I just picked this Ming Aralia plant up the other day. Looking for some advice and suggestions on what I could do. This will be my first experimental tree to work on so feel free to critique it. All I’ve done so far was to trim it about 50% of its leaves. So far I’m thinking of doing an upright style with possible leave clump at different height of the tree. Thanks.
Ming Aralia suggestions
- Thread starter Vietcu
- Start date
Bonsai Nut
Nuttier than your average Nut
Tough plant to develop as bonsai. Large compound leaves and vertical growth. They are closely related to scheffleras.
One of your challenges will be to get sideways growth that looks convincingly like branching. New growth may surface on the side of the trunk, but it immediately grows upwards. You will need to defoliate the plant completely in order to get back-budding and compact growth.
It is a full tropical and needs direct sun or strong indirect lighting - particularly if you are going to develop it as bonsai.
One of your challenges will be to get sideways growth that looks convincingly like branching. New growth may surface on the side of the trunk, but it immediately grows upwards. You will need to defoliate the plant completely in order to get back-budding and compact growth.
It is a full tropical and needs direct sun or strong indirect lighting - particularly if you are going to develop it as bonsai.
Jzack605
Chumono
Don't know why but my mind immediately thought of a mature Elm when I saw it.
Agriff
Mame
Can you elaborate on this? I have a golden ming that I'm trying to work with. Do you mean prune branches back the the trunk line or remove just the foliage? Is there a best time of the year to do this for a tropical like these?
Bonsai Nut
Nuttier than your average Nut
(1) Remove all the foliage - every leaf.
(2) Prune to shape. Wire if appropriate.
(3) Best time to do this is late spring, early summer. Depending what kind of weather you've been having up in MN, I might wait a few weeks.
Agriff
Mame
Thank you!! It's been a heat wave this week- temps in the upper 90's, humidity in the mid 50's, sometimes as high as 76
penumbra
Imperial Masterpiece
I would not defoliate an aralia. Neither would I place one in full sun. An hour or two of morning or late afternoon sun is perfect. They are a bit too fussy as is and I think that there is some likelihood it would be seriously impaired or possibly even die. It is a plant that is so very sensitive to over watering that I could see a scenario where a defoliated plant would develop root rot. I have seen these plants rot many times.
I love Ming aralia and its several cultivars, and in fact I have a pretty large "Snowflake" aralia now. I think an aralia is best guided toward a sort of pseudo bonsai by removing that which makes it look like less of a bonsai. I hope that is clear.
I love Ming aralia and its several cultivars, and in fact I have a pretty large "Snowflake" aralia now. I think an aralia is best guided toward a sort of pseudo bonsai by removing that which makes it look like less of a bonsai. I hope that is clear.
