Hot Summers

Earl

Bonsaial, I have a question for you and anybody else that would care to share their secrets...one that is sort of like "what kind of soil do you use." I notice you are in Fresno, and that means hot! Do those trees of your neighbors shade your bonsai in the afternoon? We get hot, too, but nothing like you and I have had trouble keeping some of my trees moist. I also read the info from the Arizona bonsai group and they recommend a larger % of gravel, grit, etc because that stays cooler. I notice some of your trees are planted in very shallow pots and can't imagine that up here. I should mention that my work keeps me away from home during the day.

I have thought about a misting system but I was curious because your trees are all right out in the open.

Comments anybody?

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bonsaial1

Hi Earl, Great question! This is how you do it. Ask the people right up front that are in the heat zone what they do.
I used to buy my soil from the local bonsai nursery. The soil was made by Ripsgreentree, (I suppose you know who that is), we live in the same town and are very good friends. Tyhe soil that he makes is very free draining and sifted. I began to use it 3 years ago. Most all my conifers do well in it. The only trouble that I had with it is that I felt, IMHO, that it didn't have enough organics for my maples. I was getting terrible leaf burn by the end of summer when it is the hottest. Most people here have been experimenting with akadama for maples. I belong to four clubs, and the sharing of info is quite good. There are bonsai artists in Hanford that are experimenting with straight akadama in their maples. You have heard of cutting up spahgnum moss and putting it in your juniper soil to improve rootage? I have done this and it seens to help. I don't have the small branch diebck that I use to when I prune hard. I wonder if the moss cut up would work for maples?....hmmmmm... Must be some miracle elixer in spahgnum.

I post this pic of a small, and I mean small shimpaku juniper. The guy in the nursery said it would not live in this small pot in Fresno. HAH!... I love a challenge. He had thrown down the gauntlet, what was I to do. I bought the pot ($14.00 mind you) and the juniper ($4.00) and pruned and potted up. This was 2 years ago. Thats two (2) summers in Fresno at 100+ degrees. The pot is only 1 1/2 inches at the bowl part, and 1 inch tall. Thats about 1 tablespoon soil period. The tree is doing quite well and has thrown out buds like crazy this year. I wish I had a digital camera ( thats my next investment) to post a recent shot of it. Regards, Bonsaial

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A tree a day...thats all we ask.

bonsaial1

Oh yea, I forgot to mention the soil. I use red lava, turface, redwood bark, crushed walnut shell, sand, and rice hulls.

proportions are as follows:
30% lava
30% bark
10% turface
10% walnut shell
10% sand
10% rice hulls

The turface is a product made by Schultz called profile, it can be found at most gardening centers. If not contact schultz directly and ask for a source in your area. I heard that any tru value hardware should be able to get it. You don't have to worry about walnut shells, you will never find them. The rice hulls can be a little hard to find too. You will do fine with,
40% lava
40% bark
20% sand for maples or others leaf droppers
and:
60% lava
20% bark
20% sand for the conifers.

P.S. this is a whole group that I did this year after my success with the little mame's from the year before. The trident maple on the far right is the largest pot at 5" wide and 1.5" deep. All the rest of the pots are around 2" across and 3/4 to 1" deep. Hope this helps , Bonsaial

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A tree a day...thats all we ask.

