New serissa tree

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I bought this tree and it's coming tomorrow, probably wrong time of year to buy due to it being in soil that look bad so I have to keep it in it to next spring.

Well the plan is to create a African scene like the one in the picture in the coming years. I think it's a good start.

Paul 20190407_184803.jpg20190407_184712.jpg
 

Shibui

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Serissa will keep you busy cutting off all the new suckers that will keep growing from the roots.
You can easily strike the suckers as cuttings or even wait a little longer and they will already have their own roots. On the other hand, who needs hundreds of serrissas?
 
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Serissa will keep you busy cutting off all the new suckers that will keep growing from the roots.
You can easily strike the suckers as cuttings or even wait a little longer and they will already have their own roots. On the other hand, who needs hundreds of serrissas?

Ill take a couple more just incase i kill this one in that soil...... so suckers can be grown ?

Thanks @Shibui
 

Leo in N E Illinois

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Simple as cut and stick in a soil ? :)
Yes.

If you have not done so, you should more or less have settled on the type of bonsai media you want to use for deciduous trees, and broadleaf evergreen trees. The same mix you use for elms, maples, and ficus, will work for serissa. Key is moisture retention, and sifted for particle size, eliminating fines, which will give good air circulation to the roots.

Don't use an all inert mix like what is often used for pines. So just pumice, or a pumice & lava blend is better for pines, not the best for Serissa.

As soon as you have time, I would transplant your Serissa into the same deciduous mix you use for your other trees. That way you will be familiar with how long it takes to go from wet to dry. Makes proper watering easier to have only one or two different mixes for your whole collection.

Serissa, more so than most species can be repotted anytime from spring thru autumn without serious problems. Best repotting is done after summer solstice thru to autumn equinox. Also end of winter, just before spring flush of growth. They are pretty forgiving.
 
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Yes.

If you have not done so, you should more or less have settled on the type of bonsai media you want to use for deciduous trees, and broadleaf evergreen trees. The same mix you use for elms, maples, and ficus, will work for serissa. Key is moisture retention, and sifted for particle size, eliminating fines, which will give good air circulation to the roots.

Don't use an all inert mix like what is often used for pines. So just pumice, or a pumice & lava blend is better for pines, not the best for Serissa.

As soon as you have time, I would transplant your Serissa into the same deciduous mix you use for your other trees. That way you will be familiar with how long it takes to go from wet to dry. Makes proper watering easier to have only one or two different mixes for your whole collection.

Serissa, more so than most species can be repotted anytime from spring thru autumn without serious problems. Best repotting is done after summer solstice thru to autumn equinox. Also end of winter, just before spring flush of growth. They are pretty forgiving.

@Leo in N E Illinois thanks for the info, i have a bag of Akadama, Pumice & Pine Bark currently, I need to get the serissa into a decent soil as its currently in mucky soil i think. ill see tomorrow. So if i repot with no root cutting i will be ok ?

My other trees are in 50/50 akadama/kyodama mix and love it.

Thanks again
 

Doug J

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I bought this tree and it's coming tomorrow, probably wrong time of year to buy due to it being in soil that look bad so I have to keep it in it to next spring.

Well the plan is to create a African scene like the one in the picture in the coming years. I think it's a good start.

Paul View attachment 236998View attachment 236999
The tree in the African scene is from a guy called Nigel Saunders. He does youtube videos on his channel called "The bonsai zone". Not sure where you got the picture, but if you want to see more, he's got videos on the very same serrisa.
 

rockm

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FWIW, the "African" serissa is a copy of this famous South African bonsai made from an actual African-native species (Serissa is Asian). The tree here is Buddleja Saligna, or false olive.

Also FWIW, I've found serissa to be mostly a finicky novelty tree as bonsai. It tends to pout inside and is touchy about moisture and root work. If you're after this image with a sturdier tree, Chinese elm would work for outdoor, ficus would work for indoor (ficus are much hardier inside and overall than serissa--IMO anyway...)

aob_154_buddleja_saligna.jpg
 

Doug J

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FWIW, the "African" serissa is a copy of this famous South African bonsai made from an actual African-native species (Serissa is Asian). The tree here is Buddleja Saligna, or false olive.

