DrTolhur
Mame
I've got a few very small (~0.25" trunks) Japanese maples that are currently in pots. My plan was to plant them in the ground come spring to let them grow up some more before training for bonsai. However, I'm in zone 5 (middle of lower Michigan), and I'm a little concerned about their ability to long-term handle winters. I have an idea that I'd like to get some feedback on:
I could plant the trees in colanders in the ground, let them grow for the warm season, then pull up the colander in the fall to over-winter them in my unheated garage. This would allow the roots to grow freely and vigorously in the ground, but then also allow me to protect them in the winter without disturbing the main rootball.
(Note: the colander thing obviously isn't my idea, but I don't think I've seen this application of it mentioned before. Please direct me if there's some existing source out there.)
Questions:
1) Is my concern for them unprotected in winter reasonable?
2) Do you think my idea seems reasonable/would it work?
3) If I do that, would there be a problem pruning the roots outside the colander just as/after going dormant? Maybe I'd want to pull up and trim the roots a few weeks before going dormant to allow it to recover.
4) Would it be better to fill the colander with the native ground soil, potting soil, or bonsai soil?
I could plant the trees in colanders in the ground, let them grow for the warm season, then pull up the colander in the fall to over-winter them in my unheated garage. This would allow the roots to grow freely and vigorously in the ground, but then also allow me to protect them in the winter without disturbing the main rootball.
(Note: the colander thing obviously isn't my idea, but I don't think I've seen this application of it mentioned before. Please direct me if there's some existing source out there.)
Questions:
1) Is my concern for them unprotected in winter reasonable?
2) Do you think my idea seems reasonable/would it work?
3) If I do that, would there be a problem pruning the roots outside the colander just as/after going dormant? Maybe I'd want to pull up and trim the roots a few weeks before going dormant to allow it to recover.
4) Would it be better to fill the colander with the native ground soil, potting soil, or bonsai soil?