Juniper roots question

TreeBay

A lot of commercial bonsai are potted up rather quickly and not enough attention is paid to the areas that need it most - the roots.

Aerial root systems are often exposed when the soil erodes or is removed from the base of the plant. Some plants, like Ficus, will actually develop aerial roots on their own, but juniper is not one of those plants.

Usually what happens is the tree is grown in a liner and then transferred to a larger growing container where it may develop roots at different levels. Then the plant is earmarked as a bonsai and someone will do a partial soil change, and perhaps leave some roots exposed. These will harden off and thicken somewhat.

An article by John Thompson explains some more about how this happens:

http://www.lost-oasis.com/bonsai/midori/Back_Issues/Feb_2000/Feb_Thompson/feb_thompson.html


In some cases aerial roots can be a feature of the tree as opposed to a defect, so just wait and take it to your class to see what the instructor says. Usually you would prefer a single root system where the roots emerge radially, all at one level, but if the partially exposed roots are a better developed, cutting up *to* that point can be an option, too.

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