Oddly specific question about wiring tree into pot

[One First Matter All]

I have a bonsai pot with one drainage hole in the bottom. I plan to repot a tree into this pot (in the spring), and I would like for the tree to be wired off-center.

I know how to wire a tree into a pot with only one drainage hole, but I do not know how to wire a tree with only one drainage hole so that the tree is not positioned directly over the hole. I am afraid that, as I tighten the wire to secure the tree in place, with the fulcrum point being directly over the hole, it will "draw" the tree toward the center, if that makes sense. Any suggestions on how to prevent that from happening?

 

[leatherback]

Assuming the rootball does not provide enough to wire off-centre: Option.. Wire a mesh in the pot, wire the tree to the mesh. Or a bamboo stick grid.

 

[Firstflush]

Buy a masonry bit for your cordless drill and put another drainage hole on each side of the main center whole.

 

[bwaynef]

Take a small piece of thick wire (longer than the hole, not so thick that it impedes the pot's ability to sit flat) and then take a length of wire twice as long as you need to tie it in and fold that in half. Then, at the center of the two wires (1 folded in half), wrap them around that piece of thick wire 2x. Cut the wire where you bent it in half and you'll effectively have 4 wires to push thru the drain hole from below the pot. Tie the tree in as normal.

How to secure bonsai in the pot - Bonsai Tonight

Step-by-step instructions for securing bonsai into pots with one, two, three or four drainage holes. This is article 7 of a 10 part series for beginners.

bonsaitonight.com

 

[One First Matter All]

Assuming the rootball does not provide enough to wire off-centre: Option.. Wire a mesh in the pot, wire the tree to the mesh. Or a bamboo stick grid.

What sort of mesh do you mean? I feel like plastic would not be strong enough. I'm trying to imagine what other sorts of mesh might work. Thanks for the reply.

 

[leatherback]

What sort of mesh do you mean?

Just small hole steel mesh, often used for gitters.

 

[sorce]

Pics!

Sorce

 

[BrianBay9]

I would think your best bet would be to trim the roots asymmetrically first.

 

[penumbra]

All above are great ideas but it would be simpler to use a dab of epoxy to hold each wire in place.

 

[jeremy_norbury]

I've repotted a few thousand trees in my time and I've make a little photo album of how to do it here: Wiring trees in pots.

The issue with a single hole is basically that you EITHER need a very secure anchor point underneath the pot or you need to pull the wire DOWN through the soil from above and tighten it.

Wiring off-center can either be achieved by using thicker wire than usual (and allowing the wire to provide a degree of the hold) OR to only wire part of the root ball - which is going to come back and bite you at some point.

I'd consider drilling additional holes - they don't need to be huge. Drill slowly with water as lubricant.

 

[Adair M]

If you have a firm root ball, you could run a chopstick horizontally thru the rootball and tie the tree into the pot by securing the wire around the places the chopstick(s) protrude out of the rootball.

 

[leatherback]

All above are great ideas but it would be simpler to use a dab of epoxy to hold each wire in place.

But would that not "ruin" the pot for the future? I presume the wire can only be cut short later, rather than removed?

 

[Potawatomi13]

But would that not "ruin" the pot for the future? I presume the wire can only be cut short later, rather than removed?

Masonry drill bit and H2O is best/simplest solution by far.

 

[penumbra]

But would that not "ruin" the pot for the future? I presume the wire can only be cut short later, rather than removed?

