Manzanita training, styling, and keeping alive help

robingfx

Ok, so after reading some posts about Manzanitas I realize I wasted $30 on one. I don’t have much experience with bonsais at all and now I read it’s one of the hardest specimens to keep alive,…if not impossible. I could need some help I think, hehe :)

I have attached three pictures for you to look at. Please give me advice on how to train this and how to cut it back. Can I reduce it to ¼ of its original size without killing it?

Can I put the cutoff branches in soil to make them grow new Manzanitas? (I have growth hormone) After spending $30 it would be nice to keep some of the cutoffs.

I have read all the posts here on bonsaiTalk about Manzanitas and how to keep them alive. But if you have any tips, please tell me!

Thanks you,
Robin

Attached Images

	manzanita01.jpg (34.2 KB, 46 views)
	manzanita02.jpg (40.0 KB, 38 views)
	manzanita03.jpg (46.6 KB, 67 views)

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Mike_Westervelt

If I'm not mistaken, the thread about manzanitas being difficult was in reference to collected specimens, and they are, I've tried unsucessfully.However if you got yours from a nursery, you should be fine.
With regards to drastic pruning, I personally lean towards the conservative with new species, I would cut back by no more than 1/4, then wait until spring and see how it reacts.
Good luck,
Mike

robingfx

Thanks Mike! I am glad to hear that it might have a chance under my hands

I cut off no more than 1/4 today just to trim off the longest branches. I want to see how it likes its new location and how it takes some pruning. Patience patience!

I sprayed a little water on it today and the bark turned bright red. So pretty!

Thanks again Mike,
Robin

Attila

Hi Robin,

I have two manzanitas growing in my backyard. I bought them from a nursery 3 years ago and planted them in the ground. I've been cutting them back regularly during these years, not too agressively, cutting about 20% at a time and they developed into a nice compact bush.

The big challenge now is to transplant them back into a nursery pot without killing them. That's what these plants are so sensitive about: rootwork. Pruning the crown is easy, although I agree with Mike, no drastic pruning.

After talking with the nursery people at the Theodore Payne Foundation native plant nursery, I decided to dig them out around mid-November, next month. They believe that for native plants late fall is better than spring for transplanting.

I am a little nervous about the transplant, I've spent a lot of time on those manzanitas, but I will let you know how it goes. I believe that if one knows how and when to work with the roots of these trees, one can grow them successfully as bonsai. I've also decided that I plant them in the same medium as my california junipers: pure pumice, nothing else. They hate wet feet, so pumice can take care of that.

But anyway, this is just theory. I will put them in practice shortly and let you know how it goes. In the meantime, take it with a grain of salt.

Regards,
Attila

Attila

Just for a follow-up on this thread...

It is Spring now, and the manzanitas I was talking about in my previous post did NOT survive the transplant from the ground. It took them 6 months to slowly die.

This is my third attempt to dig out manzanitas from the ground, all failed in spite of digging them from my own yard and being extra careful.

100% failure after experimenting for 5 years. This is the first time that my relentless pursuit did not pay any dividends.

The conclusion. Feel free to draw it yourselves.

Bonsai Barry

I could post photos of my dead manzanita if that would be helpful.

__________________
Bonsai Barry

"Our talent lies in our choices."