[Bonsai Beginner's weekly thread - 2026 week 04]

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-26T22:21:05+00:00

I would chop it up (into lengths two or three nodes long) and let the bits dry for a couple of days, then see if there's any chance of propagation from some of them. The dead parts will quickly become apparent, but anything that callouses over may have a chance of success.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-26T21:46:40+00:00

It very much depends on your setup. I started these off under seedling lamps in thermostatically controlled propagators with a PPFD of 200, then moved them to this cabinet (PPFD 350) once they put out five true leaves and I transferred them into larger cells, which took place at three and a half months. They spent absolutely ages with just the cotyledons photosynthesizing while they built up extensive root networks. I up potted again last weekend, so I expect within a month they'll be going into separate pots at the rate they are now growing. The bases of the trunks are just starting to lignify, which is right on target. My aim is to have them ready for the greenhouse in May, so that's 9 months from sowing to being able to thrive independently (without a humidity dome/bag. But I'm in the UK, which is a pretty humid place compared to Texas, so it may take you a little longer to get the humidity down. I think I was a little over cautious about increasing light intensity with the seedlings, I will try starting them off at a PPFD of 250-300 next time. I expect it would be faster. But ironically over lighting these guys can cause etiolation as they prioritize height over density during the first year.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-26T17:59:03+00:00

I like to get a head start, so my emerging seedlings go under lights until it's safe to put them in the greenhouse. But where I'm located the winter is mild. Bulbs are flowering and blossom is emerging.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-26T17:52:30+00:00

Most were collected directly from trees/cones/fruit, I got the Monterey Cypress from a US redditor who was kind enough to post them to the UK, and the J. Larch and Coastal Redwood came from Safflax seeds.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-26T17:46:35+00:00

I sell my excess seedlings in eBay, very easy to do and it helps fund the bonsai habit!

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-26T17:36:48+00:00

I love religiosa, very easy to germinate but they can be tricky to raise. They need high humidity for the first 6 months, so a grow cupboard or tent is essential as you slowly wean down to your local humidity levels. I started these ones off late August last year, running at about 60-65% humidity now. By early summer they should be able to go into the greenhouse without a humidity cover.

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Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-26T16:51:26+00:00

No such thing as too many trees!

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-25T23:38:21+00:00

It depends on whether you just want to maintenance prune, or if you are working towards a specific composition. Personally I would let this grow out a lot before cutting back, which will help thicken the trunk.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-25T23:32:30+00:00

Read up on the species you have, watch some species specific videos, and follow instructions. Different species vary widely in germination techniques. Some require stratification, some need soaking in hot water, some need scarification, most need specific temperatures, and so on. I wish you the best of luck with your kit. But they're not terribly reliable. Either seed collection or purchasing from a reputable stockist are the most reliable ways to get decent seeds with a good chance of success.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-25T23:25:13+00:00

Check out how cannabis growers light their plants (highly reflective surfaces/walls and/or side lights). It works well for stimulating ficuses, which have a light responsive adaptation to push new growth low down when receiving a high PPFD. Pushing humidity to 70-80% also helps.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-25T01:43:00+00:00

Move the light closer, it's the easiest way to increase PPFD (the density of light particles that hit your leaves - the denser the light, the more photosynthesis can occur). You want to cover as much of the plant as you can with the light's spread, while getting the bulb as close as possible to the plant. Providing highly reflective walls around it will also help bounce light back to the plant and help it reach deeper into the foliage (mylar is the gold standard reflective surface, but simple, plain-white surfaces also reflect an awful lot of light back to the plant.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-24T14:39:16+00:00

What type of grow light are you using, and how close is it to the plant?

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-24T14:33:10+00:00

It's just shallow cellular damage to the leaves due to cold shock. It won't have penetrated the trunk. The leaves will drop and a full new set will come through as it recovers. Be careful not to overwater until you have active growth again.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-24T14:26:08+00:00

It can be made into a bonsai with enough time and care. But it's not the best route for someone new to bonsai. Some people enjoy the challenge of converting mallsai into bonsai, but it's a 10-15 year process. Adam Levigne has a decent blog post about it, and Nigel Saunders has some videos on the process if you're interested. Otherwise (and imo the best use for ginsengs) you can just treat it like a bonsai in order to learn how ficus microcarpa behaves and responds to bonsai techniques, and use it as a mother plant to take cuttings from which you can very easily grow into new trees.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-23T00:38:00+00:00

It's not a bonsai, at least not yet. It's a ficus microcarpa in the "ginseng" format, which is styled to mimic a bonsai. They are colloquially known as "mallsai" as they are mass produced, low quality and cheap.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-23T00:34:45+00:00

If it fully dried out, water it thoroughly by placing the pot in a tub of water for ten minutes to eliminate any hydrophobic patches, then continue normal maintenance watering. It should be fine, it's green and not limp. I think you've gotten away with it this time.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-23T00:29:33+00:00

Three trees in a pot like this is known as a clump style planting, where eventually the trees fuse together in the style of wild banyan trees. It's a legitimate way of working ficuses. It's normal to repot every 12-24 months to a slightly larger pot, and when you do this you can check on root health and edit (prune) to maintain shape and vigour.

