First time poster here.....I'm new to the art of bonsai and got my first two around a month ago but been doing a lot of reading around the subject and have a question that the wise sages can hopefully help with. Current situation is:
My trees were bought from a bonsai nursery near Cheltenham, will post pics but told they are around 3-5 years old. Both sold as indoor bonsai (told you I was a newbie), they look to be potted in relatively heavy soil / compost....I'm guessing potting compost maybe, but not sure what is at the base so may have something better draining but I'm not sure. Only two drainage holes in the bases of pots and no sign of mesh / wires under the base.
Japanese holly seems to be doing okay, but the Chinese elm isn't showing much in the way of new growth as I'd assumed would be expected at this time of year, I'm feeding them bi-weekly with balanced NPK fertiliser and plan to gradually move at least the Chinese elm outside to acclimatise - based on advice from here
My concern is that I was advised to water by immersion / dunking, and have read that this is something that is only really recommended when drainage is poor and usually when mass grown mallsai style plants are still left in the soil they are imported in. I know it's completely out of season for repotting but also read that in some cases this is justified so wanted to ask advice......should I:
1 Leave both until spring and repot?
2 Repot just the Chinese elm?
3 Repot both?
If I should report then should I leave the roots alone at this point or prune? I've used s chopstick to try and make additional drainage around the edge of both pots and the Japanese holly at least seems to have a hell of a lot of roots under the surface, and also a larger root that has emerged above ground.
The main worry I have is that while I am able to check the surface /1cm below I have no idea what the situation is below ground and the surface is indicating water is needed only every 2-3 days.
Any advice gratefully received
P.S. Pictures were taken in a bit of a rush before work, if better / more are needed then just let me know.
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I've no experience of Japanese Holly but I repot Chinese Elms at any time of the year and have had no problems. If you are uncertain about root pruning then just slip pot - ie put the whole rootball into a larger pot with a free draining soil mix, 50/50 peat compost and vermiculite is what I use for most trees, more or less inorganic depending on the species.
Are the plants outside now? If not, do so (Unless you are not in summer).
You can safely take the plants out of the container, roughen the edges of the rootbal with a chopstick, so you loosen up the outer layer of roots (In the first cm or something) and place in a bigger container with free-draining substrate.
As it stands, the elm seems to be sulking. Standing still. As for comparison: Ever branch on mine is currently growing up to 4 leaves a week.
A full rootbal cleaning & repotting.. I would wait with that till spring, and just be carefull with watering till then. With being carefull I mean: Make sure the dense rootmass in the centre does not dry out to a rock solid mass. I always use lukewarm water when watering our houseplants which are in similar peat-like substrate. That works very well in ensuring the whole rootball takes water.
Thanks for getting back to me, so far the general consensus seems to get both plants outside asap, repot the elm but without pruning, leave the holly as is and be careful watering. I'm in the UK so it is "summer" here do this when I get back this evening, assuming shade for the holly and sunny for the elm.
My Holly is in full sun all day. You need to learn how to water properly, wait until the surface is almost dry then use a rose on the can and soak. Leave five minutes and do it again.
I would not re pot unless it needs doing, that is if the water is not running through well. It is also very warm at the moment, and you will need to take great care with your maintainance.