Did Fall Come Early?

[misfit11]

...or did my neighbor simply forget to water my trees for a few days while I was on vacation in San Diego for two weeks?

 

[penumbra]

Good luck man.

 

[Paradox]

Ouch

 

[Hartinez]

Ouch is right my friend. I was out of town mid summer and my wife was watering. I lost several shohin and a few larger. Tough stuff for sure. Hoping we’re seeing the worst of the damage.

 

[n8]

Oof. Mojo atcha.

 

[QuantumSparky]

I feel your pain I am in the process of designing a budget misting/watering system that I can control via smartphone for when I'm away from the house. None of the people I know have any appreciation for the hobby so I wouldn't really trust them to take care of my trees if I was away :/

 

[ShadyStump]

Oooh. Xo <can't find a 'wince in soul crushing pain emoji'>
I'll burn a candle for whoever the patron saint of trees is.

(Actually, there's got to be something like that now that I think of it.)

 

[Njyamadori]

How can someone forget to water those amazing trees ? They probably watered it like a house plant and only gave it a top water instead of watering the whole pot and making it all drain out .

 

[Paradox]

I feel your pain I am in the process of designing a budget misting/watering system that I can control via smartphone for when I'm away from the house. None of the people I know have any appreciation for the hobby so I wouldn't really trust them to take care of my trees if I was away :/

I use battery operated timers, a hose and 2 lawn sprinklers. That is about as cheap as you can get. I wouldn't worry about being able to control it remotely which will add more expense.

I have 2 zones. One is watered every day and the other every other day. If you use proper bonsai soil you won't need to worry about the sprinklers going off even if it rains. It's practically impossible overwater bonsai soil. I often forget to delay my system when it rains. I've never had a problem with overwatering.

 

[QuantumSparky]

I use battery operated timers, a hose and 2 lawn sprinklers. That is about as cheap as you can get. I wouldn't worry about being able to control it remotely which will add more expense.

I have 2 zones. One is watered every day and the other every other day. If you use proper bonsai soil you won't need to worry about the sprinklers going off even if it rains. It's practically impossible overwater bonsai soil. I often forget to delay my system when it rains. I've never had a problem with overwatering.

I like the sprinkler idea, I had been imagining a slightly more complicated setup with basic smart plugs powering some small water pumps I have lying around, and some extra flex tubing I have as well. Controlling it would be easy, and all the water would go right into the pot via tubes. Since I have the materials it would be cheaper than new hoses and sprinklers but the downside is that it obviously wouldn't mist the foliage.

 

[penumbra]

I'll burn a candle for whoever the patron saint of trees is.

​

Saint Fiacre, an Irish Monk, is the Patron Saint of Gardeners

 

[BobbyLane]

it does help to cover your pots with sphagnum moss before you go away at least if you know the person wont water every day it helps to retain moisture.
one summer i asked my brother to go around and water/drench every second or third day. i knew this would be enough, because i use organics in my mix and top dressed with moss before i left for two weeks. sometimes its a big ask for someone to go n do it every single day.

 

[ShadyStump]

Saint Fiacre, an Irish Monk, is the Patron Saint of Gardeners

Took a moment to look that up before bed last night. There's several others that seem to be asociated with gardening as well. I'm not even Catholic, but it seems like something I should look into.