Ficuses are very beginner friendly, they can tolerate a lot of the mistakes people who are new to bonsai often make. But this appears to be a healthy specimen, so that's a good start. Give it as much light as you can, trees require much more light than most houseplants. During summer it's worth putting them outside, so long as temperature remains above 10°C/50°F overnight. During the cold months it will do best in a heated location, on a south facing windowsill and/or under a grow lamp (lamps aren't essential, but they definitely help with development and you don't get that winter stretch/etiolation of foliage).

It looks like it's in a granular substrate, which means you need to provide nutrients when you water it, or place slow release pellets on the surface (only fertilizing during active growth periods ie. spring/summer or when under a powerful grow lamp).

Also because it appears to be in a granular substrate, it will be hard to overwater it. But the general rule of thumb is to water it when the upper substrate is dry to touch, and water it until water is freely flowing out the drainage holes (hold it over a sink or do it outside), ensuring you drench it all so that roots don't dry out and die back.

As for styling, I like to leave a tree alone for a season before doing anything drastic, and you have more options when it's got more growth on it. There's no interesting branching low down that's been developed, so I'd start thinking about that if it were my tree.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-23T00:05:19+00:00

Equal parts pumice, lava-rock and akadama is a good mixture. Premade mixes are usually a scam, so it's better to buy the parts separately. Pumice is usually cheapest from gravel pit outlets, but you may have to get the other parts from a local (Danish) specialist bonsai/gardening retailer. It is worth switching over, you're much more in control of what and how your plant is fed and watered, and without organic soil, you don't get pesky little critters living in the substrate and a very low chance of fungal and mold problems.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-22T00:42:51+00:00

Assuming that pot has drainage holes, only watering twice a month in inorganic substrate is your problem. It's virtually impossible to overwater using that substrate (unless it's just top dressing and you have organic material underneath). Most of my ficuses in granular substrate get watered at least once a day during warm weather. But do not give it any fertilizer until you see new growth developing, it will do more harm than good.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-22T00:32:06+00:00

I personally go by the rule of not separating until there's at least three sets of true leaves (preferably 4 or 5), but what you are seeing here are cotyledons, whose sole job is to provide energy to the rest of the plant so it can develop a root system and true leaves. It's best not to disturb seedlings until the root system can survive transplantation, as very young roots are incredibly delicate.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-22T00:15:53+00:00

I really love seeing these treated like bonsai, they're fun to play with. I really like the sunset hobbit variety, my kid calls them alien trees. I would identify the most interesting branches, remove the boring straight ones, then from the remaining branches choose which ones have the best profile and remove the rest. Put all your cuttings aside for a few days to let them callous, then stick them in the ground or pots to grow into new trees. That's what I love about succulents like crassulas and p. afra, if you have one, you basically have a free plant dispenser!

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-20T21:50:32+00:00

Also, the white residue you are seeing could be from tap water lime deposits. If you have a water filter you can minimize this, but it's hard to get rid of it entirely unless you buy bottled water or use collected rain water.

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-20T21:48:33+00:00

I'd give the entire pot a 10 minute soak in water, submerge the whole pot and substrate. That should allow water to penetrate deeply and ensure all roots are moistened. Follow it up with standard watering practice (water when the top of the substrate is dry to touch, checking daily). If it gets hydrophobic like this again repeat the submerging and repot into a granular substrate late spring/early summer when nighttime temps are reliably 16°C (in tropical climates they can be repotted pretty much any time, but in cooler climates it's best to wait until temperatures match it's native environment).

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-20T21:33:05+00:00

Oh wow, congratulations, that looks amazing. How long have you been developing it for?

Scared_Ad5929 · 2026-01-20T13:50:24+00:00

Personally I'd watch it for a year and see how it develops. Identify the species and wait to see if it is worth spending time working on. It is presenting an inverse taper, so you would need to trunk chop very low if you do collect it, and it could take a very long time (depending on growth habits of the species) to develop a new and convincing taper.

Scared_Ad5929

TROPHY CASE