Jul 16 2010
Best Guide For Juniper Bonsai Tree Care - Part II
In the last article we touched on the bonsai care subjects of watering, fertilizing, and the correct levels of humidity and sunlight needed to keep your juniper vigorous. This Part II will focus on pruning, repotting, insect control, and the winter care of your juniper bonsai tree.
About Pruning Your Juniper bonsai
Invariably in the springtime, and then oftentimes yet again in the autumn, buds (new growth) will form on the tips of the juniper bonsai tree branches. Whatever the season that you find this new growth, these new buds should be removed to prevent them from turning into fast growing shoots. The simplest way to get rid of them is to pinch them off by just making use of your thumb and index finger. In the late spring, about a month after the new buds initially appeared, is the best time for you to pinch them off. Older foliage also needs to be removed in the spring which will reduce the amount of inner growth, and permit sunlight to pass through more easily and even more air to circulate. Junipers need persistent pinching of new growth to help keep their foliage compact throughout the growing season.
You will not hurt your bonsai by pinching off the new growth during any one of these periods of growth. This is in part the technique through which a plant is miniaturized, and the bonsai’s ultimate form would depend on your restricting it’s growth in this manner.
The Best Time to Re-Pot Your Juniper Bonsai
When your junipers are less than five years old they should be re-potted every other year. After they have matured they only require re-potting each 3rd to fifth year. You need to be careful to only use a soil blend that drains very easlity whenever you re-pot your juniper plants. The early spring and the fall are the best times of year to re-pot your juniper bonsai. Junipers are prone to root rot. If you discover root rot when you are re-potting, you must cut off every one of the affected roots and then re-pot working with only sphagnum moss. Ensure that it stays in the moss for a full year or so to allow the roots time to recover. Sphagnum moss is bacteria and decay resistant and is extremely water absorbent. After repotting your juniper be certain to water it thoroughly and then keep the plant in a shady location until the roots have recovered.
When and How to Prune Your Juniper’s Roots
After several years of growth your juniper will very likely become root-bound in it’s pot. This is when it becomes necessary to re-pot your plant, and to prune it’s roots. Before you prune the tree’s roots you must carefully remove a lot of the soil from the plant’s rootball. You can safely trim off nearly one-third of your juniper bonsai plant’s roots without causing injury. After pruning the plant is ready to be put back in it’s pot. It’ll have lost some soil when you removed it from the rootball, so it is advisable to replace it with a 3:1 mixture of planting medium and sand. To help it recover quickly from the root pruning and the re-potting you should use a transplant shock supplement blended into its water. It’s also advisable to squirt the plant several times a day for a few weeks.
Keep Bugs Under Control
If you are growing your juniper bonsai indoors you’ll need to be particularly aware and on the lookout for spider mites. They’re able to cause real damage to your juniper. Develop a routine to spray for bugs no less than monthly with any insecticide suitable for your household plants that will kill spider mites. Keep spider mites from getting onto your juniper by spraying all nearby plants with the same insecticide.
Caring for Your Juniper in Winter
Should you be growing your juniper bonsai indoors you must give it a rest, and allow it to go dormant during winter if you’d like it to remain healthy. This can be done by simply setting it someplace where the light is low (but not completely absent), and the temperature will remain below 60F degrees all winter long. Outdoor juniper bonsai plants ought to be protected from severe, prolonged cold conditions, as well as from dry winter winds. You could possibly accomplish this by putting them in a window well, an outdoor shed (if it has windows), or a mulch bed.
While it can be grown indoors year-round, your juniper bonsai tree will be it’s best when it is permitted to rest this way through winter. Place it in a cold place during the winter, the chillier the better. Freezing will not likely hurt it, so long as it’s not subjected to a fast rise in temperature. If it is cool enough (50 degrees F or less) indirect light will be sufficient. The plant isn’t going to need to have very much water in the winter season.
If you can’t duplicate winter with a cold room or basement or shed, then try, at the very least, to keep your bonsai plant away from receiving direct sunlight. Through winter, make certain you spray your inside juniper bonsai more than once a day with a mister to keep the plants foliage from becoming too dry.
