Overwintering question regarding soil

[power270lb]

Before last summer I put my seed grown dawn Redwoods in pond baskets and a mix of DE, pine bark, lava rock and pumice. Watering was a chore (twice a day) and temps haven't been below freezing until this past week. I have 9 redwoods and a juniper outside ATM in the mix I stated above. Life gets crazy sometimes and I had planned on repotting them before winter with soil to protect the roots. ATM they're in a bin with holes for drainage to protect from the wind but temps are dropping below freezing and I'm a tad worried. Will they be ok if I pack the bottom of the bin with leaves etc or should I repot with garden soil to better protect AND pack the bottom with leaves to protect the roots?

 

[Paradox]

Before last summer I put my seed grown dawn Redwoods in pond baskets and a mix of DE, pine bark, lava rock and pumice. Watering was a chore (twice a day) and temps haven't been below freezing until this past week. I have 9 redwoods and a juniper outside ATM in the mix I stated above. Life gets crazy sometimes and I had planned on repotting them before winter with soil to protect the roots. ATM they're in a bin with holes for drainage to protect from the wind but temps are dropping below freezing and I'm a tad worried. Will they be ok if I pack the bottom of the bin with leaves etc or should I repot with garden soil to better protect AND pack the bottom with leaves to protect the roots?

Mulched in on the ground along the foundation of your house is your best bet to protect your trees from cold temperatures.

Repotting now will not protect the roots any more than they are and has a high chance to kill them. Also garden soil will not drain well during winter which usually has more rain and snow and will be wet most of the time

 

[power270lb]

Mulched in on the ground along the foundation of your house is your best bet to protect your trees from cold temperatures.

Repotting now will not protect the roots any more than they are and has a high chance to kill them. Also garden soil will not drain well during winter which usually has more rain and snow and will be wet most of the time

Ok awesome thank you bro

 

[Carol 83]

Ok awesome thank you bro

Or sister...

 

[leatherback]

reading between the lines I think you state that you feel soil is better than the substrate it is in now? I would rethink that position.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

reading between the lines I think you state that you feel soil is better than the substrate it is in now? I would rethink that position.

I'm reading the same thing between the lines. They're in bonsai soil right now and the question is about repotting them back into organic soil, that's what I'm reading.
Why would one want to do that?

 

[power270lb]

Or sister...

Oh my apologies

 

[power270lb]

I'm reading the same thing between the lines. They're in bonsai soil right now and the question is about repotting them back into organic soil, that's what I'm reading.
Why would one want to do that?

Because they're in pond baskets outside, just worried the roots aren't insulated enough.

 

[BrightsideB]

Paradox answer was good. I am curious if burying them in the ground would be ok since they are in pond baskets.
On another note. My first prebonsai was a dawn redwood. I uppotted it because it was drinking more then I could deliver at the time. I think after 4 years I am ready to start training it and putting it in a bonsai pot. Lol

 

[power270lb]

Paradox answer was good. I am curious if burying them in the ground would be ok since they are in pond baskets.
On another note. My first prebonsai was a dawn redwood. I uppotted it because it was drinking more then I could deliver at the time. I think after 4 years I am ready to start training it and putting it in a bonsai pot. Lol

I have 10 grown from seed and in the summer it's a nightmare. They're in diatomaceous earth, pumice, lava rock and pine bark and omg they're thirsty. Always twice a day at minimum. I wanted them to grow without having to #1 use a ton of the soil I use and space. I'm in Jersey City (NYC area) so unfortunately in the ground I can't do atm. It's been 50+ degrees all winter aside from the week I posted this so right now they're in a bin with holes and seem to be doing ok.

 

[Carol 83]

Oh my apologies

No worries.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

Because they're in pond baskets outside, just worried the roots aren't insulated enough.

You can wrap a bunch of newspapers around them, and the pond baskets would probably hold more still air (a great insulator) than soil would.

 

[ShadyStump]

I can personally vouch for Paradox's concerns about garden/potting soil in winter. Last year I lost my first air layer, a tree I was very excited about too, to winter root root. I was so worried about moisture retention during summer that I used allot of peat in the soil. Over winter I think I watered it a total of 3, maybe 4, times, and it was still so wet that it rotted out completely, even though it drained incredibly easily.
I learned allot about watering and soil composition since then, but the mother tree has since been cut down, so in the end it was a costly mistake.
Trees need next to no water when dormant, and mass (i.e. weight) of the substrate is a better measure of protection against freezing than almost anything else.

 

[leatherback]

mass (i.e. weight) of the substrate is a better measure of protection against freezing than almost anything else.

really? Styrofoam pellets would not offer insulation then?

 

[ShadyStump]

really? Styrofoam pellets would not offer insulation then?

They would, but would they really work as a substrate in your pot?

There are, of course, exceptions to every rule, and soil physics is allot more complicated than the one I suggested, but I felt it was the safest starting point for someone still just learning the ropes.