Repot Ginkgo ?

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This is my new quite literally stick in the mud (first) Ginkgo. It came in what looks like pure peat moss and some fertilizer.
Is it too late to repot it to a pot with some better draining soil? I looked at the roots and it's not rootbound by any means. The roots look very healthy.
 

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Cadillactaste

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It's a young tree in development...so not unheard of what it's potted in.

Bud tips peak green is when we repot gingko. Past the window of opportunity to repot.

You could get away with planting it into the ground...and not messing with the roots to grow this out more. Treated as a nursery plant with no root work...you can get away with a bit more.

My own was ground grown for a few years to put on girth by the seller I bought it from a few years back. 12" pot.

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It's a young tree in development...so not unheard of what it's potted in.

Bud tips peak green is when we repot gingko. Past the window of opportunity to repot.

You could get away with planting it into the ground...and not messing with the roots to grow this out more. Treated as a nursery plant with no root work...you can get away with a bit more.

My own was ground grown for a few years to put on girth by the seller I bought it from a few years back. 12" pot.

View attachment 372677
Thanks for the answer. That's one beautiful tree! The gold accents on the pot work incredibly well.
I know it's past repotting time, I've read ginkgos can be very hardy though.
What do you think about slip potting the whole thing into a larger pot without disturbing the roots? Is it even necessary? I feel like this year's growth will be stunted by the little pot it's in, maybe that's just my inexperience talking.
 

Cadillactaste

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You are asking the wrong person. I don't slip pot. Two growing mediums which you then create in a pot...dry out differently. To me, that's risky. Maybe another may step up to answer that. I personally...would either ground grow it or leave as is for a year. Then...repot in early spring when it starts to push...and address the roots and make it a beneficial repot. *Take it with a grain of salt...that's just how I walk my journey.
 

Cadillactaste

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Sorry, my manors. I was addressing questions...and forgot to thank you for the kind words. Pot is an Erin Pottery pot. The splash of golden yellow. Victor Harris was brilliant on that hint to remind me when not fall...what this tree has hidden to share later. Fall colors.

This tree fell into my lap, while the species wasn't one I was hunting. I asked for texture of bark and fall colors. The seller showed me his best Ginkgo and it had me at first images. LOL I tend to look for characteristics and a style over species. Then...make sure it fits the bill I can care for it in my area.

Have a good day. Ginkgo in fall is a charming thing to behold. Enjoy the journey with yours.
 
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No problem! Just checked out their website, the pots are incredible. I may try to find something similar over here in Europe when the time comes.
I'm also more of a conifer person but Ginkgo leaves just can't be beat, I love the tree's uniqueness.
Hope I'll get some bushy growth to enjoy in the fall, if the grey German weather allows it.

Have a nice day too!
 

penumbra

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It's a young tree in development...so not unheard of what it's potted in.

Bud tips peak green is when we repot gingko. Past the window of opportunity to repot.

You could get away with planting it into the ground...and not messing with the roots to grow this out more. Treated as a nursery plant with no root work...you can get away with a bit more.

My own was ground grown for a few years to put on girth by the seller I bought it from a few years back. 12" pot.

View attachment 372677
Very nice. It looks like one of the leaves melted all over the pot. ;)
 
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You’re in luck then, ginkgos were previously classed as a type of deciduous conifers
Of course! As a bit of a paleontology nerd I'm almost more interested in the botanical and evolutionary aspects of the tree than anything else. I just had to have one!
 

Shibui

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I hope you are not in a hurry to see this bushy growth. Ginkgo are one of the slowest trees to develop as bonsai. I have some in the grow beds for a few years and they are thickening a little faster than any in pots but still quite slow and even slower to ramify. After pruning I often only get one new shoot rather than the 2 or 3 that most species give. 1 new replacement shoot does not do much for increasing ramification!
On the + side they don't seem to mind root pruning. Even thick roots can be chopped quite hard if necessary but I've only done that sort of work while trees are dormant.
You can slip pot but make sure outer roots are teased out to allow good contact between old soil and the new and some roots into the new soil.
 

arbuscula

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...<snip>...
On the + side they don't seem to mind root pruning. Even thick roots can be chopped quite hard if necessary but I've only done that sort of work while trees are dormant.
...<snip>...
Hi @Shibui
Bit of an old thread I know but, in searching around about Ginko biloba, this thread came up. Your comment on hard pruning the roots caught my attention... having just read that they don't take kindly to this... so I'm somewhat confused - especially with uplifting any ground grown specimens 🙂. How hard can these have the roots chopped? Obviously I'm not thinking about digging up and then putting into a bonsai pot... but gradually decreasing sizes of garden containers.

I've a bonsai'd Ginko and wanting to reduce the roots to put into a slightly shallower pot than in presently... hence my attention in respect of hard chop or not hard. Chop 🙂
 

Shibui

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Not sure where your other opinion comes from.
Initially I thought the same, probably just because the name maidenhair compares it to some delicate ferns.
I've always found them very tolerant. I gradually increased how much root I took off the potted trees at repotting. Now I'm more than happy to root prune ginkgo by 80%, more for young stock.
In the last few years I've dug some from the grow beds. Roots not chopped as hard as trident maples but roots on a 2" thick trunk chopped back to 2" - 3" on all sides of the trunks. They have not looked back.
Not sure what effect different climates might have but, in practice, ginkgo can be root pruned hard here.

On a side note ginkgo are well known to be hardy to a range of other factors. Used as street trees in cities where very few other plants survive due to poor air quality. Despite the maidenhair connotations ginkgo is one of the most drought hardy species I grow.
Don't let the delicate looking leaves fool you. All in all a very tough survivor.
 

arbuscula

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@Shibui ...thanks for replying 🙂.
For some unknown reason I googled about repotting the Ginko - normally I just go ahead and trim as for my other trees in bonsai pots. Could have been because of checking to see if anything about reducing for going to a less deeper pot - the only reason I can think! The new pot not having the depth as the present one. If container grown trees then I gradually reduce.
The other source was Bonsai Empire - brief mention not to prune heavily, in their guide for Ginko. I've had Ginko previously when I first started Bonsai, 25'ish years ago, but lost to frost - no Internet etc., back then for the now easily available information. My books didn't mention about susceptibility for frosts when in pots.
My present one I've had for about 4 years - online raffle - arrived in a broken pot. Repotted into a deeper one (about 3½") because it was all I had at the time. Last year repotted into another (2½") and noticed roots coming from drainage holes. I hadn't intended to repot again this year - supposed to be every 3~5 years apparently - but surprised to find the roots in the drainage holes. I cut the holding wires to try and pull out from the pot to check density but couldn't move it - holding in very tight. I'm going to have to cut round the inside of the pot to release.

Thanks again for sharing your experiences with Ginko and the handling of the roots when repotting - very much appreciated.
 

Shibui

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You have had ginkgo before so probably already know that they tend to have few thick roots. Another reason to be worried about cutting roots hard because there will be few feeder roots left but as mentioned doesn't seem to matter.

I did not know they were cold sensitive. All mine sit outside all year but then temps here rarely go below -5C at night in winter.
 

arbuscula

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UK weather is very variable - what ever season we may be in. So far few frosts this year... mostly wet and grey cloudy days this autumn and winter. So far, the same as we head into spring... The years I lost the previous Ginko were very hard... frosts lasted for about 5~7 days... something like -12°C... maybe even colder - can't remember. I now put on a shelf mixed in with other pots and a frost fleece protection sheet cover... just to keep the worst off the pot.

There are thick roots poking through the drainage holes. Good to have chatted on this 🙂👍
 
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