名媛直播

Auk wrote: I'm really not always right.

But I thought Auk pensa di sapere tutto?

名媛直播Learner wrote:

Auk wrote: I'm really not always right.

But I thought Auk pensa di sapere tutto?

Penso di no - e ho detto spesso.

leatherback wrote: My 2cts.

- I do not follow links to external hosting sites. Please upload pictures to the forum directly. Also, this will allow people who read this in 6 months time, to learn from it, when you have already removed them from the external host. It keeps things together so to speak.
- I trim my ficus in mid-summer. I have just finished trimming half of the shrubs in my garden, and will trim the rest over the weekend. Plants are now comepltely active, and will backbud well, most of the time. Big benefit: As growth is slowing down, your regrowth most likely has short internodes. The risk however is that it will not regrow.
- I hardly even spray any of the plants. I find it mainly encourages fungus to grow. Yew, Junipers and Fig are the exceptions: Those do get a nice spray every once in a while when it is dry
- Proper watering bonsai requires water to run out of the pot. To flush excess fertilizer, replace air, and get the whole rootbal wettet. Which is why you need a pot with drainage. Removing the rocks.. Auk is probably thinking: Any decoration which is not helping the health of the tree should not be there when you are building your tree. It only makes your life more dificult.
- Can't remember what else was all discussed.

Is there a recommended program for down-sizing photos you guys use here? I shot all my photos with my cell phone, this site is giving me size-exceeded errors for just a single photo, I'm presuming I'd have to down-size them but I don't know how (am on linux so would probably need different program than most anyways - if anyone knows the size-limit, that'd be appreciated as all I can do now is try down-sizing and guessing until it works...

As to the hole-less pot, that's my mistake I was totally under the impression that people did that with bonsais, will have to find another pot if/when it's gotten through its shock! And those rocks, I'm not being obtuse I'm genuinely not understanding why it's not *good* for me, I mean it's a single layer of smooth stones that slow down evaporation, it helps me in keeping the soil's moisture level pegged really consistently - I'd immediately remove them if they were a problem but I just want to know what the problem is ('making things difficult' is certainly not a problem they're causing )

Auk wrote:

iheartplants wrote: Thanks for letting me know! Could you please explain to me *why* that was wrong

You are getting advice from experienced bonsai growers, that use proven techniques. Yet, you are questioning everything.
I don't really feel like getting into lengthy discussions about this, sorry. I will stop following this topic.

Just one remark: why do you think plants need light?

I think they need light for photosynthesis, and being that the ficus had no leaves, I did not and still do not understand whether it needs light or not or whether that bag on it is a good idea or not? I merely said "I figured that, with no leaves, light is pretty irrelevant". You told me I figured wrong, but you're not explaining why or even giving me a clear indication if you think that bag on it is or is not appropriate. Yes, I'm questioning things, that's because I'm new and want to learn, I thought that was the entire point of this subforum (and regarding your appeal to authority, I have no way of knowing how experienced you are, all I can presume is that it's more than I - that doesn't make you infallible though of course, I fail to see why you're so put-off by me wanting to understand the relationship of light to my ficus as it is right now - I washed away soil for that nebari for over a year, if that bag's presence or absence matters I'd like to know, so while I know you don't want to discuss it could you just give me a sentence or two to tell me why? Surely it can be quickly summarized!)

名媛直播Learner wrote: In this case, re-potting could, but you seem to be mad that Auk suggested it.

I understand that re-potting it would allow flood-waterings, which are great because you're sure there's no dry spots in that container, also that roots grow longer with less frequent, heavier waterings than they do with more frequent, light waterings (this method also greatly increasing chances of dry-spots in the soil)
However, the plant is in the container now, at day 5 iirc, and luckily I've had the time to check in on that guy multiple times daily, I am 100.0% confident in maintaining the proper moisture level in that soil, so I'm incredibly hesitant to put it through another re-potting now without any clear benefits - I wasn't mad but he didn't explain, just told - and when I asked for 'why', he's basically said I should just listen and do what I'm told, and he's done with the thread (hopefully not ) His comment to re-pot it was a quick post that also told me to ditch the stone mulch - that's something that I've found to be VERY useful (mulch in general) for dialing-in soil moisture levels in all applications (outside of bonsai), so unless there's something special about bonsai that makes that layer of decorative stone mulch bad, there's simply no reason to remove it when it helps maintain consistency in the soil - considering I heavily questioned that part of his recommendation, and he's told me I was wrong about light being unimportant to the leaf-less ficus yet won't explain why, has me a bit hesitant to just follow his word without question yknow? I don't want to be told what to do any more than I'd want to have a professional come do it for me; I want to learn bonsai because I love plants and, after getting a very green thumb in the past years, am now excited to re-try bonsai!!

quick question- is full-sun good or bad for the hibiscus right now during its trauma? In the past couple days I've been moving it from the patio to the yard so it can be in the sun, my thinking is that this is good because of both increased temperature, and increased photosynthesis - but I'm having 2nd thoughts that I'm right about that. I'm in zone 9a, and this variety of hibiscus loves a lot of sun here, I'm just unsure whether the trauma of its pruning changes that (my gut tells me 'no, it needs that light even more now'!)


