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i just purchased some maple seedlings, and am wondering whether i should repot them or not from the tiny container it is in now. from what i read here, i probably should not, but i feel it will be root bound/pot bound by then.

i got 6 small seedlings about 2 ft high and 2 3-4 ft tall seedlings.

my next questions: i'm not actually sure which maple it is, aside from the label it said red japanese maple. anyone have a clue? the trunk also have different colors, and i'm not quite sure if they are all the same or not.

my plan for this was to use 5 of them for forest style and leave the rest to grow tall(large/container bonsai perhaps) or maybe keep 1 of the small seedling as a separate solo bonsai.

any recommendation for soil? i got on my hand right now some perlite, some leca from canna and potting mix from miracle gro.

just fyi, super new to all these and any tips for arrangement, soil mix, tools, anything are welcome. Thanks!

If they are seedlings they are most likelly unnamed hybrids. Japaneese maple seedlings are not of same name varity as their mother.

Acer palmatum is what they are, they may be grafted but still that species. You could pot into a bigger pot to grow on for a year or two, as for doing a group, I would say not now. You would be better to leave until spring. Put them in full sun and keep them watered and fertilised and they will be fine.

Yes, palmatum for sure.

Take the entire root ball and put it into something a inch larger. Then do that again in several months. (If you are in Europe or somewhere like that, 2-3 cm). Next year put them in something much bigger but maybe a little shallower, sometime in the spring. What you want for now is lots of root growth and lots of branches. In a couple of years (maybe five) you can start looking at the shape and figuring out how to make a real bonsai shape out of them.

I live in california and my area is a bit dry and quite warm. I try to water them daily or sometimes twice a day if they became dry in the evening.

Im worried to repot them as most people tend to suggest to repot in spring but then the pot is really small. So maybe its ok?

What kind of pot should i get? Should i just get a 6” plastics bonsai tray? It has some drainage at the bottom and will hopefully promote flatter root growth.

Or... should i get a pond plant basket 6”? With lots of holes it maybe allow for the roots to grow better.

For soil, any mix you recommend? I do have miracle gro potting soil and some left over cactus soil and a bunch of perlite. Having a hard time finding lava rocks since the store sells decorative lava rock and i cant tell if they are the same or not and if the size is right.

Do not worry about soil in this stage:your normal potting soil will do fine. But do not repot now, unless you can carefully getting them out their containers and into bigger ones without root disturbance. But if they are grwing happy and the roots are not coming out of theur current pots there is no reason to do it now

sounds good to me. i think for now i'm not seeing roots, but then again i haven't checked them yet. i'll check their roots later. see if they are bound or not. i do remember one of them kinda have this aerial root, which is a bit weird, just hanging like that. any suggestion what to do with it? i don't think pruning is a good time right now

Stop worrying

Get pots a bit larger than the ones you have now
Get good potting soil
Clip the aerial root off

Slip the plants from the container, and replant in the new pots without doing anything to the roots.

Leave them for the rest of the year. In early spring, take them out of the conatiners and do a 'proper' repot, teasing the roots apart and spreading them on a horizontal plane to create a nice nebari. Meanwhile, read more on growing youngsters.

Have fun.