Thickening a Dwarf Jade Bonsai Trunk

[Desert O'Piñon]

So, those of you who have mild-ish winters, are you saying I can probably leave my P. afra outside in my climate over winter with a little protection? We have a dozen or so days below freezing every year, the lowest temp I've seen since 2000 is 3°F/-16°C, but that's exceptionally rare. Typically, we don't get below 15°F/-9°C. Our humidity is usually below 20%, but we do have several months of wind, including the coldest months.
I kept mine inside last winter, and I have similar results, that they weren't happy until they got back outside.

 

[Bonsai Nut]

I know they can take some cold - including frost. I just checked their natural range and it is said they can handle up to -4 C (approx 25 F). Note that this is for Portulacaria afra - and not jade plant (Crassula ovata) which is less cold hardy.

 

[fredman]

Despite having no idea when to trim

Trimming is always dependent on what you want to achieve. If you want it to grow...don't trim. Put it in on/in the ground and leave it. It won't really need much fertilizer then. It'll grow fast...guaranteed.
You can (once it starts growing in the ground) carefully directionally trim it...but keep the emphasis on growth.
I trim my "matured" ones throughout the year...for the tips to change direction, and create taper. When it grows, it can be trimmed. They bounce back fast.
I don't see it exclusively a succulent. I see it as a mix between a succulent and a woody tree...because it actually is. When matured its more wood than succulent in the branches....it can even be used as fire wood.
I've once bent several 2" thick branches on a tree (using double 7mm wire..and tie downs). It took about 3 years for the wood to stay bent..and not creep back.
They grow into proper trees. Here's a random pic I took off the Internet of a matured one...

 

[leatherback]

As this thread is busting myths on portulacaria afra growing.. How about repotting. What is the experience on that? Can we come to a concensus there? One of the reasons is that the Jade in the video needs desperate rootwork and I am waiting for this till the end of next winter, weeks before I want to move it outside, keeping it dry tillI move them out. But possible repotting in summer is better?

 

[Bonsai Nut]

As this thread is busting myths on portulacaria afra growing.. How about repotting. What is the experience on that? Can we come to a concensus there? One of the reasons is that the Jade in the video needs desperate rootwork and I am waiting for this till the end of next winter, weeks before I want to move it outside, keeping it dry tillI move them out. But possible repotting in summer is better?

I had it growing wild in my landscape in SoCal. The way you would propagate it was to walk through some bushes, break branches off, and let them fall on the ground. They would lie there, unchanging, for the better part of a year, and then the next rainy season, if they were lying on top of or touching some sort of soil, they would start to push roots where the stem contacted the soil. Because it is a succulent, the roots are quite short and fragile.

If you want to take cuttings, you break off a branch and let it sit on your bench for several weeks until the wound site is completely dried up/shriveled. Then stick it in your soil, which should be completely inorganic (I used 100% pumice). If you put cuttings in soil before the wound site is dry, or used soil with high organic content, they had a tendency to rot. As a cutting, they can take six months to push new roots, so be patient.

Watering is like any succulent. Water thoroughly, completely soaking the soil, then don't water again until the soil is bone dry. I had best results transplanting in early summer. Avoid transplanting during cold/wet seasons. They thrived on neglect, and tended to look best the less you cared for them - as long as the soil was inorganic. Full sun, the hotter the better. In part sun or inside your house, they tend to get leggy.

I know I will catch flack for saying this, but I couldn't ever use them as bonsai. I had a hard time seeing them as anything other than houseplants, no matter how large they got (I had some that were up to my waist). They are certainly easy to style... just shear/hedge trim to whatever outline you want. They cannot be wired, in the traditional sense of holding a branch in a new position, though I did see people wire constrictively so that the wire would cause scarring on the trunk in order to give the impression of bark.

 

[TimIAm]

They cannot be wired

I use wire and have no problem getting portions of the plant to hold their shape as long as that portion of the plant is putting on growth. I've had success wiring many times to the point that it confuses me when people say they cannot be wired.

 

[Chisai Ki]

I went ahead and cut the long branches all back. It had new growth that was 6" or so long and it was looking a bit wild. I fertilized it afterwards and it is sitting in the sun.

For those who fertilize heavily, how often do you use a fertilizer in the 20N range?

 

[Russ1]

I think any tree should be re-potted when it shows the most vigor, ie: buds swelling, new growth starting etc.
I usually have re-potted, root pruned, branch pruned mid July but I probably should do this work earlier like end of June and not later than mid July, It's just that I don't get to it until mid July.
The timing may depend on your climate.. For a few years I have been trying to work on my BRTs and other Tropicals no later than July 4 because our weather changes too fast, but I just don't get there. We have had a month of extreme heat and humidity and all of a sudden it's in the upper 50's last night. So it's a look ahead thing into the next month of weather to have enough room for recovery before big weather changes.

