Midway through repotting a procumbens juniper, I found that the center of the rootball was dry. This is common when a tree has gone too long without repotting. Even heavy and frequent waterings – or incessant rain – may not be enough for the water to soak the entire rootball. Rootball with dry center Finding […]
Repotting
How to secure bonsai in the pot
When I first heard that bonsai are commonly wired into the pot I thought, “That sounds crazy – you must be kidding me!” Over the years I’d planted hundreds, if not thousands, of plants in containers without wire for a retail nursery. The practice sounded extraneous and made me think that bonsai people were overly concerned […]
Repotting a trident maple bonsai
Several years ago, I published a series on how to repot bonsai. For those who missed it the first time, here is an edited version of the series in a single post. Enjoy! How to Remove a Bonsai Tree from the Pot Before a bonsai can be moved into a new pot, it must be removed from […]
Pot selection – exposed root black pine
One of my favorite activities relating to bonsai display is pot selection. I’ll be showing a young black pine at tomorrow’s Bay Island Bonsai exhibit and the pot used for the past year isn’t exactly show quality. 13 year-old black pine in colander Here are 11 options for the tree. Some look great to me, others […]
Repotting black pine in nursery soil
Sometimes during repotting, I feel like I’ve passed a point of no return. The feeling struck when I was working on a black pine this past winter. After combing out the roots – there’s no going back The pine – see Friday’s “Cleaning up a black pine” for a look at the tree today – is […]