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Advice about tropical bonsai 3 years 1 month ago #65707

  • Clicio
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I don't want to start a flame war about nothing, and I am not provoking anyone in particular, but...
I find it very interesting how people living in Canada, Alaska, Finland or Patagonia think they can give good advice regarding tropical bonsai. Usually is a secondary or tertiary opinion from hearsay, and not a real personal experience.
OK, nothing against it, besides the risk of giving a newcomer not so good advice...
I for sure admire leatherback's experience about growing tropicals successfully in a place that is right now 12º below zero. I couldn't do it, I am sure.
But in a tropical country things are different. One just throw away seeds of any kind and they sprout all around. Amazing.
The biggest problem usually are some dry summers. They kill plants in pots.
But...
Most of the time the rainy season, fortunately, is in the summer, so plenty of heat AND rain water, a wonderful combination for bonsai. They love it. If you protect Maples from direct sun, you are OK.
Can they be inside? In a typical tropical environment the answer is YES. Provide air circulation, water and light and they thrive.
Unless it is a juniper, of course.
Junipers die indoors.
:-)
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Last edit: Post by Clicio.

Advice about tropical bonsai 3 years 1 month ago #65719

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Hey Matey,

Is this in reference to a specific post?

I have not seen many posts from people in the tropics here, I think?
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Advice about tropical bonsai 3 years 1 month ago #65720

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I have not seen many posts from people in the tropics here, I think?


Which doesn't stop some that are very far away from the tropics giving biased suggestions...

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Advice about tropical bonsai 3 years 1 month ago #65722

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Back in the 50's and 60's in the US there was a lot of emphasis on hard science, evidence based reasoning, and the like. That left the humanities out in the cold, and they responded by reasoning based on feelings, etc. Your reasoning is just as important as my reasoning. Your facts are just as true as my facts, whether they contradict or not. This was called post modernist thinking, and the US has kindly exported it all over the world. You're welcome.

So, how often do we see somebody here say that they want to grow a larch inside, so it can be done, and you should not be so direct and brutal as to say that they will kill the plant?

So, if I live in Alaska I have the perfect right to tell you that I know how to grow a jaboticaba indoors. And, if you tell me that it will have trouble with the low humidity, low sunshine, and low air movement, well those are just your facts.

I pretty much ignore those posts.
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Advice about tropical bonsai 3 years 1 month ago #65724

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What have I missed? What is happening? I do agree there are people who have no clue what they are talking about making recommendations. Not sure whether it is specific to growing tropicals.

Thing to think about.. advice on growing tropicals in non-tropical regions might be just as specific as growing non-tropicals in the tropics. So things that work for temperates in temperate regions, or tropicals in tropical regions does not apply when you move those plants to other climate zones.

What Clicio can do to his BRTs might very well be the end of mine. And what I get away with with my maples, might very well be the end for Clicio's deshojo.

Isn't the idea of a forum to share experiences and see where we can get with the information we have together?
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Advice about tropical bonsai 3 years 1 month ago #65729

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Very interesting.
Yes, that's what I meant.
Forums are excellent places for people to be exchanging their experiences and so we all grow in knowledge together. I wouldn't expect a Jaboticaba in northern Germany, but LB has managed to do it, and we have learned from him.
Now, when a guy asks for advice, living in Dubai, 45C and humidity lower than 10%, and people suggest to "put it immediately outdoors, full sun" it seems to me lack of responsibility.
Why does a BRT goes so well in temperate climates? One reason is that they love warmth and humidity, but hate the midday full sun. Here where it occurs naturally, it grows under the canopy of bigger trees. So if one keeps them warm and humid, even indoors, they will survive and sometimes thrive.
Science can't be opposed to folklore or hearsay, and is much better to share real experiences and experimentation than give wrong advice, killing innocent trees belonging to good willing people.

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Advice about tropical bonsai 3 years 1 month ago #65738

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This is very amusing. And interesting.
What I read between the lines is that we must share our own experiences. Not the things you find somewhere on line or in books etc.
Share how you manage to keep your tree healty, give background information about climate, position etc. but stop making copies of non proven working methods.
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Advice about tropical bonsai 3 years 1 month ago #65741

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This is very amusing...Not the things you find somewhere on line or in books etc.


Aha, I do respect good books and some online info. But like many here, once upon a time I was lured into doing everything like the Japanese did; a big mistake!
Different species, different climates, different goals. And failure.
Now I pay attention to local bonsai people, to the right techniques described in good books, and try to adapt them to my reality.
It's been working.
But what I do to my trees here, even being a success, I will not dare suggest to a newbie living in New York, as I am quite sure my procedures will kill his/her trees.

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Advice about tropical bonsai 3 years 1 month ago #65742

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But what I do to my trees here, even being a success, I will not dare suggest to a newbie living in New York, as I am quite sure will kill his/her trees.


You mean, BRT cannot be under the big oak in my garden yearround in NY?
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Advice about tropical bonsai 3 years 1 month ago #65743

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You mean, BRT cannot be under the big oak in my garden yearround in NY?


Of course it can!
It's only a matter of keeping it inside the heated greenhouse under the Oak at all times!

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