[edited to note that I mist 2 or 3x daily, and check the soil each time. It's such a small container that I effectively 'top it off' with the sprayer when the top of the dirt - directly beneath that layer of decorative stones - tells me it's time! So I don't think moisture concerns are relevant, as far as I can tell it's just whether I should want that photosynthesis right now, I mean I don't know maybe the photosynthetic activity is taking away root-growing energy that would've been better for the plant]

iheartplants wrote: quick question- is full-sun good or bad for the hibiscus right now during its trauma? In the past couple days I've been moving it from the patio to the yard so it can be in the sun, my thinking is that this is good because of both increased temperature, and increased photosynthesis - but I'm having 2nd thoughts that I'm right about that. I'm in zone 9a, and this variety of hibiscus loves a lot of sun here, I'm just unsure whether the trauma of its pruning changes that (my gut tells me 'no, it needs that light even more now'!)

No full sun is not good for a recovering plant. Moving a tree around is also not good, you should leave it somewhere to adapt. Plants use light to know when to go dormant, or when to wake up, light tells them what time of the year it is, not just for photosynthesis. Plants use light from the sun for photosynthesis, just like solar panels do. Sun also radiates a lot of heat, this is why it isn't good to have a recovering plant on full sun. Misting the top does nothing. The plant "drink" waters from the roots, which are at the bottom, so if you keep the top of the soil moist, but the bottom dries, your plant will die.

About your soil, I already explained.


I think you are also quite confused about the benefits, and necessity of re-poting.

I'm fairly sure that the trunk and branches need light for some reason. Maybe that reason ties in with backbudding. I can't remember.

I use photoshop. try just taking the picture at a smaller resolution. for me under 1000 pixels x 1000 pixels works.
its your plant, if you want fat smooth rocks, I see no issue

If you cover it in a bag, it could mold inside plus the buds need some light to grow. I understand the moisture concern, but the other may create more problems. maybe just put it in partial/full shade outside. this would eliminate some of the evaporation but still allow for reflected light to reach the buds. use a attachment with a mist feature and use it often for a week? Also, it has been in a bag, so start weening it off the bag. put some holes in it each day to let the tree acclimate to the natural humidity. in the shade and then remove the bag. maybe over a few days. you no not want to many sudden changes at once, that combined shock is the number one killer of bonsai. repotting after a trunk chop = a substantial amount of stress. The tree will recover much faster if the roots are left undisturbed. But you need drainage holes or it will rot. plus the holes can aid slightly with oxygen circulation to the roots, Roots need oxygen. in the ground, the surface roots can spread out way further than in a pot to get this oxygen. you can lift the tree out and set it in another pot with only minor root disturbance if you are careful.

iheartplants wrote:

Auk wrote: Just one remark: why do you think plants need light?

I think they need light for photosynthesis, and being that the ficus had no leaves, I did not and still do not understand whether it needs light or not

Adventitious buds need light to develop. What happens when you put a ficus in the dark? It drops its leaves.

I merely said "I figured that, with no leaves, light is pretty irrelevant"

That's the problem I'm having with your questions. You 'figured'. You did not research. You do not accept our responses but question them. You ask us for proof. Actually, you are asking us to do your research for you.

regarding your appeal to authority

I never said I'm an authority. I said 'experienced bonsai growers'. Plural.

that doesn't make you infallible though of course

I have pointed out on multiple occasions that I am NOT infallible.

I am 100.0% confident

That leaves no room for doubt. I don't see the point trying to convince you.

I had a ceramic pot I chose to get it into, a pot with no drainage holes, so I've got the Hibiscus in a shallow container with ~3/4" broken terra-cotta potting layer at the bottom to act as 'overflow reservoir', and a top-layer (mulching basically) of shiny black rocks

I wrote somewhere that I often Google to check what I think I know. My thought about the above were:
- It's a ceramic pot, it doesn't drain. There's a layer at the bottom in which water will be trapped. There are stones on top, trapping more moist.
You write that this way your soil stays moist. I say that this way, you have created the perfect environment for bacteria, and bugs. The plant is already weak, and chances are it will rot in this environment.

So, I did Google it to backup this statement and I found:

" People will put in rocks “for drainage”. Then, when they water it, the water that drains through the soil is trapped in a rock layer. There is no soil touching it, so the water is difficult to wick back up to the roots. It stagnates from lack of air and light, rot sets in, plants die. "

Source:


I think the rocks:
- Trap moisture under them, again creating a good environment for bugs. Fungus gnats, for example, live in the top inch of the soil, that's why the watering advice usually is to let the soil dry out slightly (but not completely) between waterings. I think that, if your soil is always wet, that's not a good thing.
- Prevent you from being able to properly inspect your soil, unless when you remove rocks and put them back.

The article I referred to mentions that the drainage layer causes lack of light and air-flow; putting stones on top of the soil increases that effect - at least, that's what I think. I did not find proof.

Why dn't you just chuck the ficus in a transparant bag if you are set to have a bag over it?

As for all the other things that keep popping up.. Maybe just concentrate on getting these trees back to health, follow the advuce given, and look up the why of it when you wonder why. Being spoon-fed information does not teach you how to learn. it is exactly the same as you not wanting someone else doing things for you. In this case.. Finding information.

As for your rant, Parker.. Maybe tone it down a little yourself too? If you do not like what someone writes, just don't read their posts. It is free for a person to add as much or little info on their posts as they feel like. You have someting to add, add. But don't start complaining that you do not like someones answering style.