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During the winter you've been busy studying your trees
and deciding what you would do; now is the time to start
doing them. However, never stop reflecting on improving
them!
Now that the rains are just about over (enough is
enough!), it's time to get truly active. You have repotted
your maples, elms, and perhaps zelkovas--haven't you? If
not, get moving, as they are starting to leaf out. Add bone
meal to your potting mix as this will help with the rooting,
and water in with either B-1 + Hormone or Plant Thrive. If
your water is too alkaline, add a bit of soil sulphur.
Should rain or de-ionized water be too acid, add gypsum or
wood ash to sweeten the soil. Remember to let your plants
dry out a bit--three or four days--before repotting, and
only use dry, new soil. As the sun is not very strong at
this time of year, place your newly potted plant in full
sun, and DO NOT FERTILIZE for 4-5 weeks. Finish repotting
any fruiting or flowering deciduous plants this month,
preferably before their new growth gets underway. Next,
repot broadleaf evergreen plants, then the following
varieties of conifers: spruce, fir, hinoki cypress, and the
like. It is better to wait until later April or early May to
do pine trees. By waiting, you will create shorter needle
growth. After this, repot your junipers, which can be
repotted at almost any time except "dead of winter," and
then bamboo.
Frequency of Repotting
- Young trees (under 5 years old)--every 1or 2 years
- Older trees (5-20 years old)--every 2, 3, or 4 years,
with deciduous and flowering trees more often than
conifers and junipers.
- Old trees (20 years old or more)--Check your
references on this, as some trees like to be crowded. In
any event, repot when the plant shows stress.
Potting. There are three projects here:
- Move pre-trained plants from nursery cans.
- Transfer trees to larger or better pots.
- Repair soil where needed.
Remember that your soil must drain well. If you carefully
observed your plants during the wonderful rains, you might
have noticed that some had soil that puddled. If so, these
must be repotted when the time comes, as their soil is not
draining properly.
Wiring and Pruning. Do not wire maples, elms, or
other fast-growing plants at this time for scarring will
happen quickly, before the wiring will have any great
effect. When repotting, it is advisable to remove some
portion of the foliage when you cut off some of the roots,
as tops and roots must be in balance or the plant will not
grow properly. Be careful not to cut back too much on your
fruiting or flowering plants, or the flower buds will be
lost.
Pinching. On maples, pinch back the second set of
leaves as they start to open. This also applies to all
deciduous plants except for elms, zelkovas, and the like
that have alternate sets of leaves, which you should pinch
back to the third leaf unless you are trying to redirect the
branch growth pattern. On evergreens that have rapid growth,
keep pinching to avoid that long, leggy look. Do not pinch
back fruiting and flowering trees now. Naturally, if you are
trying to increase the caliper of a branch, or the trunk
below a point, do not pinch back, but let the branch grow
until it reaches the desired diameter.
Disease Control. All of your plants should have a
fungicide such as Benomyl applied now, as with all the
winter rains, root rot can appear just as it will with
over-watering. If you suspect soil fungus or root rot, use
Subdue for your sub-soil problems. This is very strong, so
follow the manufacturer's instructions carefully. While a
healthy, vigorous plant is not as apt to have much insect
damage, it is best to spray with your favorite insecticide.
On that score, consider not spraying twice in a row with the
same insecticide. If you haven't already started with your
insect control--Malathion, Sevin, etc.--do it now! In
adition, diseases can be spread by your tools. Keep them
clean. they can be dipped in Clorox, Pine Sol, or Lysol.
However, it has been found that Clorox and Pine Sol can
attack the carbon steel of which most bonsai tools are made,
so it's better to use Lysol full strength.
Feeding. Four to five weeks
after repotting, use half-strength Miracle Gro (or
equivalent), and then in another two weeks use 70%
cottonseed meal and 30% bone meal. For faster growth, add
10% blood meal. If you don't plan to repot a plant, start
feeding now with the above formulas. If your plants look
weak and the parts between the veins on the leaves seem
yellow, add soil sulphur. Repeat as necessary, as this will
also help rid your soil of salts. We Americans are
criticized for not feeding enough, and the rate of growth
and color of leaves or needles testify to the accuracy of
this charge. So plan to feed every few weeks. I have found
that using Osmocote 14-14-14 plus the 70-30 mix works very
well. Even if I should miss a feed period, the slow-release
Osmocote will sustain the plants. At this time, only feed
your Azaleas with 0-10-10 and no nitrogen until bloom is
almost finished.
Watering. While I am an advocate of automatic
watering, both drip and overhead types, hand watering gives
you a chance to "visit" your plants and inspect them
carefully to catch any problem before it becomes a big one.
While watering is essential, more plants are lost from
over-watering than almost any other cause. This
over-watering causes root rot as the air is driven out of
the soil. Additionally, go easy on watering deciduous trees,
as too much water will lead to large leaves and long
internodes. Do not overhead water when a plant is in bloom,
or you will harm the blooms and shorten the length of the
blooming time. Also, do not use excessive water on a
repotted plant because the remaining roots cannot dispose of
the moisture.
FINALLY--ROTATE, ROTATE, ROTATE!
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March Work
Schedule
