does that sound right to you guys?

Hey Mushman,

As your soil surface seems to be pretty much covered rim to rim with moss, dunking may not be a bad way to go. Just be careful not to overdo it otherwise the roots will rot and the tree will die. The trick is to let the soil almost dry out between waterings. That can be tricky to guage with all that moss around. It may be good to check for slight dampness in the holes underneath the pot. In winter you should only need to water it once a week tops if there is no rain. Perhaps even less. In summer if you are dunking it, probably once every two to three days.

PS: I'd try to get it more sun for the cooler winter months. In summer. that spot sounds ideal.

Welcome, and do yourself one favour - join a bonsai club if this tickles your interest.

Cheers,

Andrew

Hey Mushman

As both Rowan and Andrew eluded to, there are numerous theories to optimum watering.

One of my club members is an avid believer in the weight of the tree and pot.
The theory is that there will be a difference in the weight of the tree and pot when it is dry, compared to when the tree and pot are completely wet.
This will somewhat take the guess work out of knowing whether or not the tree needs water.

So what i suggest you do is before you water, pick it up, get a feel for the weight. After you have watered it, pick it up, Again get a feel for the weight. Overtime you will start to get an idea of exactly how much water is left in the soil and hence whether or not it needs to be watered.

A little word of warning, be mindful of this wind we are experiencing at the moment. The wind is drying out my guys pretty quickly at the moment

Dave

Hi guys!
So its been about two and a half months now and this is how my Juniper is looking. Ive been dunking it whenever the soil feels dry and have been moving it around to get plenty of sun during the day. Im wondering, seeing as spring is close, if i should do some trimming etc. and what the best way to start shaping it (I want to get it to curve down a bit).
Thanks!
Mat.

Lookin' good Mat! Stage One complete - Keep it alive! There are many ways to skin a cat in terms of bending it. The normal choice is to wire it, but you could also use a bit of string or cable ties or something similar to pull the end down toward the trunk line. Just protect the bark.

Thanks Andrew.

I want to give it a trim now as its getting really bushy. Anything I should know so that i don't hurt my tree? i.e. Is this an alright time of year to trim, how much is too much etc.

Pinching is a better method of thining out juniper foliage, trimming leaves nasty brown spots

HTH

Its been about 5 months since I put a photo up last, thought I'd show you guys how its going. Ive thinned out the foliage a lot and am still planning on thinning a bit more, especially at the end of the trunk. Anyway let me know what you think.

PS Any tips on getting my moss back to its previous grandeur?

have you joined a local club yet? this is the best thing you can do... You're tree is doing fine, the moss is a watering thing, the damper the conditions the greener/lusher the moss... the conditions for the moss, might well be bad for the tree.

to my mind your tree needs a little wiring to get it into shape... a club can help you with advice on this subject... it is hard to give shaping advice over the internet to someone...

Well done, Mushman, you've kept your Juniper alive. You're half way there!