Bonsai Giant Sequoia

[Cryptocat]

So, I have a Giant Sequoia in a pot in Central Florida. I am going to try to Bonsai it. How long should I leave in pot before I move it? I purchased a snow maker for it in the winter (jk). Any advice will be lovely. I have some brown spots on it as well. Should I clip them off?

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

You may remove dead foliage, as it develops.

How long should you leave it in a pot before repotting depends on how rapidly it grows, how well the potting soil holds up, and how large a tree you want.

Trees don't like their roots disturbed. Try not to repot more than once every 2 or 3 years.

A peat or coir based potting mix, like what you used is okay for young trees in the nursery phase of growing out, or up. It won't last in good shape for more than 2 years, so plan on repotting in two years.

If it were mine, I'd let it grow tall and get bushy until then. No pruning.

Then I'd repot to a wider, shallow pot. After it recovered only then would I begin wiring and pruning for "bonsai". Sequoia are suitable for formal upright and informal upright styles. They will fight any attempt to make the apex grow downward. Branches can be made to cascade, though they will grow better at horizontal or upward.

 

[Cryptocat]

You may remove dead foliage, as it develops.

How long should you leave it in a pot before repotting depends on how rapidly it grows, how well the potting soil holds up, and how large a tree you want.

Trees don't like their roots disturbed. Try not to repot more than once every 2 or 3 years.

A peat or coir based potting mix, like what you used is okay for young trees in the nursery phase of growing out, or up. It won't last in good shape for more than 2 years, so plan on repotting in two years.

If it were mine, I'd let it grow tall and get bushy until then. No pruning.

Then I'd repot to a wider, shallow pot. After it recovered only then would I begin wiring and pruning for "bonsai". Sequoia are suitable for formal upright and informal upright styles. They will fight any attempt to make the apex grow downward. Branches can be made to cascade, though they will grow better at horizontal or upward.

I figured. So my plan is the following:

Let is grow, grow, grow......
chop off dead foliage ....
Repot in two years.....
I assume ill have to root prune based on videos I saw, cut the roots w/ saw and place in shallow pot. I am trying not to wire and just do Clip and Grow style. any recommendations for pot size or a picture? Thanks Leo.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Most "off the rack" bonsai pots are less than 4 inches deep interior dimensions. My recommendation would be the next pot be a training pot shaped more like a "finished bonsai pot". Myself I use Anderson flats, a heavy duty black plastic flat with a mesh bottom. Their interior dimensions are 16 x 16 x 5 inches, and I usually fill to only 4 inches depth with potting media. This size container holds nearly the same amount of potting media as a 3 gallon nursery trade pot. (note, the "3 gallon nursery pot" holds less than 3 gallons by volume). The Anderson Flat is my "go to" for a growing out & training container. There are hundreds of alternatives, it is up to you to choose one, but it is a good example of what I use.

In the images you can see my Anderson flats in use, first 2 images for seedlings (persimmon) and the third image for 2 trees in training, a spruce and a pine. Like I said, brand name, or specific style is not important, but the next training pot should have good drainage, be wide and long, but less than 5 inches deep, and generally you should not have potting media greater than 4 inches deep, unless you can not reduce the root system adequately to make the tree fit.

 

[bunjin]

They are difficult trees to grow in containers. They only grow naturally in a few areas of specific elevation in the Sierras. I understand that I was not watering them enough despite their native habitat, which is very dry in the summer. I would consult with these folks about their special needs: https://www.giant-sequoia.com

 

[Bonsai Nut]

They only grow naturally in a few areas of specific elevation in the Sierras.

I agree about your container comment, however Sequoias are extremely adaptable to a wild range of environments. The largest tree in Switzerland is a giant sequoia Go to the site you linked, and check their photo galleries to see photos of giant sequoias all over the world (BTW I have ordered from them in the past... they are a good source for other west coast conifers as well as sequoias).

Sequoias should not be confused with coast redwoods, which are much more selective about their range.

 

[bunjin]

It is interesting to see how flora, once discovered, spread across the globe. I seldom leave our state, so I have always assumed that it was S.S. that proliferated across the globe. But maybe that is not true. I will occasionally run into a S.G. from time to time, and most were planted about 100 years ago. There are maybe about 5 in my local area as opposed to thousands of S.S. Our drought is hard on the S.S. Both genus tend to grow faster in many places if they get the water apparently. Exploring the old growth giant sequoia groves is a wonderful activity if you come to CA. Some are well visited, but many of them I encountered when I was an inspector are remote and equally beautiful to say, Giant Forest in SNP.

 

[Cryptocat]

Most "off the rack" bonsai pots are less than 4 inches deep interior dimensions. My recommendation would be the next pot be a training pot shaped more like a "finished bonsai pot". Myself I use Anderson flats, a heavy duty black plastic flat with a mesh bottom. Their interior dimensions are 16 x 16 x 5 inches, and I usually fill to only 4 inches depth with potting media. This size container holds nearly the same amount of potting media as a 3 gallon nursery trade pot. (note, the "3 gallon nursery pot" holds less than 3 gallons by volume). The Anderson Flat is my "go to" for a growing out & training container. There are hundreds of alternatives, it is up to you to choose one, but it is a good example of what I use.

In the images you can see my Anderson flats in use, first 2 images for seedlings (persimmon) and the third image for 2 trees in training, a spruce and a pine. Like I said, brand name, or specific style is not important, but the next training pot should have good drainage, be wide and long, but less than 5 inches deep, and generally you should not have potting media greater than 4 inches deep, unless you can not reduce the root system adequately to make the tree fit.
View attachment 321616 View attachment 321617 View attachment 321618

Thanks

 

[Daniel Negucic]

Hello everyone,

My name is Daniel, and I am from Serbia.
I have tried hard to find giant sequoia plants as it is not common in this area. Finaly i found a nursery in Romania and got 2 small plants 3 yrs ago. They are growing beautifull in the pot, i had no problems so far but they are growing high.
My question is: How do I do top prunning so that I stop growing upwards, I read somwhere that I can cut the top and use side branch as new top, however not sure about the details.
I have still not moved the plants into the shallow pot as i was letting them grow free.

I am thankfull for all advices, as I am afraid to do a mistake because I think that I am the only one in the country having this amazing plants

Thank you