Growing back yard nursery

[Shogun610]

So I posted a few times but I made a cool setup for my trees next to nothing all excess stuff from a big farm/ nursery near me. I did a proper bonsai repot on a small Atlantic Cedar.. the rest are either in pots(2) and the rest will be repotted in spring. So far I have 3 deshojo maples (1 still at nursery till leaves fall). Different varieties as seedlings, and a coral bark Maple. I have a Japanese white pine glauca and ,Kobe (I think) 1 I havent ID’ed yet since it’s a younger, Japanese Red pine low glow, pitch pine , Norway spruce, Juniper (still needs styling and pruning).

For the repot in spring I plan on using a Akadama , Pumice, Volcanic mix with Pine Bark( I’m in SE Pa). Two are windswept (white pines), 1 informal upright (cedar) and lastly the Norway spruce is formal upright. The rest are still styling ,but seems to be a semi cascade or cascade direction (esp. juniper). No idea on the maples yet. Took this years shoots off a few, took away to cambium later, and dipped in hormone powder , then places in pellets with soil, then covered in plastic for greenhouse affect, maybe theyll root.

Please provide feedback. I’m getting more pallets as I go and slate(Will do one tree on slate). Still hunting for a black pine Alberta spruce, ponderosa and some other white pine varieties. A forest group would be chill too.Possibly another red pine. So here it is. The pines I’m still learning with pruning so feel free to critique. I have a lot of wire and will get more pots too.

I’ve gotten to know local growers and bonsai shops.. also have gotten deals on nursery pics that were “rejects” along with some negotiation on price. All together I’ve spent only 250 for everything which I think is pretty good for starting this project/ aspiring side gig.

 

[plant_dr]

Welcome to crazy!

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Nice collection.

In spring when you repot, I would use either an Akadama, pumice, & lava mix, or I would use a douglas fir bark, pumice & lava mix. I would not mix bark & akadama.

My reason is the akadama, pumice & lava mix can go as much as 10 years without repotting, the mix is long lived. Bark, whether pine bark or douglas fir bark usually breaks down in less than 7 years, often needing replacement in 3 to 5 years. Mixing bark into an akadama mix automatically shortens the useful life of the akadama mix. But this shortening of use life is not a big deal. Young trees are repotted more often than older trees, and all your trees are fairly young.

Generally, we try not to repot bonsai too often. Mature, show ready trees might only be repotted once a decade. Deciduous trees are repotted more often, conifers are repotted less often. Young trees in training are usually repotted once every 3 to 5 years.

There are a thousands of different mixes. If you understand your mix, you can use just about anything, if you understand how to water and fertilize that mix. However I recommend, if you have access to akadama, that you learn to use the APL, the akadama, pumice & lava blend. Its a good reliable blend.

I use bark myself, its not a bad media component. But I also use the APL mix. I think long term APL mix has a few advantages. The two mixes are NOT interchangeable equivalents. They are different and require a little nuance in using them well.

 

[Shogun610]

I re-wired everything.... I was not content till today .. added another Japanese Red Pine and a native Alder.... I can’t wait to see what I’ll find this weekend

 

[BrianBay9]

Nice beginnings. The pictures make some of your trunks look like they are smooth arches. Don't know if they actually are or not. If so, I'd suggest bending a bit more movement into them - side to side, up and down. For most styles you'd like to see more interest in the trunk movement.