So many questions so little time: Japanese Maple seedling, ficus, hybrid bougainvillea, Norway maple

[bonsairoofer]

Hi all,

New here searched and searched to no avail for answers.

Quite a few questions

Background 6a hardiness zone, Northern Virginia

Ficus question:
1) I think the tag said ficus splendide the leaves keep browning at the edges but its popping new growth - just fertilized for the second time yesterday
2) the water holds for a second then goes down - its an appropriate bonsai mix from the looks of it; however the roots are hefty at the top.

2) Norway maple - this is what the gentleman I bought it from said; it was purchased at a garden show. Growing very very healthy until one of the tiny leaves just went dark green and gross and now their are black spots on the leaves. I did pesticide 3-1 fertilome three days ago on everything. Was a sprayer attached to hose. I did notice ants so I took off the rocks and little grass that was on top. Watering does move slowly now - could it be pot bound?



3) bougainvillea hybrid - this little guy is a fighter. It has a very long tap root and leaves would keep browning etc and it was extremely loose in the pot. I noticed some clothe that look like it was containing the roots and I took it off. Well the top part looks like it has died out now. But it now has the healthiest growth it’s had to date closer to the bottom. Well it got almost knocked out of the pot by a rogue hand of mine. I am concerned it is still so loose - should I report it in just a nursery pot? I did just pesticide and fertilize it.


4) Japanese Maples: I have a ton of seedling some growing better than others.

4a) why is some of the new growth turning black?



4b) this beautiful guy taken from my bush is going to heck in a hand basket. I took it way to late I know it’s been about three weeks. Used premade bonsai soil from meehans miniatures in Maryland. What should I do?




4c) can someone help me identify the issue on this?
And this?



Sorry for the word vomit. Happy to answer any questions and take feedback about how I’m a dummy lol

 

[Carol 83]

should I report it in just a nursery pot

No. It is very weak and repotting will most likely kill it. What kind of soil is it in? It looks really soggy. Bougies are tough but keeping it in super saturated soil is a death sentence. I'm sure someone else will chime in about the others.

 

[bonsairoofer]

No. It is very weak and repotting will most likely kill it. What kind of soil is it in? It looks really soggy. Bougies are tough but keeping it in super saturated soil is a death sentence. I'm sure someone else will chime in about the others.

Okay thank you so much! I had just watered it after it was dry. It’s just in a soil that looks like a traditional bonsai mix

 

[Carol 83]

Give it lots of sun. It looks to be a variegated type, which tend to be a little weaker.

 

[mj_barb]

How much sun are those JMs getting? Looks like they are pretty shaded. I live close to you and give mine about 5 hours per day.

I’d also say watch the water, but more sun might help with that.

 

[Orion_metalhead]

In my experience acer palmatum seedlings are sluggish the first year and take off the years following. You might not see much growth this first year but next year should be good. They like morning sun, mid day shade, and later day sun. In 6b, hot midday sun will burn em when in pots. They like consistent moisture, but not soggy soil. They will not do well in saturated soil like elms or alder.

Ficus should do fine if youre seeing new growth popping. Probably just adjusting to new location and light. Mine drop their leaves in spring going outside and fall going inside.

 

[Baku1875]

go easy/omit fertilizer or additional pesticide treatments until your trees show some more vigor on their own. The above advice is on point, get your sun exposure right on the maples and bougie, and watering consistent.

From quick research:
"The black spots are a fungus disease called Tar Spot. It infects Norway maple (including all of the horticultural forms such as "Crimson King"), Silver maple and Freeman's maple. The disease infects leaves late in the season and has little impact on the overall health of the tree. "

It is likely nothing to be concerned about, I would avoid additional treatments on that norway maple, get it healthy via sunlight and good watering practices and it should be fine.

Ficus and bougie should be fine in full sun, ficus are thirstier, bougie likes it drier like Carol suggested. Do not repot it! If it were me, I would use a thin chopstick or bamboo skewer and carefully poke holes in the top soil, and get perlite in there and around the top and gently pat it in. Rinse the dust out of the perlite before you use it. You can repot it in Autumn in the same pot in any well draining aerating mix (perlite, pumice, lava rock, anything with pores.

Use some stones, or rinsed gravel and place it on the top soil to keep it from jiggling around for now and place it in full sun. Bougies respond well to pruning, you can clip off the dead portions above any existing buds.

That should at least help your bougainvillea breathe a little bit, and keep the loose roots from moving too much while it gets stronger this summer.

