Indoor Mulberry Chinese Elm Dwarf Pomegranate and more

LiquidSkin

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What motivation do you have for defoliation this time of year? Aren't you afraid of stimulating late growth that will most probably freeze?
This is a indoor bonsai grown under lights. I live in an apartment so I can't have outdoor bonsai.
 

Leo in N E Illinois

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I would add a small fan for air circulation to your grow tent. I've grown underlights, orchids and a few trees for over 40 years and found adding fans to my set up greatly improved growing. There should be enough of a breeze that grassy leaved plants should be constantly waving lightly in the breeze. I leave the fans on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
 

LiquidSkin

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I would add a small fan for air circulation to your grow tent. I've grown underlights, orchids and a few trees for over 40 years and found adding fans to my set up greatly improved growing. There should be enough of a breeze that grassy leaved plants should be constantly waving lightly in the breeze. I leave the fans on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Good advise! I have a fan outside pointing in the tent to circulate air.
 

LiquidSkin

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Big update today.

Starting with something new to this thread is my Bonchi/Bonsai Chilli. Over the summer I grew a Sweet Banana pepper and it got so big and bushy that it fell over half way through the summer. This and cutting the top off a couple times throught the summer promoted side branches to grow which in turn helped thicken the trunk nicely.

Here it is today! I haven't decided if it should be allowed to flower yet or if I will pick all the flowers off. It has already been through one round of flower plucking but am not sure if it needs another. Anyways here are the pictures

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It's hard to see in these pictures but the main stem is about the size of a quarter maybe a bit thicker. This bonchi is only about 7'' tall at the moment.

Next we have a microminiature rose I bought from etsy for my mother. Since we both live in appartments neither of us can grow it outside perminently so she let me grow it indoors and she'll take it back to grow on her balcony during next summer. I'd been trying to find "Si" micro mini rose for quite some time although this is not it the flowers smell beautiful.

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The flowers are yellow

Next we have my ficus and it is doing quite well.

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And finally an overview shot and update on the Mulberry growing and producing more fruit already.

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Unfortunately there was some die back on the Mulberry but not much. For now it'll be allowed to grow and gain vigor before the hard pruning it needs to develop better taper.

To give you an idea of how big the Mulberry actually is the tent is 3'x3' square.
 

ShadyStump

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I'm a sucker for bonchi!
My sweet Italian cherry has been mistreated all summer in others' care, but is still alive.
Two years old, but still nothing like the trunk yours has. What's your secret?
 

Leo in N E Illinois

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Bonsai Chilies, if you can find them, Manzano pepper (name used in Mexico) is probably the best species to use. It is Capsicum pubescens. It was domesticated in Bolivia and Peru, it is a pepper species with violet flowers red, orange or yellow fruit with BLACK seed. It is genetically different enough that it does not hybridize with the more common pepper species and varieties. Manzano is sometimes called the "tree chili", as the stems and roots lignify more than most peppers, and typically in frost free areas, can live up to 15 years or more, forming a more tree like shrub.

There are several named cultivated strains, some fruiting red, some yellow, the strain common in the Wisconsin grocery store I go to is orange. The peppers are quite meaty, the flesh or the walls of the fruit are more like a bell pepper than a thin skinned serrano. It is grown mostly in Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, and Mexico. It has hairy leaves. (fuzzy leaves). It is quite hot, hotter than jalapeno, & serrano, its actually as hot or hotter most habanero. I don't know its Scoville rating, probably in the 250,000 to 1,000,000 range. It makes jalapeno peppers seem quite mild. .

The 15 year plus life span, and the more woody stem structure make this a pepper to explore for "Bonchili".
 

ShadyStump

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Bonsai Chilies, if you can find them, Manzano pepper (name used in Mexico) is probably the best species to use. It is Capsicum pubescens. It was domesticated in Bolivia and Peru, it is a pepper species with violet flowers red, orange or yellow fruit with BLACK seed. It is genetically different enough that it does not hybridize with the more common pepper species and varieties. Manzano is sometimes called the "tree chili", as the stems and roots lignify more than most peppers, and typically in frost free areas, can live up to 15 years or more, forming a more tree like shrub.

There are several named cultivated strains, some fruiting red, some yellow, the strain common in the Wisconsin grocery store I go to is orange. The peppers are quite meaty, the flesh or the walls of the fruit are more like a bell pepper than a thin skinned serrano. It is grown mostly in Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, and Mexico. It has hairy leaves. (fuzzy leaves). It is quite hot, hotter than jalapeno, & serrano, its actually as hot or hotter most habanero. I don't know its Scoville rating, probably in the 250,000 to 1,000,000 range. It makes jalapeno peppers seem quite mild. .

The 15 year plus life span, and the more woody stem structure make this a pepper to explore for "Bonchili".
Now on the grocery list.
 

LiquidSkin

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I'm a sucker for bonchi!
My sweet Italian cherry has been mistreated all summer in others' care, but is still alive.
Two years old, but still nothing like the trunk yours has. What's your secret?
No secret I plant the pepper seeds indoor about 1-2 months before the last frost date (march) and pretty much let them grow throughout the year. If they fall over or you cut the top off it will thicken the trunk dramatically.
 

ShadyStump

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No secret I plant the pepper seeds indoor about 1-2 months before the last frost date (march) and pretty much let them grow throughout the year. If they fall over or you cut the top off it will thicken the trunk dramatically.
The most I've ever done is pinch them back to spur more branching. Just the routine gardening stuff.
Mine, actually was the result of an experiment growing peppers in one of those Topsy-Turvy upside down hanging pots. Created some crazy movement in the trunk, but otherwise no effect from a gardening perspective.
 

LiquidSkin

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Update to my Ficus bonsai before pruning

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After defoliation

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LiquidSkin

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The Mulberry is producing tons of fruit which I eat as soon as it turns black or a day or two after. It can be difficult timing it right to get the sweetest fruit. Update when fruiting is over and it can be hard pruned.
 

LiquidSkin

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Chopped back the mulberry today and the rose too.

overview
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Before
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After
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LiquidSkin

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Well guys I have bad news. My grow room got overrun by fungus gnats. I tried every trick in the book to get rid of them and they just kept coming back so what I had to do was get rid of every plant in the room and all the soil. Don't worry I plan on ordering more Mulberry and rose from the same place they came from last time. Probably some time next week as the fungus gnats take about a week to die. Then new plants will be on order.
 

ShadyStump

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Well guys I have bad news. My grow room got overrun by fungus gnats. I tried every trick in the book to get rid of them and they just kept coming back so what I had to do was get rid of every plant in the room and all the soil. Don't worry I plan on ordering more Mulberry and rose from the same place they came from last time. Probably some time next week as the fungus gnats take about a week to die. Then new plants will be on order.
I've been having issues with aphids n my plants inside. Nothing I read about that I would use in my living room was working.
Finally last weekend I made a dark tea out of cheap tobacco, and sprayed everything like crazy. Haven't seen another aphid in two days now. Kicking myself for not remembering that trick earlier.
 

penumbra

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Well guys I have bad news. My grow room got overrun by fungus gnats. I tried every trick in the book to get rid of them and they just kept coming back so what I had to do was get rid of every plant in the room and all the soil. Don't worry I plan on ordering more Mulberry and rose from the same place they came from last time. Probably some time next week as the fungus gnats take about a week to die. Then new plants will be on order.
That is really drastic.
 
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