Also FWIW, I've found serissa to be mostly a finicky novelty tree as bonsai. It tends to pout inside and is touchy about moisture and root work. If you're after this image with a sturdier tree, Chinese elm would work for outdoor, ficus would work for indoor (ficus are much hardier inside and overall than serissa--IMO anyway...)

View attachment 237020
I have 2 small 'exposed root' ones I purchased a few months ago. I've read what you just said before, and will also add that they don't like to be moved around either. Definitely a bit of a novelty tree IMO also.
 

Leo in N E Illinois

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@Leo in N E Illinois thanks for the info, i have a bag of Akadama, Pumice & Pine Bark currently, I need to get the serissa into a decent soil as its currently in mucky soil i think. ill see tomorrow. So if i repot with no root cutting i will be ok ?

My other trees are in 50/50 akadama/kyodama mix and love it.

Thanks again

No. There is no point to repotting if you do not do root pruning. You MUST get the bad soil out of the root ball. You should gently tease out the roots until the roots are all loose, meaning the root ball is soft, and free of the muck. You then must prune the broken and any dead roots, and excessively long roots off the root ball. If you don't do this pruning you shouldn't bother to repot. Root pruning is an essential part of repotting. Since repotting is normally done at most every other year, it is important to not waste the opportunity to work with training the root system.
 
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No. There is no point to repotting if you do not do root pruning. You MUST get the bad soil out of the root ball. You should gently tease out the roots until the roots are all loose, meaning the root ball is soft, and free of the muck. You then must prune the broken and any dead roots, and excessively long roots off the root ball. If you don't do this pruning you shouldn't bother to repot. Root pruning is an essential part of repotting. Since repotting is normally done at most every other year, it is important to not waste the opportunity to work with training the root system.

I agree, I may let it settle in for a week then repot. Thank for your advice @Leo in N E Illinois
 

Underdog

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Its already styled for you too. I've not found my two finicky. One is a cutting from the other. They just drop some leaves every three months. Flowers at least 2x in summer.
I'd flatten off the top as you want to at least 3 leaves and ease it into spring full sun.
Mine are also thirsty...
 

Carol 83

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Its already styled for you too. I've not found my two finicky. One is a cutting from the other. They just drop some leaves every three months. Flowers at least 2x in summer.
I'd flatten off the top as you want to at least 3 leaves and ease it into spring full sun.
Mine are also thirsty...
How do you overwinter them? That seems to have been my problem here.
 
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Its already styled for you too. I've not found my two finicky. One is a cutting from the other. They just drop some leaves every three months. Flowers at least 2x in summer.
I'd flatten off the top as you want to at least 3 leaves and ease it into spring full sun.
Mine are also thirsty...

Thanks, yes it needs some pruning but can I do that now ? Also I'll need to thin out the branches in the future also.
 

Underdog

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How do you overwinter them? That seems to have been my problem here.
South window, no grow lights.
Thanks, yes it needs some pruning but can I do that now ? Also I'll need to thin out the branches in the future also.
I prune mine year around as needed. 2-3 times this winter. I'd wait to hear from Leo but I wouldn't be afraid to cut back hard and root prune hard at the same time to repot. I've had mine 4 yrs now.
 
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South window, no grow lights.

I prune mine year around as needed. 2-3 times this winter. I'd wait to hear from Leo but I wouldn't be afraid to cut back hard and root prune hard at the same time to repot. I've had mine 4 yrs now.

I think a hard prune is out for this one for now as i have a repot to get it out of this mucky soil first, once its recovered id like to thin out branches and flatten top for sure. thanks
 

coachspinks

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I'll be working on one soon and I will start a thread on it since there is so much interest in serissa. In the mean time, here is some history on it. In the mid 80's I got a serissa from the Monastery in Conyers. My mother, an avid gardener, asked for a couple of cuttings. I gave them to her and she put them in a glass of water. A couple of weeks later they had roots so she put them in potting mix and a pot. The next year they went into the ground. One is now a very large shrub/tree. She keeps it cut back to about 6 feet. It has been outside in the ground in Georgia winters for 30+ years. I dug up the second one two years ago and tossed it into a pot with only Georgia red clay. I intended to repot and trim it last year but I never got around to it. It has had full sun, zero fertilizer and no real care other than watering and it has flowered almost continuously.
 
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