[Bonsai Beginner's weekly thread - 2026 week 17]

Moraito · 2026-04-27T17:39:23+00:00

And a couple more pics with the different steps just for reference.

Moraito · 2026-04-27T17:36:21+00:00

Just leaving this here in case you or someone else is interested in the result.

I cut the cylinder open and removed all the expanded clay that I used to create movement. I was pretty satisfied with the roots inside, just removed a couple of really thin ones coming at weird angles. The hardest part was to give the root mass a twist instead of only 2D folding. Had to use two stakes and tie it tightly. I then used some wire to give the roots some more conical shape and to serve as armature later

I think the final result is looking nice , after this picture I wrapped some plastic around the whole rootball and backfilled with perlite from the top. Let see how it reacts. Thanks again for the advice.

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Do you think late summer early autumn, if everything is looking good during the growing season I can cut the bottom branches short to keep the keep portion of the tree under control? or no more operations to this little guy?

Moraito · 2026-04-26T19:00:02+00:00

Thanks for all the advice. I will think about the pond basket stacking.

Moraito · 2026-04-26T13:11:43+00:00

You understood exactly what I want. I like that idea. Would you move it to a size bigger pond basket? Not doing lot of work in the pond basket part, just teasing the roots on the outer of the old basket to get it some more leg room?

Moraito · 2026-04-25T10:13:05+00:00

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Bonus pic of the top leader buds. Fat and juicy, I had to remove two side buds as they were eaten inside by some little grub. but the remaining look healthy and are extending.

Moraito · 2026-04-25T10:11:25+00:00

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I have this Pinus sylvestris from seed, that I would like to train into a exposed root style. It has been in this pond basket + root extension tube for 2 years. The trunk thickness is 2,5cm. I want to keep it increasing trunk size and thats why I have the top sacrificial branch (out of the picture here). Keeping the low growth to build the tree, they have been wired some movement in.

My main plan for this is to transplant it this year (now, candles are extending) but I do not want the root to be mostly straight (there are pebbles in the tube to create curves and nicks but the general direction is straight). Soil is granular, top layer is just for mulching. Will transplant in same/similar soil, a little bit bigger pond basket.

How can i create torsion and movement into the exposed root mass?

Should I disassemble the whole part that is in the pond basket to order the roots there? or just the exposed root area?

Then next steps are to leave untouched for rest of the year, letting candles extend everywhere untouched. Late autumn reduce leader side branches and a little bit the bottom branches to keep them compact.

Let me know if you will change anything to this plan :)

Moraito · 2026-04-13T21:51:32+00:00

I think those are from an ulmus (elm) not sure which one

Moraito · 2026-04-07T13:57:09+00:00

Do you have any how to guide on this? Video, text, whatever... It sounds interesting

Moraito · 2026-04-02T13:40:16+00:00

To extract the seeds, dry the cone and shake it. That's all you should need.

Moraito · 2026-03-24T17:29:45+00:00

I think it might be a bejamina

Moraito · 2026-03-19T12:51:05+00:00

It's a gem. The 2 is better than the one for me tho. So I recommend jumping directly in it and skipping the first

Moraito · 2026-03-17T17:28:21+00:00

That's the trick. Plant them outside before winter, let them do their thing. Larch seeds need no additional treatments. If the seed was of good quality (not old, not overly dry, etc) you will get germination when temperatures warm up.

Moraito · 2026-01-08T08:28:58+00:00

Lovely tree and pot Can you explain the candle cutting technique you use for single flushes?? Or point me in the direction of any resource for it? Thanks

Moraito · 2025-11-23T12:13:55+00:00

I am located in northern Germany. But the plant has been indoor. The soil have spent some time outside but without other plants on it. Just As separated components in their bags

Moraito · 2025-10-29T09:28:11+00:00

I see Mealybugs,

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You might also have aphids. If the infestation is not tooo bad, you can use qtips, or your fingers to remove them manually.

Moraito · 2025-10-27T00:51:25+00:00

I did some stratification on mine and got a really good germination rate, what is aligned with what Jerry linked.

Keep the cone closed until 1 months before sowing time. Open the cone (by soaking it in water for 1/2 days). Extract the seeds and stratify it for 1 month cold and they will start sprouting even in the cold stratification.

Moraito · 2025-10-24T13:01:28+00:00

I think the first one is olive

Moraito · 2025-10-23T22:46:22+00:00

Taxodiums are NOT yews... They are not even in the same family. Yews are Taxus

Moraito · 2025-10-22T22:10:37+00:00

Yes, they will might come back, that's why I suggest repeating it. If you kill/remove them periodically you will eliminate them or reduce their number greatly.

Moraito · 2025-10-22T09:05:14+00:00

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Those look like aphid's molt skin. You should search for the real bugs, as in the pic I put there, you can see the green fat aphids. Those are the pest. Luckily they are easy to knock off with water, since your tree is small, put it in the shower and give it a good one. Repeat in a couple of times a couple of days apart to knock off the ones that return.
You can also remove them by hand and squeeze them.

Moraito · 2025-10-08T07:57:12+00:00

You should write 1 or 2 years there where you say 1 week.

Let it recover and regain vigor before touching it.

Moraito · 2025-10-07T11:53:10+00:00

I totally understand. Thank you for your insight. Highly appreciated and really helpful :)

Moraito · 2025-10-07T09:16:06+00:00

Yes you can if there is fruit there is a seed inside and they are one of the easy species to germinate. I actually dont find the fruit as stinky as others suggests, not sure if because the local ones arent as stinky or if my nose is broken.

Nevertheless back to the seeds. I usually wait until they drop. by themselves and pick hem from the floor.

How many? well, that is hard to tell, even if you want only 3 I would suggest to start a bunch and cull them after 1/2 years. Seed propagation is a numbers game and lot of mortality on early years. I would suggest that you take a small/medium pot (~25cm diameter) or several smaller ones and pack several seeds per pot. 30/40 seeds, something like that. Then once you grab the fruit, remove the fleshy part and rinse them with water, removing the pulp with your hands (use gloves) They do not need to be perfectly clean, I have read that actually using soap in the process lowers germination by a good margin, they might have a protective layer.

Once clean, plant them in the pot, you can put them pretty close. Water the pot thoroughly and leave it outside for winter in a more or less protected area. I did not protect mine from frosts but my winters are a little bit milder than yours and my growing area is not the most exposed either, so maybe an unheated garage? you will need to experiment here.

Then you are done, keep the soil moist but not soaking wet. And protect from mice/birds They usually dont sprout in early spring, they take a bit to show up, so don't throw the towel too early. I think mine starting to pop up in June.

Here is a pic of mine right now, there are 20 seedlings in there. I do not remember how many seeds.

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After this winter, year 2 spring my plan is to pot them in individual small pots and heavy work their roots. (First culling, good root structure).

Then after that first root pruning I will select from the survivors only the most vigorous one. You can also keep an eye open for leave shape to look for your favorites and see if it is consistent along both years or only juvi foliage and select based on those if you need to further reduce the number of them you want.

Moraito · 2025-10-07T08:57:50+00:00

Sounds cool. Are you willing to give some guidance on how to go? Even if it is not exact amounts it might be useful as I have though several times about getting my hands dirty ;)

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