1st bonsai - Juniper from a local nursery

[jsmart]

I just purchased my first Bonsai tree from a local nursery. I had a few questions? I live in south Texas, 9a
Should I leave it in the pot it’s in for now?
Also it looks like it’s got a natural cascade style going, but there is a competing cascading branch that’s a little shorter and crosses over the top of the lower hanging branch. When I should I start shaping and will I need to commit to one of these cascading branches?

 

[ZombieNick]

It's probably not what you want to hear, but this is basically a seedling in a bonsai pot. It needs a lot of time to grow before you can realistically style it. The best thing to do would be to wire some movement into the main trunk, and repot into a larger pot next spring. In the meantime, get more trees

 

[jsmart]

It's probably not what you want to hear, but this is basically a seedling in a bonsai pot. It needs a lot of time to grow before you can realistically style it. The best thing to do would be to wire some movement into the main trunk, and repot into a larger pot next spring. In the meantime, get more trees

No that’s completely fine. What would you recommend on wiring the main trunk? It kinda leans heavily to the opposite direction from the cascading branch.

 

[doc spring _work]

Pe

No that’s completely fine. What would you recommend on wiring the main trunk? It kinda leans heavily to the opposite direction from the cascading branch.

Personally if it was my tree I would repot into a grow bag poke a small hole into the bottom of the bag and hang the bag with the seedling growing upside down, and let it grow, it'll naturally want to grow upwards so regular maintenance and shaping as it grows larger will allow it to shine as a cascade.

That second branch looks ideal for a sacrifice branch to me but that's just my opinion there. It is your tree.

Also read over this thread very, very important https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/strategic-approach-to-bonsai-development.68251/

 

[Deep Sea Diver]

Pretty sure this isn’t the best time for big bends on juniper.

However trimming is ok, better in summer.

Search for cascade juniper bonsai, here on BN and on other platforms. This will give you some food for thought for the fall.

Best
DSD sends

 

[Wulfskaar]

Welcome!

You don't have to go for a cascade style. You can do something like this and it can look pretty cool...

 

[jsmart]

Pe

Personally if it was my tree I would repot into a grow bag poke a small hole into the bottom of the bag and hang the bag with the seedling growing upside down, and let it grow, it'll naturally want to grow upwards so regular maintenance and shaping as it grows larger will allow it to shine as a cascade.

That second branch looks ideal for a sacrifice branch to me but that's just my opinion there. It is your tree.

Also read over this thread very, very important https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/strategic-approach-to-bonsai-development.68251/

What size grow bag do you recommend? When you say poke a small hole in the bottom you mean to stick the tree through it so it sticks out from the bottom of the bag?

 

[n8]

Howdy!

What you got here is a Juniperus procumbens 'Nana' and young material like this is often pulled out of a one-gallon nursery pot and cut back enough to fit in these little ceramic pots. A lot of these are sold to folks who plop them next to their computer or on a kitchen counter, and they die off in a few months -- very Zen. (This is a great species for the seller, because it'll look alive for a while until it's quite obvious that it's not.) It's very likely in recovery mode after having lots of roots removed. I see some weeds, so at least it's been in there for a couple weeks. You could ask the nursery to see if they know, but they probably bought it like this for resale.

I would not repot, wire/bend, or prune it. This doesn't sound sexy or really all that fun, but your job is to simply keep it alive. You can do this by leaving it outside 24/7, giving it full sun (perhaps some daytime shade during your hot summers), and watering it. Watering will be the tricky part.

What is underneath that layer of rocks? I'm gonna guess potting soil, which is not ideal, but perfectly fine. Water thoroughly and when it's nearly dried out, water again. You don't want it sopping all the time and you also don't want it to completely dry out for extended periods. You'll want to check every day. In the summer, you'll need to water more often.

Next January, show us what you got and we can give some repotting, wiring, or pruning advice. Or you can drop it back in a one-gallon nursery pot to let it grow out if you want more to work with. Good luck and welcome to the forum.

 

[jsmart]

Howdy!

What you got here is a Juniperus procumbens 'Nana' and young material like this is often pulled out of a one-gallon nursery pot and cut back enough to fit in these little ceramic pots. A lot of these are sold to folks who plop them next to their computer or on a kitchen counter, and they die off in a few months -- very Zen. (This is a great species for the seller, because it'll look alive for a while until it's quite obvious that it's not.) It's very likely in recovery mode after having lots of roots removed. I see some weeds, so at least it's been in there for a couple weeks. You could ask the nursery to see if they know, but they probably bought it like this for resale.

I would not repot, wire/bend, or prune it. This doesn't sound sexy or really all that fun, but your job is to simply keep it alive. You can do this by leaving it outside 24/7, giving it full sun (perhaps some daytime shade during your hot summers), and watering it. Watering will be the tricky part.

What is underneath that layer of rocks? I'm gonna guess potting soil, which is not ideal, but perfectly fine. Water thoroughly and when it's nearly dried out, water again. You don't want it sopping all the time and you also don't want it to completely dry out for extended periods. You'll want to check every day. In the summer, you'll need to water more often.

Next January, show us what you got and we can give some repotting, wiring, or pruning advice. Or you can drop it back in a one-gallon nursery pot to let it grow out if you want more to work with. Good luck and welcome to the forum.

Thank you so much for all of that information! I appreciate it! When you mentioned I could drop it in a 1 gallon nursery pot to let it grow more, do you mean right now or to wait until January?

 

[Joe Dupre']

Welcome to the forum. My first suggestion is read, read, read. My second is to look at as many videos as possible on YouTube that cater to new enthusiasts. Our own Leatherback has a wonderful channel "Growing Bonsai by Jelle".

 

[n8]

drop it in a 1 gallon nursery pot to let it grow more, do you mean right now or to wait until January?

I would leave it alone, keep it alive, and enjoy it for what it is.

A lot of us skip over the health part of bonsai when we're starting out, but that's the foundation. You don't want to style or work over any trees that aren't healthy and growing strong.

I would go pick up another nana that is already in a one- or three-gallon pot. Heck, get four and wire some of those. (Watch this: https://www.craftsy.com/class/bonsai-wiring-essentials/)

Observe them over a growing season and learn.

 

[Japonicus]

Are there drainage holes in the bottom of pot?

A junipers strength is in its foliage.
Most likely the soil is not conducive to growing as bonsai long term in a healthy state.

It may be past time to repot in S TX.
So it would be advisable to follow @n8
's advice to let it grow and observe this year.
Being how a junipers strength is in its foliage, remove no foliage prior to recovery from repotting next year when the life is flowing again. You're in a hot climate so seek local clubs that can help give advice on repotting time frames and aftercare. But a bushy juniper will recover from repotting and be better able to regenerate new roots if the driving force is present.
Do keep outdoors year round.

 

[doc spring _work]

What size grow bag do you recommend? When you say poke a small hole in the bottom you mean to stick the tree through it so it sticks out from the bottom of the bag?

I was infact recommending that although there are plenty of routes to go (see all the advice lol)

SIze of the grow bag directly relates to how large a tree you want in the end.

Ask yourself what size tree do you envision? What style do you want? Does this species work well with my design goals?

The best thing you can do for your tree is have a plan and figuring out how you can achieve that design in the long run.

Stroll our forms check out the progression threads and that should give you a good idea of what it takes to achieve the style and or design you want.