FWIW, Just to add to the info here is some I found on the web a while back and put in my culture notes.. There is a link I put in this info but I'm not sure if that is where the info comes from.
Though I think the "Keep above 50 deg" is a bit conservative from my personal experience and when it's hot I may water a couple times a day if it is not in potting soil but in an open, free draining Bonsai Soil, maybe like a Pine or Juniper mix.. Still playing with the mix.

"Portulacaria afra has many common names but is frequently called Dwarf Jade and is a succulent. It does not have a true woody stem and therefore wiring is a bit touchy. Leaves are small and in scale to even very small trees. The leaves and branches are quite fleshy and store quite a bit of moisture as you would expect from a succulent. Branches can break or snap easily so allow the plant to be quite dry, wire carefully, and slowly. Extreme bends are not advised.
As a succulent it will take high light intensity but can survive under window lighting. Its most critical requirement is well draining soil. Wet feet are not tolerated and root rot sets it quickly. After re-potting wait one to two weeks before watering to allow the roots to callus off a bit. Keep watering light and allow the plant to dry until the plant shows signs of growth. In its native Africa this shrub will tolerate months or years of dryness so always err on the dry side. Leaves will shrivel and drop when the tree is allowed to go dry but will re-leaf once watering resumes
It can be trimmed with shears and buds back well. Cuttings may be rooted in soil once the stem dries and calluses off for several days. Make sure to leave all cuts open and do not cut paste them. Also leave a stump on all larger cuts to prevent rot from backing down the cut surface. Do not use concave or melon ball cutters.
Old pieces will get a nice fissured, corky bark and look quite old.

Advantages
Small leaves
Tolerates dryness
Culture

Why are the Leaves Falling Off My Elephant Bush (Portulacaria afra)? | World of Succulents

Overwatering is the primary cause of failure in Elephant Bush because it invites fungal rot disease. Leaves of the overwatered plant ...

worldofsucculents.com

Water - Allow to dry before watering again
Soil – Normal bonsai soil 50%, and sand or gravel 50%
Light – Moderate to high
Humidity – Irrelevant
Fertilizer – Fertilize normally
Insects – Scale, mealy bugs
Training/Potting
Wiring difficult due to soft “wood”
Use clip and grow
Jin is not possible due to soft wood
Do not treat injuries with sealant or cut paste
Pot in smaller than normal pots to allow roots to dry
Secure the tree into pot carefully as roots are minimal
Trees are top-heavy so secure pots against movement
Propagation
Propagates readily from cuttings
Allow cuttings to dry for several days before and after potting
Temperature
Keep above 50 Fahrenheit"

 

[fredman]

How about repotting. What is the experience on that?

Lately...I repot them whenever they need it...regardless of the season.
Some of them are inline now as i'm busy with my usual late winter repotting on the other trees.
When I started off with them, I repotted when I saw signs of growth.
Lately I just push it out the pot, check the roots, and if its needs repotting, I do it. I don't water it for two weeks after...especially when removing thicker roots. Its mostly precaution....but I have to say, i've never seen root rot on them.

Fun fact...the leaves are edible, and actually medicinal. When next you make a tomato gravy, pop a sprig in there...for a bit of a twang...

 

[Arizona bonsai]

For me, living in Phoenix AZ, as a beginner, it is a plant that doesn’t die. That is very important to me.

 

[Inspector34]

I love growing dwarf jades. They're so forgiving, yield such fast results and allow you to experiment with styling. And one parent tree gives you so many more for free with cuttings. You can almost break all the rules of bonsai with jades. I cut about 50 tiny little green branches off my latest parent tree last September and stuck them all in soil. Now I have them all in nursery pots and they've fattened up and grown to from 2 inches tall to about 8-10 now. I put them in huge pots, water them constantly and let them bake in the sun and heat and periodically fertilize them. They take off like weeds and after a year or 2 I start pruning them back to begin the shaping process. But for the first year or 2, I just let them do their thing and they get nice and fat. I don't even pay much attention to the fertilizer I use but it's 18/4/10 and jades love it. I apply it a few times throughout the growing season and I can't keep up with all the jades I have now.

 

[Inspector34]

I went ahead and cut the long branches all back. It had new growth that was 6" or so long and it was looking a bit wild. I fertilized it afterwards and it is sitting in the sun.

For those who fertilize heavily, how often do you use a fertilizer in the 20N range?

I wouldn't worry about too much about fertilizer balance as long as you don't apply it too often. it's very forgiving as long as you give it water, sun and heat, and room to spread its roots, it'll grow. With the pot you have, the branches will ramify and foliage will fill in nicely, but the trunk won't thicken much. but it'll be healthy and happy.

 

[fredman]

are you saying these are frost-hardi?

I think you'll enjoy this video. At 29 min he actually shows frost damage on ones that were left outside.