Need help on trimming Jm. Brand new on this Hobby!

[daygoboiz]

Hi everyone, i live in Illinois and I just received this green maple. Looking for any advice on how to shape it (prune and trim) and taking care for this. Its in a 6in pot, should I repot this to see what the roots look like?, I'm trying to get the trunk bigger so I don't mind leaving the bottom branchs. The jm is curvy already and kinda short and busy. Thank you so much Everyone!

 

[Eckhoffw]

Nice and bushy down low. That’s a plus!
If your happy with the amount of movement in the trunk currently, then I would just put it in air grow out container like a Anderson flat or wood box.
This would be done next year, early spring.

 

[daygoboiz]

Nice and bushy down low. That’s a plus!
If your happy with the amount of movement in the trunk currently, then I would just put it in air grow out container like a Anderson flat or wood box.
This would be done next year, early sp

Nice and bushy down low. That’s a plus!
If your happy with the amount of movement in the trunk currently, then I would just put it in air grow out container like a Anderson flat or wood box.
This would be done next year, early spring.

Thanks for the help!! Should I trim off some branches so it could focus on main branches? The picture below is what you're referring to?

 

[Eckhoffw]

Thanks for the help!! Should I trim off some branches so it could focus on main branches? The picture below is what you're referring to?

That would work. As well as a simple pond basket. Anderson flat like so

 

[JackHammer]

You could let it grow out for a while. No need to start cutting right away. They can grow really quickly so just focus on taking care of it for a while until you know it really well.

 

[daygoboiz]

That would work. As well as a simple pond basket. Anderson flat like so View attachment 482466

Thank you! Will order some now!

 

[daygoboiz]

You could let it grow out for a while. No need to start cutting right away. They can grow really quickly so just focus on taking care of it for a while until you know it really well.

Thank you! And I always thought that I have to trim it first so it can focus on growing faster on what was needed. Should I just buy this (below) or something smaller to let it grow in? And I live in a condo.

 

[JackHammer]

Thank you! And I always thought that I have to trim it first so it can focus on growing faster on what was needed. Should I just buy this (below) or something smaller to let it grow in? And I live in a condo.

Maybe a 10×10 pond basket from home depot if you have one. 6ish bucks.

Styling is "a thing" and that is part of the art part of bonsai. Look up how to style a bonsai on YouTube and watch 20 videos. Dont start cutting until you know why you are making cuts and have a good understanding of where you want to go.

You can also use a little fertilizer, maybe a tablespoon of osmocote indoor/outdoor every 3 months (in the spring/summer/fall). Don't go too crazy.

 

[daygoboiz]

Maybe a 10×10 pond basket from home depot if you have one. 6ish bucks.

Styling is "a thing" and that is part of the art part of bonsai. Look up how to style a bonsai on YouTube and watch 20 videos. Dont start cutting until you know why you are making cuts and have a good understanding of where you want to go.

You can also use a little fertilizer, maybe a tablespoon of osmocote indoor/outdoor every 3 months (in the spring/summer/fall). Don't go too crazy.

Should I use miracle all purpose or akadama and lavarock as substrate? Thanks

 

[Shibui]

There's lots of different roads that all lead to bonsai.
Growing out is just one way if you specifically want a thicker trunk. Nobody has yet mentioned you'll need to allow 5-10 years to develop that trunk in grow boxes depending how big and how well you care for it. They have also not mentioned a number of things that could go wrong along the way so please don't think growing a tree this way is 100% certain.
Some people are quite happy with a smaller tree and not so worried about real thick trunk. This one already has a nice trunk so would suit a smaller, thinner trunk bonsai too. For this I would get rid of surplus branches so the tree can redirect resources to the chosen branches then continue to grow and trim to develop branch ramification. You could see a reasonable bonsai in 2-5 years following this avenue. There's still things that can go wrong following this method.
There are other methods but these 2 are probably the most commonly followed.

Good luck with the project.

 

[daygoboiz]

There's lots of different roads that all lead to bonsai.
Growing out is just one way if you specifically want a thicker trunk. Nobody has yet mentioned you'll need to allow 5-10 years to develop that trunk in grow boxes depending how big and how well you care for it. They have also not mentioned a number of things that could go wrong along the way so please don't think growing a tree this way is 100% certain.
Some people are quite happy with a smaller tree and not so worried about real thick trunk. This one already has a nice trunk so would suit a smaller, thinner trunk bonsai too. For this I would get rid of surplus branches so the tree can redirect resources to the chosen branches then continue to grow and trim to develop branch ramification. You could see a reasonable bonsai in 2-5 years following this avenue. There's still things that can go wrong following this method.
There are other methods but these 2 are probably the most commonly followed.

Good luck with the proj I didnt want to offend any others options that are trying to help because of my lack of knowledge. But yes, Im very happy with how the trunk movement is and I would love to trim out some of the un-necessary branches to make it more visually appealing as I'm growing everything out. I just ordered the 10x10x7.5in, akadama, pumice and lava stone and searching up for fertilizer. But mainly I would like to enjoy it at its small growing stages. Thank you for your comments and hope I can learn more from you! Have a great night!