bonsaial1

Sorry, still did not answer all your questions. I work too. Imagine that. I do get off at 3:30 pm when it is hot. I come home and check my trees then. If they look thirsty I give em a drink. I usually water in the morning. Usually only once a day. Yes, my house has a southern exposure, but the neighbors house has ornamental plums across the back fence at the row of trees that I keep there. They get dappled sun all day long. On the western portion of my yard, when the very hoot late day sun is beating down, it has to shine through 40 foot tall junipers. So I don't get that nasty sun all day. The trees get fuul morning sun till about 11:00 am when the sun hits the plum trees. Sound like a perfect scenerio don't it. Trust me I have still managed to cook a few trees.
As for the shallow pots, I just feel that what the tree needs to look its best. There are people that will overpot their trees because they feel it gives them that margin of error they need. I feel that keeping bonsai is a responsibility just like keeping a pet. It is a living and breathing thing and deserves no less respect than a dog. You wouldn't let your dog go without water when it hits 101. Not that you do, don't get me wrong, I just feel that artisticly thats what the tree needs to get the look that I am trying to convey. If that means that I have to get up at 5:00 am to make sure the trees are taken care of, thats what I do. Thats just me.
As far as a misting system, This is what I have found out.
I tried one about 6 years ago, along with a drip system. I had two systems working in tandom. The drip that came on in the morning and a overhead mist sytem that came on a 3:00 pm to cool the trees down. This is what happened, They clogged constantly, my pots looked like hell in about 2 months, and I had liverwort growing like crazy. I also did expiriance some root rot. I have only hand watered since then. If I go out of town, I have my daughter come over to water. I PAY HER. that way she feels obligated to do it. If they die I take it out of her hide. Thats it dude, your on your own now, Bonsaial

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A tree a day...thats all we ask.

Earl

Thanks for the great and complete answer! Please, it would be great to hear from others. I'm sure this is an issue for many of us. I've been doing bonsai for about ten years and as I mentioned in the thread under soil, I used mostly commercial mixes until last year. I guess I have a really thick head because I have struggled. When I would re-pot my old roots never filled the pots like all the pictures. Nor did I ever get the robust growth I kept reading about. I have blamed the hot dry climate for that, but now I think I have done so wrongly.

I will try some of your soil mixture this spring. What I have been using has already made a drastic improvement. Unfortunately, the only shade I have is what I provide. We live in a new neigborhood, on a brown hill, with no big trees. I built a pergoda type thing last summer to provide the dappled sunlight, though.

Love the mame's! They look wonderful.

ripsgreentree

Earl: There is little to add to bonsaial's answer, There are basicly two times during the year that your trees get into trouble and they both have to do with excess water. At 100 degrees your trees will go dorment. At this point in time you are watering hard to keep your trees cool and alive, the problem is if your soil holds water and no oxygen your feeder roots dround and die back. If your soil is coarse grit, clay and humis the elements of the soil mixture will hold the moisture that your tree need to stay cool and servive while the bulk of the water drops out leaving oxygen in the soil mix that your rootlets need to servive the dormancy of summer. The same stenario happens in winter when your tree goes dormant and stop using water the rootlets still need oxygen to servive. If you are in a fine soil, (what we call mud) your rootlets will die and rot back in the winter. All of my smallest bonsai are on a south facing wall with shade cloth at the hight of the eave of the appartment. Now it is furreled like a sail and when the temprature reaches 90 degrees I will unfurrel the shade cloth and streach it out on the lines that hold it up. I have also succesfully kept very small bonsai, soil under 1 square inch. Some of these are 15years old, At the hight of summer these trees will only be watered twice a day morning and evening and only when tempratures are well over 100degrees.
Good growing and injoy your trees.
ripsgreentree

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ripsgreentree

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Earl

Ripsgreentree,
You're making me wonder if I shade my trees too much. As I mentioned, I built a pergoda like structure which has lath spaced about 4" apart on top and lattice down about a foot. I have already put my conifers under that structure as it is my only display area right now. (Deciduous still go in the greenhouse at night but under the lath during the day now.) We don't actually hit 90 usually until August.

Are you saying you have all your bonsai in full sun until it hits 90? That may be another reason mine have grown slowly and poorly at times...the wrong soil and not enough sun.

Thanks for the input. What do you think about my observation?

ripsgreentree

I have found that trees that grow in full sun like conifers will aclimate themselves, trees that grow in shade will also aclimate them selves to shade. Trees in full sun will develip harder smaller leaves. Also not all of my collection is shaded. There are conifers and elms malis and the like that love full sun, that live in full sun. Only the smallest potted bonsai stay under the shade cloth. As soon as I buy a digital camera I will post some pictures so that you will get an idea of what I am talking about.
ripsgreentree

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ripsgreentree

It requires an open hand to give and to recieve.