Newbie, Japanese red maple repot šŸ

dvsrk563

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This is my first maple repot from nursery pot to bonsai pot with pruning on top and bottom.
Any suggestions or recommendations of care after repotting?

Couple of them I learned and following,
1. Do not over water
2. Do not add fertilizer at least for a month
3. Avoid direct sunlight for at least a week or two.
 

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penumbra

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Couple of them I learned and following,
1. Do not over water
2. Do not add fertilizer at least for a month
3. Avoid direct sunlight for at least a week or two.
If you have learned these things then they work for you, but they are not the gospel.
Over watering a newly transplanted plant should not be construed as watering lightly, only less frequently. Still water to saturation.
There is no reason not to fertilize but every reason not to over fertilize.
If the plant is bare of leaves there is no reason to withhold sunshine.
 

penumbra

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Your wires should be anchored in the soil next to the trunk.
 

Rateeluck

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I'm a newbie, so take my advice with a grain of salt... I would cut at least one of the (probably the center) branches. There are 3 from the same node and it will create a bulge at that point later. Search bifurcation on here

Best regards
 

dvsrk563

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At this point the center area seems to be good, should I consider a cut now or when I notice some uneven bulge in that area probably sometime next season, what is your recommendation?
 

Rateeluck

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At this point the center area seems to be good, should I consider a cut now or when I notice some uneven bulge in that area probably sometime next season, what is your recommendation?
Personally I think it's too straight but I don't know what your plan is for the tree. Cutting the center leaves you with a new leader with some movement and then a first branch. Maybe search for some maple bonsai images and look how the trunk line and branches start out of the soil. It's a new tree and you have options.

Cheers
 

dvsrk563

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Personally I think it's too straight but I don't know what your plan is for the tree. Cutting the center leaves you with a new leader with some movement and then a first branch. Maybe search for some maple bonsai images and look how the trunk line and branches start out of the soil. It's a new tree and you have options.

Cheers
At this point I havenā€™t think of any shapes, as you suggested I will take a look at some shapes and train that accordingly. Thank you.
 

19Mateo83

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At this point I havenā€™t think of any shapes, as you suggested I will take a look at some shapes and train that accordingly. Thank you.
Just outa curiosity, what cultivar is this? The top appears to have fairly large internode length while the rootstock appears to have fairly short internode length.
 

Deep Sea Diver

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Your ideas are good for starters. The rest Iā€™m not so sure about.

It is your tree and you have made a good first effort. Iā€™d consider all the ideas above, and recognize that what you have is a grafted maple. So the next step besides figuring out how style the tree overallā€¦ is to airlayer above the graft. You can recognize on the tree where the bark changes character and there is a ā€œVā€. Thatā€™s where the graft is. This will move your roots up to a nice level and give you a start an making a good nebari which will be your next step.

Recalling my first wiring attempt, Iā€™m not gonna say anything except good effort! I found the instructions to be very helpful on this website. Also Bonsai Mirai has posted a couple really good videos on YouTube that would be very helpful as your skills and trees progress.

cheers
DSD sends
 

Shibui

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The top appears to have fairly large internode length while the rootstock appears to have fairly short internode length.
This is almost ubiquitous with commercial JM because they are fast grown to get to sale size as quick as possible. Most of the red leaf cultivars I am familiar with also have long internodes and coarse branching patterns which adds to the problem. I've actually given up trying to develop bonsai from the red JM cvs as the problems outweigh the nice red leaf.
AS growers develop JM bonsai from this sort of commercial start they come to recognize that the basic structure having long internodes and straight sections with little taper is preventing good shape. Eventually most of us have chopped all branches right back to the trunk to start over and grow branching with short internodes and more aesthetic bends.

These trees will be OK for standard starter bonsai but making a really good one is much harder.

I'm a newbie, so take my advice with a grain of salt... I would cut at least one of the (probably the center) branches. There are 3 from the same node and it will create a bulge at that point later. Search bifurcation on here
Again, this depends on the quality a grower decides to pursue. Most people won't even see reverse taper in a beginner type bonsai but if you do aspire to better quality it is best avoided.
When to prune depends on the overall plan of growth. If that section is to be part of the end product it is best pruned sooner rather than later but if the area is higher and will eventually be removed in pruning there's no problem and the extra branch should contribute to trunk thickening.
In this case it is the lowest fork so almost certainly part of the final tree so getting rid of one soon would be ideal. Pruning the centre one is usually a good idea because that usually takes out the thickest so we get better taper from the lower trunk to the new leader. Occasionally that does lead to more swelling as the cut heals.
The centre trunk on this one has really long internodes so it will be hard to get enough branches unless grown as a larger bonsai so removing that part has advantages.
The rear branch also has long internodes but not as long as the centre trunk. That branch MAY be useful as a replacement trunk but check first on the roots to see if the tree can be replanted at an angle to make that new leader more upright.
The best option may be to remove both and just use the front branch which appears to have better characteristics.

Your wires should be anchored in the soil next to the trunk.
Wire only needs to be anchored into the soil if the aim is to bend the lower trunk. Wiring to bend branches can start at any convenient anchor above or below the part that is to be moved.
Most newbie wiring is purely decorative - to make the tree look like a bonsai - so no need for any anchoring at all.
 

dvsrk563

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Your ideas are good for starters. The rest Iā€™m not so sure about.

It is your tree and you have made a good first effort. Iā€™d consider all the ideas above, and recognize that what you have is a grafted maple. So the next step besides figuring out how style the tree overallā€¦ is to airlayer above the graft. You can recognize on the tree where the bark changes character and there is a ā€œVā€. Thatā€™s where the graft is. This will move your roots up to a nice level and give you a start an making a good nebari which will be your next step.

Recalling my first wiring attempt, Iā€™m not gonna say anything except good effort! I found the instructions to be very helpful on this website. Also Bonsai Mirai has posted a couple really good videos on YouTube that would be very helpful as your skills and trees progress.

cheers
DSD sends
Thank you for sharing the website. I will check it out.
 

dbonsaiw

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AS growers develop JM bonsai from this sort of commercial start they come to recognize that the basic structure having long internodes and straight sections with little taper is preventing good shape. Eventually most of us have chopped all branches right back to the trunk to start over and grow branching with short internodes and more aesthetic bends.
As a newbie who has been working with some big box JMs, I want to echo Shibui's comments. Although cheap and many times having a fairly large trunk, I have found that these trees will ultimately need to be cut down to a stump and the whole tree, as well as nebari, grown from scratch. I guess ultimately it's a trade off of sorts - you get a larger caliper trunk but need to take the time to grow the rest.
 
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I'm a newbie, so take my advice with a grain of salt... I would cut at least one of the (probably the center) branches. There are 3 from the same node and it will create a bulge at that point later. Search bifurcation on here

Best regards
ThisšŸ‘†šŸ½ I would remove the center trunk and maybe one of the side ones as well.
 
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