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| I have some seedlings coming up in my yard, so I thought this would be a great time to start doing bonsai. Please tell me if anyone has successfully grown these three trees, and what size container would be best to start them in. All three are extremely drought resistant and do well in sandy soil, so I was thinking they might be good candidates.
Bauhinia (orchid tree) - a deciduous blooming tropical. If anyone needs seeds, let me know. We have tons. It's a purplish-pink. Live Oak - Evergreen oak, grows very slowly so I thought it would be nice for a long-term bonsai. Has beautiful horizontal limbs that would lend nicely to design. Besides all that, I just love them and would like to have one to carry around with me if I should have to move again. Crape Myrtle - I have one now in a 4" pot that I dug out of the ground last year. It is sort of gnarly, but the limbs can be easily shaped, so I thought it might be good. |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| All are well suited to bonsai. The Live oak & myrtle are commonly used, the Bauhinia is still a good choice, though less commonly used. Appropriate container size hinges on your soil choice. The heavier your soil ('heavy' describes soils that are comprised of small particles and water-retentive) the more attention you need to pay to avoiding over-potting. Your best bet is to use a large container and a soil that is very open (well aerated) and free-draining, the combination opf which will promote very speedy growth.
Al |
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| Thank you, Al. I was going to put them in 1 gallon pots for growth, then go from there. I don't want tiny bonsai, but I'd like to keep them as close to that size pot as possible. Since I have so many seedlings of the oak and bauhinia, I can play around and experiment. I have a book on bonsai, so I'll read about proper soil mixes. Love the picture! |
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- Posted by tropicofcancer 6b (My Page) on Mon, Apr 30, 12 at 15:37
| Hi Steppy Sent you a message since I was interested in the Bauhinia seeds. Another one of those plants that I miss from back home in India. I have not tried live oak but it seems it should be a good candidate. Crepe myrtle is a good candidate. I am trying to do one myself. In March I repotted one in sort of a gritty mix as Al shown in the picture in his post above. These like to send out shoots from the base and they need to be promptly pruned. Mine is still about 30 inches tall and I need to get it down to about 18 inches or so. Next year. I am happy to say it took a massive root pruning and survived. I took out nearly 80% of its roots just about the time when it showed signs of budding. I have another one in the ground as a backup and to produce seeds for more plants. If you can a wide and shallow pot is more suitable. But i also keep plants/trees in plain nursery pots initially for a few years and eventually put them in shallower pots. |
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- Posted by ricjo22 5 (hughri1@aol.com) on Thu, May 10, 12 at 10:48
| If you have lots of seedlings and are in the mood for an extreme project check out this link. I am trying it out on maples from my yard and I am eyeing a big patch of hackberry seedlings bonsaiclub.forumotion.com/t33-fused-trunk-trident-acer-buergerianum?hi ghlight=trident+maples |
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- Posted by ricjo22 5 (hughri1@aol.com) on Thu, May 10, 12 at 11:03
| sorry this link should work http://ibonsaiclub.forumotion.com/t33-fused-trunk-trident-acer-buerger ianum |
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- Posted by tropicofcancer 6b (My Page) on Fri, May 11, 12 at 11:48
| Ricjo22, where do you get your trident maple seeds from? I would like to do the same experiment as dugz shows on his website(www.dugzbonsai.com) |
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