Lime sulfer question?

miker

I repotted my buttonwood in akadama for the first time this year and it is doing great. The bottom of the jin/shari extends to the soil line and through the course of watering and rain the dead wood near the soil has become stained orange from the akadama. I am afraid if I apply lime sulfer to it at this point it will somehow permenantly seal in the orange color which I really do NOT want. Any advice on how to remove the residue before I treat the dead wood? Or should I just lime sulfer it and count on this to bleach out the orange color? I really like this tree and don't want to do damage to it. Thanks in advance.
-Michael

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mike_p

I'm not sure what to do about the stain from akadama. However, I will suggest that you remove the top 1/2 inch of akadama, ad replace it with something that is non-staining, such as gravel, fir-bark, lava, etc.
I suspect that if you do this, the stain will go away in time.

Mike

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Bentreemin

Hi
It sounds as though you need to take a small wire brush to the orange area to gently remove the stain then seal it somehow. Probably best done when the area is dry and I mean DRY. Try to water carefully only on the soil so the trunk dries up a bit before you remove the stain. Tipping the pot slightly so the shari terminates at highest level is a good way to dry out that area.

Instead of lime sulphur I think you should try a better wood "sealer" like a matt varnish / lacquer applied at this low level to stop the staining ingressing into the wood fibre. How was the shari created? by you or previous owner? Post a pic if you can.

BTW when using Akadama when first repotted, you should always sieve out the fine stuff before potting and always "flush" the pot with water until the water that runs out the bottom is clear. If you didnt do this, go do it at the earliest opportunity.

Ben