Winter travels and tropicals care

treebeard55

For those of us in the northern hemisphere, winter is fast approaching. And many of us, at some point this winter, will leave home for a week or two for family visits and trips of other kinds.

What do we do with our tropicals when we're away from home for more than a day or two? A discussion might well be helpful, especially to beginners; but those of us who have been in bonsai for a while just might learn something new ourselves.

Best option, of course, is a reliable tree-sitter; but it isn't always possible to find one.

Since I brought it up, I'll go first. My tropicals overwinter under lights in a small enclosure in the basement. When I have to leave for a while, I soak each tree's soil thoroughly and let it drain. Then I enclose each tree completely in a sturdy plastic bag. I like the poultry-roasting oven bags sold in most grocery stores; they come in two sizes here, and are sturdy enough for repeated re-use.

After replacing the trees under the lights, I turn the temperature in their enclosure down to the low 50's F. This slows their metabolism and reduces their need for water.

I've left trees alone for more than a week with this method with good results. It's important to make sure each tree (with the possible exception of a succulent like Portulacaria afra) is completely enclosed by the plastic; otherwise it can dry out.

A serious caveat: never, repeat never, leave a plastic-enclosed tree in direct sun for any length of time; you'll lunch on roast bonsai.

My method isn't quite perfect. After returning from a trip I have sometimes had to go after insect pests with some vigor, since they have had a while to proliferate unmolested. And I've occasionaly had a tree defoliate while I was gone. But I have yet to lose a tree with this technique.

OK. Others, please.

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Treebeard 55

"To do bunjin is easy. However, to do a bunjin masterpiece is difficult." -- Susumu Nakamura, at MBS '07

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Cathie

I wouldn't keep mine under the lights at all (though not in the dark) once watered like that - I'd end up with mold, even if most of the mix was grit. I'd just leave them near a window that never gets intense light, or in a larger enclosure (other than bags), NOT tie up the bags at the bottom, and not water quite so thoroughly.

treebeard55

Hi, Cathie,

I've never ended up with mold, for whatever reason. There has occasionally been a bit of algal growth in more moisture-retentive soils, but that disappears quickly after the trees are unbagged.

Maybe I should have emphasized that I let them drain thoroughly before I enclose them.

How long have you left trees alone, using your method?

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Treebeard 55

"To do bunjin is easy. However, to do a bunjin masterpiece is difficult." -- Susumu Nakamura, at MBS '07

Cathie

Five days so far, but I think part of the difference is that I'm very near the ocean, and so humidity is always 'present' anyway, and I always have to keep that in mind. When you say 'tropicals' are you referring to e.g. ficus, or more moisture needy trees? I may not have been clear - I was thinking as much about my tropical house plants (with less grit in the pots) and things like Fukien, Religiosa, etc. so that also could be a big factor in how 'wet' they're left when I leave, rather than 'how do I keep them from drying out'? I so rarely have to worry about anything drying out that I forget other people do.

treebeard55

The ocean would make a difference, I'm sure.

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Treebeard 55

"To do bunjin is easy. However, to do a bunjin masterpiece is difficult." -- Susumu Nakamura, at MBS '07

Good_Ol_JR

I have yet to have to leave me tropicals alone for more than 3 days but in reading the posts so far I had a thought. It seems like when trying a method such as the bag method that you mention (treebeard), it would be best to try this when you ARE home first. This way you can check out the results daily first hand and remove the precautions as soon as things start to look unhealthy. This way you would know exactly how long they can survive without any outside interferance instead of just crossing your fingers and hoping for the best.

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Joseph Rauscher

"Any fool can make a rule, and any fool will mind it."
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clrosner

A friend/student of mine was going on a two week cruise. I told them to water all their trees. I told them to place a few wooden slats in their bath tub, and fill the tub with a little water, maybe a half inch. Place all their pots on the slats, which put them just a little higher than the level of the water. Then tape a piece of plastic sheeting on the top of the tub.

They came back to find that all their trees/plants survived in the mini greenhouse.

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treebeard55

The bathtub-as-greenhouse idea sounds viable, but what did they do to provide the plants with light? Or did they not bother, since it would only be a week? (And, yes, most plants will survive a week's light deprivation.)

J.R., as for trying my method while still home, first -- why not? That would allow you to develop some confidence in the method (assuming you do), and you wouldn't spend your trip worrying about your trees.

I first tried this technique on a one-week trip, but I had gotten some advice and thought it thru first. Still, I admit to coming back with some trepidation: how many trees survived? Since then, I've buttoned up trees this way a number of times and have yet to lose one.

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Treebeard 55

"To do bunjin is easy. However, to do a bunjin masterpiece is difficult." -- Susumu Nakamura, at MBS '07