Well I guess that is open to interpretation. I have done this a few times and the pot was not "ruined" for me. If you use a small dab of glue to hold a wire in place, I find it is not hard to remove if you maintain a small footprint. I have also epoxied a small wire loop to the bottom inside of the pot through which I have passed a wire, the obvious advantage is that the wire can be replaced, whereas before I had to join 2 wires. I have also used silicone sealer instead of epoxy. This takes a bit more glue but you can just cut it out if you change wires. It is better for larger pots. None of these methods ever "ruined" a pot for me. They were pots whose value was only increased due to being more usable. If it is a really nice pot I wouldn't do it but then it would have tie down holes already. Even on those cheap pots, no alteration is made that is visible when pot is planted.
I have drilled holes of various sizes through pots a hundred times. And I have used many pots that were never designed to be pots. There is always a way, and there is always a simpler way. Porcelain is a bear to drill and will usually ruin a bit. The same bit will drill many holes through a clay pot. And yes, if it is a hard clay body you need to drill it in water. Diamonds are destroyed by heat. [Odd but very true fact I learned in more than15 years of lapidary work)
Drilling is great, but if I don't need to do it, I don't. There is a much greater likelihood of ruining a pot drilling a hole through it than there is by applying a small dab of glue on the inside bottom. Drilling is the go to for most people, I'm just offering an alternative that works for me. During the writing of this post I could have already prepared a few pots using glue that would be ready to plant in a few hours.
Personally, it makes no difference to me how people solve this problem or others. There are as many solutions as there are people.

 

[Lorax7]

I would not use a masonry bit to do the drilling. A diamond hole saw bit is the right tool for the job. Put the pot on top of a pile of sand so it is fully supported without pressure points. Wet the area you’re going to drill with a bit of water to lubricate and drill. Stop periodically and wet the surface again if it starts to dry out. Be careful not to get water in your electric drill; electrocution is no fun.

 

[Ngidm]

I may not be the best driller (I do more woodworking than masonry), but the times I've tried to drill with a masonry bit and water, I've broken the pot 50% of the time.

At HD or Lowes, they sell strips of metal for attaching studs & other construction. These can be short or long -- 3"-12". I've wired those inside single-drain-hole pots with good results. Those strips have other holes all along their length, so you can get wire where you want.

--Nick

 

[penumbra]

I would not use a masonry bit to do the drilling. A diamond hole saw bit is the right tool for the job. Put the pot on top of a pile of sand so it is fully supported without pressure points. Wet the area you’re going to drill with a bit of water to lubricate and drill. Stop periodically and wet the surface again if it starts to dry out. Be careful not to get water in your electric drill; electrocution is no fun.

I use these hole saws when I pot needs a hole for drainage. If the pot will hold water I keep a little water in the pot as I drill. I have done this dozens of times. When a pot will not hold water, I make a little dam around the drill spot with putty to hold a little water. It the drilling is tough, as in porcelain, I add a couple drops of a lubricant used in lapidary work. This is all well and good for drainage holes, but for tie down holes all of the diamond hole saws are rather large and diamond bits will work but the bits themselves are delicate and can break easily. Masonry bits are fine for softer clay as in clay pots. Tile bits are better though and give a smoother cut.
Thus the glued wire tie down in my preference for a situation when a very small hole might otherwise be useful.

 

[Lorax7]

I use these hole saws when I pot needs a hole for drainage. If the pot will hold water I keep a little water in the pot as I drill. I have done this dozens of times. When a pot will not hold water, I make a little dam around the drill spot with putty to hold a little water. It the drilling is tough, as in porcelain, I add a couple drops of a lubricant used in lapidary work. This is all well and good for drainage holes, but for tie down holes all of the diamond hole saws are rather large and diamond bits will work but the bits themselves are delicate and can break easily. Masonry bits are fine for softer clay as in clay pots. Tile bits are better though and give a smoother cut.
Thus the glued wire tie down in my preference for a situation when a very small hole might otherwise be useful.

They make them as small as 3/16” inch, which I think is what I used for tie down holes the last time I drilled a pot. But, certainly, there’s more than one way to git ‘r done. Mainly, I was suggesting the diamond hole saw bit over masonry bits because they’re less likely to break the pot in the process of adding a hole. Also more likely to make a nice clean cut.

 

[just.wing.it]

How Do You Wire Your Tree Into a Pot with One Drainage Hole?

Here's what I do.... 2.5mm aluminum.

www.bonsainut.com

 

[Firstflush]

Obviously, if it’s a beautiful antique pot, you may not want to drill.
I liked the answer above….get some multisurface 2 ton epoxy and dab a small wire loop in place on each side of the main drainage hole.