Coastal Redwood collapse - At my wits end!

eeeealmo

Mame
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Living in California, it's always been my aspiration to grow redwood bonsai, and to grow them well. Around here there are many inspirational examples - both in nature and in bonsai form. Unfortunately, I really can't seem to figure it out, and I am constantly failing without really knowing why. I've had close to a dozen different redwoods of varying caliber - from nursery stock to some of Bob's collected trees - and basically all of them have failed in the same way.

Specifically, the trees will be actively growing with many shoots clearly elongating, when literally within the course of 12 hours shoots will begin to go limp and ultimately fail. This will spread throughout the tree until it has entirely failed.

The following example is the latest casualty exhibiting this behavior. It has been in the same spot in my garden for the entire year; it has been pinched continuously; and grown profusely until last week when this started.

Here is a picture from this morning at 9am. The left half of the tree - which had looked healthy earlier this week - was now totally limp and lifeless. The right side and back of the tree still was rigid and appeared fine.
1693774979593.jpeg

Here is a closeup of the healthy apex on the right at 9am :
1693775121577.jpeg


And now, here is a picture of that same apex 5 hours later:
1693775154874.jpeg


This is effectively how all my other trees have failed, and it seems silly to keep trying at this point because I'm unable to avoid this or learn anything in the process. The most exasperating part of this is the speed at which it collapses. There is no indication whatsoever that anything is wrong, so there is no time to adjust or pivot. It just simply dies immediately.

Some points about this tree :
  • Second year in my garden, repotted april 2022
  • Soil mixture is typical 1:1:1 akadama:lava:pumice
  • It has been getting 7-8 hours of direct sunlight since April
  • Watered once a day with RO water on normal days. and twice a day when over 85F
  • Osmocote fertilizer every 2 months, and spray with miracid once a week
If anyone has any insights, or thoughts, or comments, or condolences, they would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!
 
A couple of suggestions....
Increase your akadama percent to anywhere from 50 to 100 percent.
Keep under 30 -50 percent shade cloth.
Don't ever let redwoods dry out. Water when they need it, not on a schedule.
 
One thing I've come to understand, both through experience and reading, is that oftentimes it is challenging to distinguish rapid growth due to stress from rapid growth due to an abundance of capacity. I have no experience with redwood but I wonder if the symptoms you're describing could be caused by stress driven growth that just runs out of reserve powder.
 
Looks to me like you're underwatering combined with direct sun. That sudden droop is an indication that there isn't enough moisture at the roots to replace the water lost through the foliage. Watering once a day, particularly with so much sun, could be the source of your problems.

To be blunt, since this is happening consistently with any number of trees, the source of the problem is likely your care habits
 
I am in a totally different zone (southeast PA), and I have a few dawn redwood, so take this with a grain of salt- I used to just rely on daily watering of my trees, but had the same issue. I keep mine in pots in trays of water- the water is maybe 1-2 inches deep at the bottom, keeping the soil constantly moist. No issues with roots, lots of growth, no daily collapse, and they keep pushing roots into the trays like crazy.

Before, I would have the same collapse, which did lead to some dieback. Some people were pro trays, some were against it, but I’ve had nothing but success. I grow mine in a 50/50 blend of diatomaceous earth and organics.
 
Do you grow your trees up against the wall? What direction does your garden face?

The exposed side of a house soaks up a lot of sunlight, and can get really hot in the afternoons if it faces West/SW.
 
I'm about to lose the last few trees in an 11 tree larch forest just like this. I believe it was brought on by a fungus I caught too late. It seemingly spread from branch to branch and tree to tree. I tried a fungucide, but I think it's too late for them.

I have a few metasecoyas as well and they have the same fungus/problems.

Good luck
 
I lived in the Bay Area and grew out lots of coast redwoods. I had the same issue as you with a few of them, which ended up being watering issues. Your trees are getting too much sun with not enough water. Also your soil mixture isn't right for redwoods. I'd use at least 50% akadama or more if you're in a hot area of CA.
When Bob Shimon ships a tree he includes documentation on how to care for the tree. In that pamphlet he states that he recommends 100% akadama and that Coast Redwoods should get indirect sun. In hot areas he recommends shade.
Since following Bob's advice I haven't lost a single tree.
 
Sorry to hear this I can see the frustration. But don’t give up and take the advice people here have given you.
 
Thanks everybody for the thoughts, comments, and condolences ( lol :( ).

In regards to the soil mixture/watering/sun comments, I can certainly see the thought process, and agree it looks as if this were the culprit, but what makes me hesitate is that this tree has been in this pot (and thus, same soil mixture) for 2 full growing seasons. This year it has been in the same spot (i.e., receiving the same amount of sun) since Feb, and done fantastic up to this point (i.e., continuously flushing, new shoots all over, etc). This year was not even especially warm relative to last year.

I'm not saying everyone is wrong, but its confusing why it would do so well for so long, and then suddenly collapse in the span of 2 weeks (when its not even especially hot outside). I was very diligent about watering every day right as the sun hit it, and twice a day if it was over 80F, so theres no chance it would have dried out.

Anyway, still at a loss, but i guess next time I will go with even more akadama to see if that helps. Thanks again :(
 
A couple weeks of drying winds could contribute to higher than normal transpiration. La Niña I think. Twice per day watering may not have been enough. Like others were saying you can’t water on a schedule, you need to water when the plant needs it.
 
A couple weeks of drying winds could contribute to higher than normal transpiration. La Niña I think. Twice per day watering may not have been enough. Like others were saying you can’t water on a schedule, you need to water when the plant needs it.
I didnt mean to imply I had a schedule. I am ensuring none of my trees dry out.
 
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