My Tiniest tree, What are you trying that's new??

[JoeR]

These make more sense to me.View attachment 182985View attachment 182986View attachment 182987View attachment 182988View attachment 182989
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And though it is not full on top or bottom to more quickly dry out the pot..this Summer hacked and potted box never needed more than before and after work hand watering. In a great shaped tiny IKer...View attachment 182991
Resorce.

It is Highly important to note Moss as a tool, and a very necessary part if this equation.

Not only does it keep water in the pot....
But it also draws water up with capillary action and life for evaporation.

With a thousand it depends'...

I haven't figured it out fully, but its a balance between pot shape and construction, soil, and appropriate mossing that leads to humidity trayless success....

...ie, smaller drain holes, a little dip around the inside edge like my Lubos pot that holds extra water...soil as close to perfectly round small pumice as possible..and the appropriate moss to wick water thru the soil evenly through a hot day....

Sorce

I knew you’d already have some done! Some of them look more like accent planting pots to me though, mostly the curved ones. All are nice

Very good point about the moss. I can’t keep moss alive in my pots long term though, one late watering and it’s brown. Also I can’t find any short-growing moss that handles full sun. I’ve tried white T-shirts but I didn’t find they helped much as far as moisture retention but they definitely kept the pots cooler than a black pot. They are not aesthetically pleasing, however.

You’ve definitely given some food for thought sorce!

 

[BunjaeKorea]

I knew you’d already have some done! Some of them look more like accent planting pots to me though, mostly the curved ones. All are nice

Very good point about the moss. I can’t keep moss alive in my pots long term though, one late watering and it’s brown. Also I can’t find any short-growing moss that handles full sun. I’ve tried white T-shirts but I didn’t find they helped much as far as moisture retention but they definitely kept the pots cooler than a black pot. They are not aesthetically pleasing, however.

You’ve definitely given some food for thought sorce!

Try reed screening if you can find it......also look for species of moss in your local park especially those in sunny positions....thats where I find mine.....also even if it browns at the very least it keeps the soil from drying out as fast ...think of it as a lifeline

 

[sorce]

more like accent planting pots to me

Its funny because I think "Mame" pots look like accent pots!

Truth is they both do!

Odd what our brains register to define something.

But no matter what the definition....
The ones with regular pot proportions are the ones I bet live!

Sorce

 

[BunjaeKorea]

Its funny because I think "Mame" pots look like accent pots!

Truth is they both do!

Odd what our brains register to define something.

But no matter what the definition....
The ones with regular pot proportions are the ones I bet live!

Sorce

I think we should build an experiment around your theory.....with sacrificable sticks in pots though....

 

[sorce]

with sacrificable sticks in pots thoug

That is another thing that I was thinking looking at the above ones....

The very fact that we do this with what we consider sacrificial sticks. .

I know of ONE sustained Mame.
Jerry Norburys Maple.

It is not a sacrificial stick.

Mame are no different from other bonsai in that they need a pot chock full of fine feeder roots.

This needs to be developed properly and it is NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN WITH A STICK!

FURTHER, when we speak of stored energy...
Which is what drives SUSTAINABLE BONSAI....
there is no where for a Mame to hold the energy if it does not have a trunk in proportion to the pot same as any other tree.

There is rarely a need to experiment.

It's all in what we already know!

Sorce

 

[0soyoung]

I think we should build an experiment around your theory.....with sacrificable sticks in pots though....

One can start with layers/cuttings but seedlings of many species I've played with, kept small in small pots, seem to miniaturize in ways that big things cut down don't.

I know nobody asked, but I suggest:

• Sew a seed in a small pot OR put a sprout in a small pot.
• Grow it in the pot.
• Sit the pots on a humidity tray filled with coarse sand or some substrate
  • OR
  • Nest the little pots in bigger pots of substrate and water just like your bigger stuff
  • significantly eases watering issues.
• Keeping them in partial to full shade is also advisable.

Regardless, pick them up once in a while and admire. Pinch off roots escaping out the drain hole.

I prefer little pots that are glazed on the inside. The plant will usually pop right out for repotting (else a thin 'blade' sometimes needs to be run around the perimeter first). Comb out the roots like you would for a bigger tree. Flip the pot and use as a template to trim the roots. Wrap a couple turns of a long piece of wire around the trunk - shape the trunk. Feed the long tail of wire through the drain hole, up the side of the pot and over the lip (defines 'long'). Tweak the positioning, Pour in substrate - water to settle; repeat as needed to refill the pot.

These little/girly trees are lots of fun IMHO.
You can have a dozen of them in the space of one of your my regular sized sticks.

 

[JoeR]

Here’s a little crab root cutting that got a new pot today. Needs some soil dressing.

