0
About the Author:
Posted on 6:18 PM by Wanto and filed under
By Zipporah Gary
Various conifers, usually junipers, are the most frequently seen bonsai trees, but the range can be quite wide, to include maples, cotoncasters, blossom trees of the malus family, hornbeams, jasmines and even vines such as wisteria. For established trees you will have to rely on what the importer has in stock and you may be advised to wait until new stocks arrive before you can get exactly what you seek.
If you intend to grow and train your own tree, choose with care. If you are buying, go to a good nursery, preferably an alpine or conifer specialist, and choose a type which is naturally slow growing and comparatively dwarf, for this will be much easier for you until you have gained some experience rather than choosing a young tree that by its habit of growth will develop quickly and strongly.
As the roots must be pruned and confined to small size it is helpful in the early stages of growing the plant to use a peat or soil block through which the roots will grow visibly, enabling you to keep them cut short. One container which has been proved successful is an ordinary half orange or grapefruit skin. The young tree is potted up in this and in turn the fruit skin will be buried up to its rim in garden soil or in a larger pot. Thus the skin will be kept moist and soft and the tree roots will gradually penetrate and grow through. They can then be cut away.
New growth will not be dramatic if you are growing your plant correctly. Obviously stimulants such as fertilizers should be withheld as these will push the plant growth forward too quickly. On the other hand, as the plant will be growing in the same soil for several years it will require some feeding, so use slow acting bone- meal and sprinkle just a pinch or two over the soil twice or three times during the summer growth period and water this in.
Be quite clear in your own mind of the final shape in which you want the bonsai to grow, whether this be bushy, spreading, drooping or upright.
You can, of course, grow your trees from seed, which will allow you the pleasure of starting right from the beginning. One or two specialist seedmen list seeds of a very wide variety of trees suitable for dwarfing. Many of these seeds are slow to germinate and develop, so if you intend to adopt this process it may take you five years or more to obtain young trees firm and strong enough to stand the dwarfing and training process.
If you intend to grow and train your own tree, choose with care. If you are buying, go to a good nursery, preferably an alpine or conifer specialist, and choose a type which is naturally slow growing and comparatively dwarf, for this will be much easier for you until you have gained some experience rather than choosing a young tree that by its habit of growth will develop quickly and strongly.
As the roots must be pruned and confined to small size it is helpful in the early stages of growing the plant to use a peat or soil block through which the roots will grow visibly, enabling you to keep them cut short. One container which has been proved successful is an ordinary half orange or grapefruit skin. The young tree is potted up in this and in turn the fruit skin will be buried up to its rim in garden soil or in a larger pot. Thus the skin will be kept moist and soft and the tree roots will gradually penetrate and grow through. They can then be cut away.
New growth will not be dramatic if you are growing your plant correctly. Obviously stimulants such as fertilizers should be withheld as these will push the plant growth forward too quickly. On the other hand, as the plant will be growing in the same soil for several years it will require some feeding, so use slow acting bone- meal and sprinkle just a pinch or two over the soil twice or three times during the summer growth period and water this in.
Be quite clear in your own mind of the final shape in which you want the bonsai to grow, whether this be bushy, spreading, drooping or upright.
You can, of course, grow your trees from seed, which will allow you the pleasure of starting right from the beginning. One or two specialist seedmen list seeds of a very wide variety of trees suitable for dwarfing. Many of these seeds are slow to germinate and develop, so if you intend to adopt this process it may take you five years or more to obtain young trees firm and strong enough to stand the dwarfing and training process.
About the Author:
The houseplant Sanitpaulia Ionantha is a tender and beautiful little African violet that will flower the entire year in your indoor garden.
Post a Comment