 

[Shibui]

Some of the trees appear to have several issues affecting them.
Japanese maples - small seedlings with brown edges to leaves is usually sunburn or too dry. Little pots dry our very quick and they can be dehydrated by the afternoon. One photo also appears to show a fungal infection, possibly some sort of mildew which is usually associated with leaves being wet, not enough sun or air movement.
The transplanted Japanese maple is just trying to survive after losing some roots so it is now shutting down some leaves so they don't use all the water. Roots usually regrow in a week or 2 and they new leaves are likely to emerge. Maintain care for a few more weeks and see what happens.
Black and deformed leaves are usually associated with soil being too wet. Not sure what soil mix you have used, how big those pots are or where they are sited. If they are sitting on soil that can compromise water drainage leaving roots sitting in soggy soil even though the soil surface has dried.
Is there any consistency of symptoms with where the pots are? Like brown tips mostly in one area or one type of pot, etc?

Watering appears to be a simple process but watering pots, and especially small, shallow pots, turns out to be an art that takes some time to master. It is a fine balance between too much and too little and changing day length and temperatures doesn't help much. You have started with some tough customers which will help most of them get through the learning process.
Try to measure soil moisture to get a better gauge on which pits need water when. Each pot may be different and requirements will change as the summer progresses. One good idea is to stick a wood skewer or chopstick in each pot and leave them in. Each day pull the stick out as a gauge for soil moisture before watering.

 

[bonsairoofer]

Some of the trees appear to have several issues affecting them.

Japanese maples - small seedlings with brown edges to leaves is usually sunburn or too dry. Little pots dry our very quick and they can be dehydrated by the afternoon. One photo also appears to show a fungal infection, possibly some sort of mildew which is usually associated with leaves being wet, not enough sun or air movement.
The transplanted Japanese maple is just trying to survive after losing some roots so it is now shutting down some leaves so they don't use all the water. Roots usually regrow in a week or 2 and they new leaves are likely to emerge. Maintain care for a few more weeks and see what happens.
Black and deformed leaves are usually associated with soil being too wet. Not sure what soil mix you have used, how big those pots are or where they are sited. If they are sitting on soil that can compromise water drainage leaving roots sitting in soggy soil even though the soil surface has dried.
Is there any consistency of symptoms with where the pots are? Like brown tips mostly in one area or one type of pot, etc?

Watering appears to be a simple process but watering pots, and especially small, shallow pots, turns out to be an art that takes some time to master. It is a fine balance between too much and too little and changing day length and temperatures doesn't help much. You have started with some tough customers which will help most of them get through the learning process.
Try to measure soil moisture to get a better gauge on which pits need water when. Each pot may be different and requirements will change as the summer progresses. One good idea is to stick a wood skewer or chopstick in each pot and leave them in. Each day pull the stick out as a gauge for soil moisture before watering.

Thank you for your reply! Hope this provides more context. 1/3 the little pots have only organic potting soil, 1/3 are a 2:1:1 mix of point soil, perlite, and coarse sand. Final 1/3 is a traditional expensive bonsai soil.

 

[Gabler]

1. Are you sure that’s a Norway maple? It looks like a red maple (Acer rubrum).

2. That newly-collected tree lost much of its root mass at collection, and now it’s losing some foliage. Keep it in the shade, and it may recover.

3. Give the other plants lots of sunlight, especially the seedlings.

4. Leave a chopstick stuck in each of your pots to measure the water level. Before watering, pull it out like a dip stick to see how wet the soil is beneath the surface. Don’t let your trees dry out, but make sure air is getting to the roots. As others have mentioned, your symptoms point to excessive moisture. Good soil aeration is the antidote.

 

[Shibui]

1/3 the little pots have only organic potting soil, 1/3 are a 2:1:1 mix of point soil, perlite, and coarse sand. Final 1/3 is a traditional expensive bonsai soil.

But are you seeing any of the problems confined to one or more of the soil types, near the edge of the pot patch or are they all over? Looking for patterns often helps us work out the problems.
The pots appear to be a little larger than I first estimated from the earlier pictures. They could still dry out but probably more likely to be staying too wet as the roots will not have filled those pots yet.
My advice is still to pay more attention to soil moisture before deciding to water or not.
The pots seem to be out in the open which should allow good air circulation but it's not clear from photos how much sun and shade and whether they get morning, noon or afternoon direct sun on the leaves.

 

[bonsairoofer]

1. Are you sure that’s a Norway maple? It looks like a red maple (Acer rubrum).

2. That newly-collected tree lost much of its root mass at collection, and now it’s losing some foliage. Keep it in the shade, and it may recover.

3. Give the other plants lots of sunlight, especially the seedlings.

4. Leave a chopstick stuck in each of your pots to measure the water level. Before watering, pull it out like a dip stick to see how wet the soil is beneath the surface. Don’t let your trees dry out, but make sure air is getting to the roots. As others have mentioned, your symptoms point to excessive moisture. Good soil aeration is the antidote.

1. not 100% sure honestly - its looking better and growing like crazy
2. its been in the pot for a few weeks and just started i kept in the shade but moved it to another area where it'll get more light
3. moved the other ones to an area with 5-6 hours of sunlight per day
4. Gotcha - I am a nervous waterer I think - what time is the best to water?