There's lots of different roads that all lead to bonsai.
Growing out is just one way if you specifically want a thicker trunk. Nobody has yet mentioned you'll need to allow 5-10 years to develop that trunk in grow boxes depending how big and how well you care for it. They have also not mentioned a number of things that could go wrong along the way so please don't think growing a tree this way is 100% certain.
Some people are quite happy with a smaller tree and not so worried about real thick trunk. This one already has a nice trunk so would suit a smaller, thinner trunk bonsai too. For this I would get rid of surplus branches so the tree can redirect resources to the chosen branches then continue to grow and trim to develop branch ramification. You could see a reasonable bonsai in 2-5 years following this avenue. There's still things that can go wrong following this method.
There are other methods but these 2 are probably the most commonly followed.

Good luck with the project.

I appreciate everyones feedbacks! But yes, Im very happy with how the trunk movement is and I would love to trim out some of the un-necessary branches to make it more visually appealing as I'm growing everything out. I just ordered the 10x10x7.5in, akadama, pumice and lava stone and searching up for fertilizer. But mainly I would like to enjoy it at its small growing stages. Thank you for your comments and hope I can learn more from everyone! Have a great night!

 

[coltranem]

Just remember don't repot until next spring.

The tree has nice short internodes so there are many ways you can take it.

 

[Paradox]

Hi everyone, i live in Illinois and I just received this green maple. Looking for any advice on how to shape it (prune and trim) and taking care for this. Its in a 6in pot, should I repot this to see what the roots look like?, I'm trying to get the trunk bigger so I don't mind leaving the bottom branchs. The jm is curvy already and kinda short and busy. Thank you so much Everyone! View attachment 482430

Are you keeping this tree inside?
That won't end well.
It needs to be outside and will need a dormancy period in the winter with temperatures below 40F

 

[JackHammer]

Just remember don't repot until next spring.

The tree has nice short internodes so there are many ways you can take it.

Is it really too late? You wouldn't want to do both a hard prune and a repot but it is still pretty early in the spring.

 

[Paradox]

Is it really too late? You wouldn't want to do both a hard prune and a repot but it is still pretty early in the spring.

The tree is already leafed out. We repot maples when the buds are just starting to swell.
Very risky to repot after it has leafed out because when the leaves are out, the tree needs more water to compensate for the added transpiration out of the leaves.
When you repot, you cut and mess with the roots which compromises their ability to take up water until they recover and start growing again.
So repotting and reducing water uptake when the tree needs it most isnt a good idea.

 

[SeanS]

Is it really too late? You wouldn't want to do both a hard prune and a repot but it is still pretty early in the spring.

The OP’s tree is already pretty much in full leaf, I’d say it’s too late for him unless he has the necessary after care down 100%.

Trees don’t understand Gregorian calendars, it may seem early in spring but if a tree’s growing it’s already on its way for the season

 

[JackHammer]

The tree is already leafed out. We repot maples when the buds are just starting to swell.
Very risky to repot after it has leafed out because when the leaves are out, the tree needs more water to compensate for the added transpiration out of the leaves.
When you repot, you cut and mess with the roots which compromises their ability to take up water until they recover and start growing again.
So repotting and reducing water uptake when the tree needs it most isnt a good idea.

Thanks. Yeah, that makes sense. I had snow 2 weeks ago, just a few states over. My trees are still in bud but of course the grass already needs to be cut!

 

[daygoboiz]

Just remember don't repot until next spring.

The tree has nice short internodes so there are many ways you can take it.

I was moving the tree around and it seems like the roots systems only sticks to the middle of the pot and about 1/2inch around the soil are loosen up, so I think the nursery just potted not too long before he shipped it. I just purchased the bonsai substrate for the 10x10x7.5in pond basket with small holes in it; Would it be ok if I carefully cut the container and place the jm in the basket to leave it outdoor? Thanks for sharing your knowledge!

 

[daygoboiz]

Are you keeping this tree inside?
That won't end well.
It needs to be outside and will need a dormancy period in the winter with temperatures below 40F

The shipper for this jm is from California, so I just received the jm yesterday and I had it in shade outdoor in the am and bring it inside at night. We are having 85 one day and tomorrow it will snow till Monday night. So I was worried about the fluctuating climate that's why it is indoor. So I just keep it outside with the snow tomorrow? Thank you Paradox!

 

[daygoboiz]

The tree is already leafed out. We repot maples when the buds are just starting to swell.
Very risky to repot after it has leafed out because when the leaves are out, the tree needs more water to compensate for the added transpiration out of the leaves.
When you repot, you cut and mess with the roots which compromises their ability to take up water until they recover and start growing again.
So repotting and reducing water uptake when the tree needs it most isnt a good idea.

Thank you for your feedback. Would it be ok if i just carefully cut the container and place the tree in a pond basket surrounded by akadama, pumice and lava stones without utting or messing with root systems?