bonsaiTALK Community - View Single Post - Repotting an Established Bonsai (5 parts)

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Using your sickle (Figure 7), and holding the pot securely from the other side, make quick, shallow strokes until you get to the bottom of the pot. Be sure you keep your free hand away from the cutting edge! The serrated blades on these sickles are very dangerous. Trying to saw down to the bottom of the pot will be difficult and damage more roots, while shallow strokes will make the job easier and cleaner. Do this on three sides only! It’s best to leave one side unmolested, so that when we turn the tree on its side, the root mass will have a secure base to rest on.

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Prepare the New Pot

Now it’s time to prepare the pot, since this tree is going back in the same one. Cut your screen to give plenty of margin on each side, and wire it into the pot. This technique is very easy and gives good security to the screens if a few simple steps are taken. To make the wire mesh ties (Figures 8, 9); simply fold a piece of wire so that you have a very flat “z” or “n”. No need for fancy loops. Make it large enough so that it extends about ½ inch on each side of the hole in question.

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When you bend down the tails to insert into the holes, bend them so that they just go snugly into the widest part of the hole. This will prevent your mesh from moving side to side. Wrap the tails snugly against the underside of your pot. Another tip for securing your mesh in the pot is to make the wire tie cross the hole at a right angle to the direction the tree tie-in applies force. This can be seen in the final photograph (Figure 10).

Pre-bend your wire ties so they lie flat against the bottom of the outside of the pot. Just measure them against the holes in the pot, bend, and insert from the bottom of the pot into the pot. Forget to do this, and you will find it awkward to add them after you have a layer of soil in the bottom of the pot! For this tie-down method to work, the portion of the tie wire that will pass over the wide side of the nebari must be longer, and the section that crosses the short side can be a bit shorter. It is also helpful here, to bend the ends of the wire down over the rim of the pot to hold them out of the way.

Notice that this pot has drainage/tie-down holes in the four corners. This is the best configuration for drainage and for securing the tree in the pot. If your pot has only two holes, one at each end, pass your tie wires through these holes to tie your tree in. This arrangement can allow a tree with a less developed nebari move, so be careful. Pieces of bamboo chopsticks can be passed across the nebari and the wire made to bear on it, giving solid support to weaker or more delicate areas. For trees with very dense root pads, a chopstick can be driven into the pad to give a purchase point for the wire.

But what if your bonsai is a collected tree with all its attendant challenges? If you have a wildly difficult root system, you can use what Boon Manakitivipart calls the “square-root” method of potting. Pieces of dimensional lumber (2X4, 2X6, 1X2, etc.) can be cut to proper size to wedge into the pot, allowing a bare portion of the base of the trunk to be supported. Non-reactive screws can be driven into the base of dead wood, providing another anchor point. Anything that secures the tree but does not harm the tree or show above the soil can be used.

Arrange the Roots

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While you are working on your roots, be careful not to cut the remaining wires with your shears! They can look dark just like roots, and it is not a happy circumstance for the shears. (Figure 11) The photograph shows a drainage screen with a butterfly-shaped tie. The clip-shaped ties are much easier to make.

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At this point, your root rake is going to come into very good use. Tip the tree onto the remaining solid side of the root ball (Figure 12). With a helper holding up the trunk so that the root ball is vertical, stand at the end of the root ball and drag your root rake across the base of the roots. Hold your rake so that the tines are at right angles to the roots. This will minimize damage to the roots from the tines getting caught behind them.