 

[bonsairoofer]

But are you seeing any of the problems confined to one or more of the soil types, near the edge of the pot patch or are they all over? Looking for patterns often helps us work out the problems.
The pots appear to be a little larger than I first estimated from the earlier pictures. They could still dry out but probably more likely to be staying too wet as the roots will not have filled those pots yet.
My advice is still to pay more attention to soil moisture before deciding to water or not.
The pots seem to be out in the open which should allow good air circulation but it's not clear from photos how much sun and shade and whether they get morning, noon or afternoon direct sun on the leaves.

Its all the soil types - so what I'm doing is watering less.
They get brief morning sun - because i thought they were getting scorched but now i know I've just been watering the ever living heck out of them

i guess i just need more trees

 

[bonsairoofer]

go easy/omit fertilizer or additional pesticide treatments until your trees show some more vigor on their own. The above advice is on point, get your sun exposure right on the maples and bougie, and watering consistent.

From quick research:
"The black spots are a fungus disease called Tar Spot. It infects Norway maple (including all of the horticultural forms such as "Crimson King"), Silver maple and Freeman's maple. The disease infects leaves late in the season and has little impact on the overall health of the tree. "

It is likely nothing to be concerned about, I would avoid additional treatments on that norway maple, get it healthy via sunlight and good watering practices and it should be fine.

Ficus and bougie should be fine in full sun, ficus are thirstier, bougie likes it drier like Carol suggested. Do not repot it! If it were me, I would use a thin chopstick or bamboo skewer and carefully poke holes in the top soil, and get perlite in there and around the top and gently pat it in. Rinse the dust out of the perlite before you use it. You can repot it in Autumn in the same pot in any well draining aerating mix (perlite, pumice, lava rock, anything with pores.

Use some stones, or rinsed gravel and place it on the top soil to keep it from jiggling around for now and place it in full sun. Bougies respond well to pruning, you can clip off the dead portions above any existing buds.

That should at least help your bougainvillea breathe a little bit, and keep the loose roots from moving too much while it gets stronger this summer.

On it captain!

Will do that with the ficus and bougie.

Thanks so much for your reply.

 

[Gabler]

1. not 100% sure honestly - its looking better and growing like crazy
2. its been in the pot for a few weeks and just started i kept in the shade but moved it to another area where it'll get more light
3. moved the other ones to an area with 5-6 hours of sunlight per day
4. Gotcha - I am a nervous waterer I think - what time is the best to water?

I water my trees in the morning. In the evening, dew already makes the trees damp, and watering will just leave them soggy all night.

 

[Orion_metalhead]

Morning watering is best. I morning water all my trees and spot water in the afternoon after work elms, alder, maples, etc - trees that like/need water. Watering in the morning provides trees with moisture throughout the day that can be transpired. Watering at night is a wolf-call for disease.

 

[bonsairoofer]

Morning watering is best. I morning water all my trees and spot water in the afternoon after work elms, alder, maples, etc - trees that like/need water. Watering in the morning provides trees with moisture throughout the day that can be transpired. Watering at night is a wolf-call for disease.

Yep that is what was happening.

I'm mildly nervous as I am leaving for Friday Saturday sunday Monday and my in laws are supposed to water the plants.

all the plants are looking soooooo sooooo much better. moved them into sun for 6 hours per day. Thanks for all your advice!

 

[Baku1875]

Yep that is what was happening.

I'm mildly nervous as I am leaving for Friday Saturday sunday Monday and my in laws are supposed to water the plants.

all the plants are looking soooooo sooooo much better. moved them into sun for 6 hours per day. Thanks for all your advice!

as a fellow novice/semi novice (i started taking horticulture and bonsai seriously around feb of last year), if you will be out of town, add mulch or sphagnum moss to your top soil to help retain moisture.

I'm very glad that your trees are improving. Remember that there are a lot of tools to use. Don't be afraid of sun for the appropriate species, and top dressing can save trees from missed watering by retaining moisture while you are gone.

cheap sphagnum moss can be found in big box stores like home depot in bricks, rip some apart from the brick and rinse it thoroughly and apply it to your topsoil when you dont think you will be able to attend your trees. Remove it when you can continue watering precisely afterwards.

 

[CapeCodBonsai]

1. not 100% sure honestly - its looking better and growing like crazy

An easy way to identify Norway Maple is to pull a leaf off of the stem complete with its petiole. If the petiole exudes a white milky sap, it is a Norway Maple.

 

[ajm55555]

In my experience acer palmatum seedlings are sluggish the first year and take off the years following. You might not see much growth this first year but next year should be good. They like morning sun, mid day shade, and later day sun. In 6b, hot midday sun will burn em when in pots. They like consistent moisture, but not soggy soil. They will not do well in saturated soil like elms or alder.

Ficus should do fine if youre seeing new growth popping. Probably just adjusting to new location and light. Mine drop their leaves in spring going outside and fall going inside.

There are 4 seedlings in this pot, all planted at the same time in March 2023. Look at the difference in growth.