 

[JoeH]

Water Oak seedling been in this pot for close to a year.

 

[BunjaeKorea]

@sorce I can see what you are saying....in my opinion this is much easier to do with a seedling and train it from there......I have had my Japanese quince for 4 years as a Mame and its been doing fine.....
In my further and humble opinion some species are better than others.....especially those who hold energy in the sap and not the roots (comparitively speaking of course)
@0soyoung you are right in your observations I found better survival rates as well as development...although development is quite slow.

It should be stated that anyone who tries this cant just go defoliating and trimming like mad because comparitive to the mass of the tree lobbing off leaves is like lobbing of branches ans takes a lot of energy from the tree.

I think a lot of Mame are overworked and killed with enthusiasm.

 

[sorce]

In my further and humble opinion some species are better than others.....especially those who hold energy in the sap and not the roots (comparitively speaking of course)
@0soyoung you are right in your ob

This is excellent!
All these detail need to be thought about for success. In gonna see if I can't make something real happen this year.

Doubt it! Lol!

Sorce

 

[BunjaeKorea]

This is excellent!
All these detail need to be thought about for success. In gonna see if I can't make something real happen this year.

Doubt it! Lol!

Sorce

Exactly....its actually much slower and more difficult than shohin size and up. Everything is small and theres many mistakes to be made. My other advice is find trees that are growing in pavement gaps or in cracks on the street ....you know there tough and they often have smaller leaves.....identify the species....use it....get skill and then move on while making trees that actually survive.

Trying Manchurian/ Korean Rose which is common here, makes nice ? and is essentially a weed. Lol but it looks nice with fine foliage

 

[Fishtank307]

Lonicera nitida, dug up from a hedge. I bought the pots at a yard sale for 1 euro. They're Chinese, decent quality, but the stamp on the bottom isn't clearly visible... I bought them today and since I don't have any cascade bonsai, I thought I'd use them for these wee little trees.

 

[BunjaeKorea]

Lonicera nitida, dug up from a hedge. I bought the pots at a yard sale for 1 euro. They're Chinese, decent quality, but the stamp on the bottom isn't clearly visible... I bought them today and since I don't have any cascade bonsai, I thought I'd use them for these wee little trees.

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Great start you cant go wrong with a species that is drought tolerant and shade tolerant at the same time!!! for Mame.

I believe these make good fragrant flowers and its funny you have a Chinese pot as these are from Yunnan in China too.
Keep us updated.

 

[cockroach]

I am really starting to admire the "small", "little" and "tiny" trees. As space is limited for me in the garden and time is somewhat of a luxury at times, these sizes are more and more appealing by the day. I have a few I am working on.
Hibiscus - this one has worked well
Premna Microphylla - love this species big or small
Ficus microcarpa ( practice trees as sooner or later they rip loose without constant care)
Juniper chinensis - forgiving conifer species and also great big or small
Azalea
Fukien tea
Ulmus parvifola - another great species

Ficus


Elm

Hibiscus

Juniper

Premna

 

[BunjaeKorea]

Liking the juniper.....
Though in my climate Mame are more work not less.....

 

[cockroach]

They are a lot of work here as well. Summer dries them out really quickly and the the tropicals grow, well, like tropicals. Finding a balance between optimum light and watering is a balancing act.

 

[BunjaeKorea]

They are a lot of work here as well. Summer dries them out really quickly and the the tropicals grow, well, like tropicals. Finding a balance between optimum light and watering is a balancing act.

Especially when you have something that loves full sun like some juniper s and all pines......not easy.

 

[petegreg]

I am really starting to admire the "small", "little" and "tiny" trees. As space is limited for me in the garden and time is somewhat of a luxury at times, these sizes are more and more appealing by the day. I have a few I am working on.
Hibiscus - this one has worked well
Premna Microphylla - love this species big or small
Ficus microcarpa ( practice trees as sooner or later they rip loose without constant care)
Juniper chinensis - forgiving conifer species and also great big or small
Azalea
Fukien tea
Ulmus parvifola - another great species

Ficus
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Elm
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Hibiscus
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Juniper
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Premna
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These are really nice.
You might not believe, but one you asked for ID and called it Hibiscus...I searched all possible and impossible sources and wasn't able to ID it. Some Cissus was my guess, but look...Cissus species list

 

[cockroach]

@petegreg This thread is how I came to that ID.
https://bonsainut.com/threads/please-help-id.31603/#post-525057
The leaves look more scalloped as opposed to the palmatilobate leaves of the cissus. the petiole is also different from what I can tell.
There is a guy in our community with a nice little garden who has several hibiscus and this one looks remarkably similar to one he has.

 

[coachspinks]

I am really enjoying this thread! I put some moss on the surface of mine and set them in a tray with substrate. It makes a huge difference!