Aleppo pine seedlings

[Brockie1996]

Good evening everyone!

I’m gathering information on my Aleppo pines I’m currently growing from seed. They were planted on 24/05/2024 and seem to be coming along fine! I currently have 8 growing so far!

This is my first time growing from seeds and I’m trying to get some advice from some pine pro’s! Firstly, when is the best time to seperate them into seperate pots? Will my bonsai mix of Akadama, Pumice and Lava rock be good enough for them?

And is it wise to start using a light liquid fertiliser or not?

Thanks in advance

 

[Esolin]

Not a pine expert, but I've grown Aleppos and others from seed. Spring and Fall are usually the best times of year for repotting, but as long as it's not too hot, you should be able to gently up pot them into larger containers at any time so long as you don't disturb the roots too much. I will say though that their current growth stage is the most vulnerable. Of all the pine seedlings I've lost across various species, I've lost the most at this age, and usually from overwatering --> fungal root rot. Pine seedlings seem to do better with a little neglect. In the wild, they fend for themselves in the shady pine litter beneath mature trees, only getting a little light and water. I try to keep this in mind now when caring for them and not pamper them too much.

Akadama, pumice, lava is great for pines. I've also used straight pumice, or pumice with a little fine bark mixed in for extra moisture retention if desired, but again, pines like to be on the dry side.

But again, not pine expert. There may be others on here with better advice on when is best time to repot.

 

[Brockie1996]

Not a pine expert, but I've grown Aleppos and others from seed. Spring and Fall are usually the best times of year for repotting, but as long as it's not too hot, you should be able to gently up pot them into larger containers at any time so long as you don't disturb the roots too much. I will say though that their current growth stage is the most vulnerable. Of all the pine seedlings I've lost across various species, I've lost the most at this age, and usually from overwatering --> fungal root rot. Pine seedlings seem to do better with a little neglect. In the wild, they fend for themselves in the shady pine litter beneath mature trees, only getting a little light and water. I try to keep this in mind now when caring for them and not pamper them too much.

Akadama, pumice, lava is great for pines. I've also used straight pumice, or pumice with a little fine bark mixed in for extra moisture retention if desired, but again, pines like to be on the dry side.

But again, not pine expert. There may be others on here with better advice on when is best time to repot.

Hi and thank you for your reply!

That is some great info there, there are still 2 or 3 seeds starting to grow out the soil so I want to wait for another few weeks anyways so that all the seeds that are going to germinate, do germinate and grow…

Right now in the UK it’s not too warm so I think I may be able to get away with it soon, there are 2 seedlings in one little pot in my propagation tank so ideally I want to seperate them before their roots become tangled too much!

The rest I should just be able to slip out the soil and into seperate pots with my bonsai soil, if they like to be on the drier side but not too dry then my bonsai mix should be just fine if I keep an eye on the watering

 

[Shibui]

Seedlings can be transplanted any time. Young seedlings seem to be able to cope with transplant and root reduction no problem. I sow pine seed all together in community trays to save space then prick out individual seedlings any time from when they have the seed leaves fully open right through to 1 year old. That includes middle of summer and I suspect it gets a lot hotter here than anywhere in the UK.
At that first transplant I take the opportunity to root prune so the seedlings will grow better lateral roots that will eventually make good nebari.
Some examples of root trimming when pricking out (JBP) seedlings



They can go into your chosen bonsai mix right away or can go into a general potting mix if you're growing them on in larger pots. Soil mix at this stage is not so critical. Just make sure you do manage watering well. Constantly wet or humid can be a disaster for any seedlings.
Allepo pines are from dry areas. They are a favourite pine for drier areas of Australia as they can cope with quite dry conditions so they should cope well being on the slightly drier side.

Fertiliser should start pretty soon after germination as the seed raising soil generally has little or no nutrient in it. They do OK for a few weeks on the remains of the stores from the seed but regular watering and good growth demands nutrients so start with the fertiliser a week or 2 after germination.

 

[Brockie1996]

Seedlings can be transplanted any time. Young seedlings seem to be able to cope with transplant and root reduction no problem. I sow pine seed all together in community trays to save space then prick out individual seedlings any time from when they have the seed leaves fully open right through to 1 year old. That includes middle of summer and I suspect it gets a lot hotter here than anywhere in the UK.
At that first transplant I take the opportunity to root prune so the seedlings will grow better lateral roots that will eventually make good nebari.
Some examples of root trimming when pricking out (JBP) seedlings
View attachment 551847View attachment 551848
View attachment 551849View attachment 551850
View attachment 551851View attachment 551852
They can go into your chosen bonsai mix right away or can go into a general potting mix if you're growing them on in larger pots. Soil mix at this stage is not so critical. Just make sure you do manage watering well. Constantly wet or humid can be a disaster for any seedlings.
Allepo pines are from dry areas. They are a favourite pine for drier areas of Australia as they can cope with quite dry conditions so they should cope well being on the slightly drier side.

Fertiliser should start pretty soon after germination as the seed raising soil generally has little or no nutrient in it. They do OK for a few weeks on the remains of the stores from the seed but regular watering and good growth demands nutrients so start with the fertiliser a week or 2 after germination.

Thank you so much for this it is very helpful! It’s good to know they can handle a repot at this age, am I able to fertilise even after trimming a bit of the root? Would I be best waiting a couple more weeks after root pruning in order for them to settle in and grow more roots?

I’m planning on doing this tonight so they’ll all be in their own separate pots ready to grow more

 

[Shibui]

Most growers seem to hold off on fertiliser after root pruning but I don't find that's essential.
My potting soil has fertiliser included so all trees here get fert from day 1 and they don't seem to mind.
Your seedlings are strong and healthy so they won't mind missing out on fert for another week or so if you want to play it safe for now.

 

[Brockie1996]

Most growers seem to hold off on fertiliser after root pruning but I don't find that's essential.
My potting soil has fertiliser included so all trees here get fert from day 1 and they don't seem to mind.
Your seedlings are strong and healthy so they won't mind missing out on fert for another week or so if you want to play it safe for now.

Thank you again! I’ve now potted them into their separate pots, there’s 2 which haven’t fully opened just yet so I’m going to wait until they do before I put them in their pots.

The rest have had a little bit of liquid fertiliser and they’re going to settle in over the coming weeks and carry on growing hopefully! I trimmed the root on 1 or 2 of them as they were very long but the rest I haven’t trimmed.

I’ll post a pic later on of them in their pots, and fingers crossed they survive and thrive!!

 

[Potawatomi13]

They don't like wet feet. Somewhat or very prone to root rot