Currently at my parents I have four
trees that i need to dig up. Three are Japanese split leaf maples and
the other is a trident maple. Originally i had gotten them to turn
them into bonsai. This plan has fallen soundly into the 'not
happening for a long time' list.
I planted them out side because they needed to bulk up their trunks. This is a normal bonsai technique. Unfortunately i don't have the same dedication to learning the art anymore. More so because i tend to slowly kill them once they are in smaller pots. There are only so many times you can over water & forget to water them before they keel over.
For the four that I am moving, over the years that they have been growing outside and they have become wonderful. The Japanese maples are leggy but will look great in the yard. The longer branches are still bendable enough to train into flowing shapes that will be too large for bonsai. Cutting them back at this point would not make make for good bonsai material.
The trident maple is a bit of a different story. It is ugly but it might work as a bonsai. I had to cut it back because it was looking like it would eat the house. (hint: don't plant small saplings near houses. They will grow big & eat the house.) It was a pretty drastic cut that got me thinking that it could look nice as a bonsai. Maybe.
This is all with out looking to see how any of the roots are doing.
I figure the best test will be when i dig them up in the 'spring'. I will have to bare root them because ground dirt doesn't work in pots. So they will be switched to potting soil for the next year or so. I will also add... That white light rocky-stuff to the mix to help with drainage. It will also keep the very large pots light enough to move around until i can plant them again.
This is going to be a very big project.
The second worst problem will be getting as much of their roots as possible. The shock of the transplant will be worse if they have no roots.
The very worst problem is how close to the house they are. I really, really hope they didn't do anything to the foundation.
For the bonsai the roots are best when they spread out and then down. Large tap roots get chopped off early on. I think i did that and spread the roots but that leaves the last... Five or more years for the roots to do what ever they want. Which knowing my luck would be right into the hosta growing with them.
I would take the hosta too but they do *not* do well in pots at all.
This will take a whole day to do. Mostly due to the logistics of were they are currently growing. Oh, sprinklers... I need to do more research.
Here is hopping i can get them up and into pots before they start to open their buds.
I planted them out side because they needed to bulk up their trunks. This is a normal bonsai technique. Unfortunately i don't have the same dedication to learning the art anymore. More so because i tend to slowly kill them once they are in smaller pots. There are only so many times you can over water & forget to water them before they keel over.
For the four that I am moving, over the years that they have been growing outside and they have become wonderful. The Japanese maples are leggy but will look great in the yard. The longer branches are still bendable enough to train into flowing shapes that will be too large for bonsai. Cutting them back at this point would not make make for good bonsai material.
The trident maple is a bit of a different story. It is ugly but it might work as a bonsai. I had to cut it back because it was looking like it would eat the house. (hint: don't plant small saplings near houses. They will grow big & eat the house.) It was a pretty drastic cut that got me thinking that it could look nice as a bonsai. Maybe.
This is all with out looking to see how any of the roots are doing.
I figure the best test will be when i dig them up in the 'spring'. I will have to bare root them because ground dirt doesn't work in pots. So they will be switched to potting soil for the next year or so. I will also add... That white light rocky-stuff to the mix to help with drainage. It will also keep the very large pots light enough to move around until i can plant them again.
This is going to be a very big project.
The second worst problem will be getting as much of their roots as possible. The shock of the transplant will be worse if they have no roots.
The very worst problem is how close to the house they are. I really, really hope they didn't do anything to the foundation.
For the bonsai the roots are best when they spread out and then down. Large tap roots get chopped off early on. I think i did that and spread the roots but that leaves the last... Five or more years for the roots to do what ever they want. Which knowing my luck would be right into the hosta growing with them.
I would take the hosta too but they do *not* do well in pots at all.
This will take a whole day to do. Mostly due to the logistics of were they are currently growing. Oh, sprinklers... I need to do more research.
Here is hopping i can get them up and into pots before they start to open their buds.
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