beginner's bonsai

[KoiCCAPW]

Can citrus trees be good bonsai material? Some have much smaller leaves, such as kumquat.

[kingkong]

I have used 'Calamondin' citrus with some success. It always seems to have fruit but tropical.

[KoiCCAPW]

I can grow almost any citrus in my area. I was thinking of meyer lemon. I picked up one that had been growing in a 1 gal. and was already a bit dwarfed because of it. I thought I'd give it a try.

[MikeM]

This thread has gotten me to wonder about trying bonsai. The pics are great!

[kingkong]

Just to set the hook...

[lypope]

You people are KILLING me! I just signed up for a class at a bonsai nursery here...and it's all your fault. I've visited there a time or two, but now I want to learn. Darn, another expensive hobby! http://www.american-bonsai.com/

[Russell Peters]

Quote: Originally Posted by KoiCCAPW I can grow almost any citrus in my area. I was thinking of meyer lemon. I picked up one that had been growing in a 1 gal. and was already a bit dwarfed because of it. I thought I'd give it a try.

Hey, you could start with a dwarf Meyer lemon and then dwarf it some more.LOL

[koiczar]

Barb

I don't know about Meyer Lemon as a bonsai. What the heck, give it a try. I don't think the leaves will reduce to a small enough size to keep the tree in scale however. Maybe better to try a Pomagranate or Kumquat. There have been many successful attempts with these two varieties.

Mike

[bekko]

Joe,

A string of questions....

When you have dug up a juniper is it bare-root, or do you have a root ball with attached soil? What do you do with it then? Are there any tricks for transporting it home? Do you need to keep it under a mister or anything to get it over the shock of being dug up? What percentage of the roots make it home intact versus being broken off or smashed? Do you prune some of the foliage as soon as it is dug to compensate for the loss of root mass?

Thanks,
-steve h

[keokoi]

When you have dug up a juniper is it bare-root, or do you have a root ball with attached soil?

The rootball has a lot of dirt on it. But not the whole thing intact. SOme bare roots are exposed and depending on the soil if we can break it off then we will do so on the mtn or at home. Most likey on the mtn as the soil is a bit heavy to carry with about 2-3 trees on back.


What do you do with it then? Are there any tricks for transporting it home?

One thing for certain is to keep the roots very moist. So what we do is use wet sphangum moss near vital roots and then wrap in plastic very snug for the ride home. If yrou truck has no shelll its best to cover the foilage so the wind does not dry up the foilage.

Do you need to keep it under a mister or anything to get it over the shock of being dug up?

The first the you do when getting home is to pot the tree and tie it down to the pot or container. We use 100% inorganic pumice or drystall sifted down and rinsed. The first week we put in the shade then move over to an area that has morning sun and mister set upp on timers to go off 3 times a night. Remember these are desert junipers so they open up foilage to feed at night as the air has more moisture. We also spary the foilage



What percentage of the roots make it home intact versus being broken off or smashed?

A fair amount of roots make it back intact. But with so much movement of hiking and then driving home the roots get a little damage. This is why its important to keep the roots moist so they do not dry and become brittle.


Do you prune some of the foliage as soon as it is dug to compensate for the loss of root mass?

We prune most of the foilage up on the mtn. This gives us the best angle to dig and make the tree lighter. But yes you want to prune back a lot of foilage because not enough roots are there to support the foilage and you are trying to minimize shock.


Steve this is a brief summary of what we do while digging. There is a much more detailed instructions but hopefully this will enlighten you some.

PS wife and I didnt go digging. She injured herself so we were homebound for the weekend. One of our friends who went called us and said the soil was too dry and that made it more tedious work. I wil try again this weekend by myself as I am going to take a small break from work and go flyfishing and rockclimbing then juniper collecting as well.

Joe