My inorganic substrate dry out too fast

[ForteD]

Hello guys, I live in tropical climate, around 28-38C. I repoted my tree last week, with 50% perlite, the rest is akadama, lava red and black. 3-6mm particle size.

Thing is I have to water my tree 2 times a day, yesterday I try to water it just one time a day, put it in shade area, it is showing wilt this morning.

_If the root start to develop, fill the void space, will it help the drying issue?

_I am looking for a solution that help me not to water the tree for 5-7 days, incase I am in a vaction.
_Also a good drainage, so I can water it as much as I can without worry of overwatering.
_I love my substrate clean, so organic mixture maybe not a good option.
_Cover the top layer with moss seem to be a good idea, but I am not sure if it can withstand 5 days.

 

[Tums]

I think for five days, it doesn't matter what soil mix you use. You'll have to set up some kind of automated system or get someone to watch your plants.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

Or bury the pot in organics like coco coir, water the heck out of it, hope for the best.
Should hold up for 4 days or so.

 

[Shibui]

Twice a day is normal for open, large particle soil mix. It's what we need to do to prevent the problems associated with overwatering.
Down here I use an organic mix because large inorganics dry out too fast in the heat of summer. I still need to water twice a day through most of our summer. Organic just means I need to water more carefully in the shoulder season and through winter.

As the roots recover from the repot the trees may wilt less and may go a full day without water but I don't think they could last a couple of days in summer.
Moss won't keep the water in the pot for long. It only slows evaporation from the surface. It is also how much water the roots are taking from the soil which is often way more than the evaporation from the soil.
I don't know any soil that will manage to keep a tree alive for a week in summer. We have auto watering systems for that.
Trees can be get by occasionally with the pots sitting in a water tray for up to a week but using this regularly would be asking for problems.

 

[ForteD]

Thank guys, I will try to mix it with organic subtrate on a test pot first to see how fast it evaporate.

Twice a day is normal for open, large particle soil mix. It's what we need to do to prevent the problems associated with overwatering.
Down here I use an organic mix because large inorganics dry out too fast in the heat of summer. I still need to water twice a day through most of our summer. Organic just means I need to water more carefully in the shoulder season and through winter.

As the roots recover from the repot the trees may wilt less and may go a full day without water but I don't think they could last a couple of days in summer.
Moss won't keep the water in the pot for long. It only slows evaporation from the surface. It is also how much water the roots are taking from the soil which is often way more than the evaporation from the soil.
I don't know any soil that will manage to keep a tree alive for a week in summer. We have auto watering systems for that.
Trees can be get by occasionally with the pots sitting in a water tray for up to a week but using this regularly would be asking for problems.

Can you share the ratio and the organic name?, so I can try to adjust it base on my region.

 

[Shibui]

I purchase a commercially made mix as I use 3-4 cubic metres each year. They make it to my specs which is: 80% 3-6mm pine bark, 20% 3-6mm propagating sand with additives: granusol long term iron, blue chip controlled release fertiliser, micronutrient mix, Iron sulphate, dolomite, gypsum, zeolite.

Remember, just because that mix works here it may not be good everywhere. Every grower should look at and try some test mixes then modify to something that works for them at their place under their care program.

 

[dbonsaiw]

_If the root start to develop, fill the void space, will it help the drying issue?

_I am looking for a solution that help me not to water the tree for 5-7 days, incase I am in a vaction.
_Also a good drainage, so I can water it as much as I can without worry of overwatering.
_I love my substrate clean, so organic mixture maybe not a good option.
_Cover the top layer with moss seem to be a good idea, but I am not sure if it can withstand 5 days.

Filling the voids isn't a great idea. I have added fine shredded moss, potting soil etc. to very open mixes and didn't like it. Soil does not drain well at all and it completely ruins the point of the bonsai soil. I don't think it's possible to have a soil mix that can stay unwatered for 7 days in the summer, and nothing close will have anything resembling drainage. Best solution I have come up with is to pay my younger son's friends to water if I'm out. They have fun and make a few bucks and at least my trees aren't dead. My older son's friends are happy to have a backyard with no one bothering them and, providing they aren't too stupid by that point, they even water.

 

[ForteD]

Filling the voids isn't a great idea. I have added fine shredded moss, potting soil etc. to very open mixes and didn't like it. Soil does not drain well at all and it completely ruins the point of the bonsai soil. I don't think it's possible to have a soil mix that can stay unwatered for 7 days in the summer, and nothing close will have anything resembling drainage. Best solution I have come up with is to pay my younger son's friends to water if I'm out. They have fun and make a few bucks and at least my trees aren't dead. My older son's friends are happy to have a backyard with no one bothering them and, providing they aren't too stupid by that point, they even water.

Agree, I dont want to fill the void space with anything too fines, it will flush down to the bottom and block the drainage.
I just order a bunch of stuff to test which will fit my need, at least 1 or 2 days without watering, bcause watering 3 times a day in summer will waste a lot of water (my pot is 50x18 cm).

 

[leatherback]

_I am looking for a solution that help me not to water the tree for 5-7 days, incase I am in a vaction.
_Also a good drainage, so I can water it as much as I can without worry of overwatering.
_I love my substrate clean, so organic mixture maybe not a good option.

This is a set of criteria that is not going to come together.

 

[roberthu]

Wilt may also be related to the recent repot during which I assume you reduced the root mass?

 

[ForteD]

Wilt may also be related to the recent repot during which I assume you reduced the root mass?

I did reduce, but not too much, I only touch the thick root, cut it shorter about 25%. The wilt might cause by the tree doesnt have much feeder root, also the tree is deciduous variety, it love to be moist.

This is a set of criteria that is not going to come together.

I was hope there could be something that perfect

 

[namnhi]

I did reduce, but not too much, I only touch the thick root, cut it shorter about 25%. The wilt might cause by the tree doesnt have much feeder root, also the tree is deciduous variety, it love to be moist.


I was hope there could be something that perfect

A personal gardener.

 

[Paradox]

Not sure how this will work in the tropics but when I've gone away for a week in the winter, I've filled the trays my tropicals sit in with water where they spend the winter in my basement. That lasts me a week.

I'd imagine evaporation will be faster where you are so that might not work. So I'd go with a hose, sprinkler and battery operated timer. I use that on my trees when they are outside and it never fails as long as I have fresh batteries and I make sure the sprinkler is in good condition and working properly.

Yes the tree filling the pot will help with timing. Also more water retentive stuff in the soil mix. Ie greater amount of akadama. I am not sure how water retentive perlite is.

 

[ForteD]

Not sure how this will work in the tropics but when I've gone away for a week in the winter, I've filled the trays my tropicals sit in with water where they spend the winter in my basement. That lasts me a week.

I'd imagine evaporation will be faster where you are so that might not work. So I'd go with a hose, sprinkler and battery operated timer. I use that on my trees when they are outside and it never fails as long as I have fresh batteries and I make sure the sprinkler is in good condition and working properly.

Yes the tree filling the pot will help with timing. Also more water retentive stuff in the soil mix. Ie greater amount of akadama. I am not sure how water retentive perlite is.

Thanks for sharing, I will try that.

Btw, perlite is pretty good at retain water: