Brussel's Bonsai - online purchase

[Emmaface]

Hello there! I've seen several good things about Brussel's Bonsai, so thought I'd share my positive experience as well. I bought a pot and some soil online. I received it pretty quickly, I placed the order May 28th and it arrived on June 3rd.

This soil:
http://shop.brusselsbonsai.com/Details.cfm?ProdID=8908&category=0

And this pot:
http://shop.brusselsbonsai.com/Details.cfm?ProdID=8755&category=0




This is the first bonsai pot I've ever bought, so I don't know if it's standard for pots to come with the wires and screens. It didn't mention that on the page when I bought it, so I was very pleasantly surprised to find them included with the pot! The pot itself looks like perfectly good quality, looks like there's a very small crack on the bottom near one hole, just a surface crack, not cracked all the way through. I really like the glaze, it's much more vibrant than the picture and I love it, I love the drip style.

I haven't used the soil yet, so I can't comment on it.

Will buy again!

 

[lordy]

Pretty glaze on that pot. You'll have to find the right plant to take advantage of the color. I bet an azalea of some sort would set it off well. Nice!

 

[KennedyMarx]

I like that blue. Something with white flowers would look really good with it, I think.

I'm curious about the bonsai soil. The site says proprietary blend but no ingredients listed or pics of it. Can you post a picture of it?

 

[M. Frary]

Pretty little pot. I am also curious as to what the proprietary blend is composed of. What kind of name is Emmaface? Just curious is all not being mean. Or trying not to.

 

[Emmaface]

My juniper is going into this pot, I'm a beginner and it's the only tree I have.
(my first thread with pics of my tree is here)
I was already planning for an azalea to be my next tree though! I love the big flowers, so gorgeous.

There's a picture of the front of the soil bag on my other thread, but there's no list there. I'll get a picture of the back of the bag later.

My name is Emma, someone called me Emma-Face once upon a time as a joke. I don't hear it much anymore, but I started using it on forums and such and now it's just habit, I suppose. It's a name that's never taken.

 

[Emmaface]

I'll get a picture of the back of the bag later.

Hm. I just took a look, and the back of the bag is blank, there's no ingredients anywhere. I think I'll shoot them an email and ask, and post the answer here.

 

[M. Frary]

Heck. Just spread some and take a picture so we can guess what's in it. That would be a lot funner don't you think?

 

[Emmaface]

Heck. Just spread some and take a picture so we can guess what's in it. That would be a lot funner don't you think?

Ha! It certainly would be, when I get this bag open I might just do that. And I'll still ask Brussel's, to see who gets it right

 

[Adair M]

About Brussel's soil: it holds far too much water.

The first thing I do whenever I get a tree that used to be at Brussel's is to repot it to get it OUT of that soil as soon as possible.

I'm glad you only wasted $11. Don't use it.

It's going to have a lot of organic material in it. Mostly pine bark. Which will eventually get slimy and begin to rot. Which will rot your roots.
Last
There are lots of threads on this site, and there are many posts that refer to poor soil of the trees that come from Brussel's..

 

[Emmaface]

About Brussel's soil: it holds far too much water.

The first thing I do whenever I get a tree that used to be at Brussel's is to repot it to get it OUT of that soil as soon as possible.

I'm glad you only wasted $11. Don't use it.

It's going to have a lot of organic material in it. Mostly pine bark. Which will eventually get slimy and begin to rot. Which will rot your roots.
Last
There are lots of threads on this site, and there are many posts that refer to poor soil of the trees that come from Brussel's..

Well, crap.

 

[bonsaiBlake]

all is not lost you can get a bunch of inorganic media and use the brussel's as filler and mix the two to reduce the overall amount of organic material.

 

[Adair M]

Well, crap.

Better to know now, than use it and ruin a tree.

 

[johng]

Not interested in a soil war at all but the fact is that thousands and thousands of trees are successfully grown in that soil. It may not be the choice of experienced growers that dedicate countless hours to the care of their trees but it works well for beginners who are just learning to care for their trees.

john

 

[Dav4]

Not interested in a soil war at all but the fact is that thousands and thousands of trees are successfully grown in that soil. It may not be the choice of experienced growers that dedicate countless hours to the care of their trees but it works well for beginners who are just learning to care for their trees.

john

And having some extra moisture retention in the soil in your climate may not be such a bad thing. Again, I have no experience growing bonsai in the southwest but it sounds very hot and dry. A little extra moisture in the rootball could be a very good thing, even for a juniper.

 

[Emmaface]

And having some extra moisture retention in the soil in your climate may not be such a bad thing. Again, I have no experience growing bonsai in the southwest but it sounds very hot and dry. A little extra moisture in the rootball could be a very good thing, even for a juniper.

I think that's an excellent point. It certainly is very hot and dry. We've already hit 110°, and those triple digits won't quit until September. Virtually no humidity either. I water in the morning, and even though it starts the day in full sun and ends up in the shade by the afternoon when it's the hottest, it's almost bone dry by the time I get home from work.

 

[lordy]

I think that's an excellent point. It certainly is very hot and dry. We've already hit 110°, and those triple digits won't quit until September. Virtually no humidity either. I water in the morning, and even though it starts the day in full sun and ends up in the shade by the afternoon when it's the hottest, it's almost bone dry by the time I get home from work.

Maybe try topdressing the soil with some sphagnum moss. It will help retain moisture, and add a bit of acid to soil. Sometimes I have been known to cover the tops of the pots with (white) cheesecloth. The light color reflects some of the heat from the sun thereby keeping it a bit cooler in the rootzone, and it can breathe well at the same time. Might be worth a shot.

 

[Emmaface]

Here's a closeup of the new soil:



It seems to be draining very well but staying pretty wet. We'll see how long it takes to dry out tomorrow in the sun.