Eugenia mattosii- needing styling suggestions

[Heitor Silva]

Hey, folks, how are you? My name is Heitor and i am a bonsai enthusiast! Recently, I added a new tree to my collection: a "Dwarf cherry" (Eugenia mattosii) from a nursery at São Bernardo, which has been living for 7 years. However, it has come to my attention that its trunks (it seems to have more than one "main" trunk) are WAY too straight, a fact which bothers me. Is there a way to correct this, such as a specific prunning method? I'm sending the pics too. Btw, if you have any tips on how to take care of this species, I'd be glad to read them. Thanks!

 

[Shibui]

A number of Australian species were classified as Eugenia but have now been renamed Syzigium so I don't know your plant species. If ours had the same name for a while I guess they will be similar though?
We generally root prune and repot in warmer weather. Ours do not do well after root pruning in cool weather.
Plenty of water and fertiliser will help the tree grow. Probably warm conditions? It may even do well as an indoor bonsai.

Our species are generally quite flexible so can be wired and bend easily but I suspect that your main trunk is quite hard and would not bend easily now, That really only leaves pruning to alter the shape. Shaping with pruning can take longer but often produces better bends in the long run. I would cut the trunk back to just above one of those side shoots then let it grow freely for a season to thicken. That new trunk could be wired for extra bends or repeat the cut and grow until you have the desired trunk shape and size.
Prune off those dead stubs where branches have been previously pruned will help it look better.

 

[Heitor Silva]

I would cut the trunk back to just above one of those side shoots then let it grow freely for a season to thicken.

Oh, I see that. From your experience, is cutting the trunk "doable" (without killing the plant) during a specific season? We are facing the start of Autumn here in Brazil, with temperatures averaging 23°C. Thanks!

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Interesting species. I found the name Eugenia mattosii on a list of Eugenia species, so indeed that is a known species. Unfortunately I have found nothing else in english about it. I imagine if I could read Portuguese or Spanish, I would find more articles about this species.

Assuming its care should be similar to other Brazilian species of Eugenia, I would not do any major pruning until spring or early summer. You want the tree to be in active, vigorous growth, when you do major pruning on this species.

Pruning - as a general guide, not an absolute rule, but a design guide. Branches for a bonsai should be less than 50 % of the diameter of the trunk. This helps to create the image of a ''tree''. If the diameter of the branches is close to equal to the trunk diameter tend to create the image of a shrub. So for a more tree like appearance you might even consider removing all the largest branches entirely and let them be replaced by younger, smaller diameter branches.

At the point where the branch joins the trunk, there is normally a collar of tissue with dormant buds. These can be stimulated to grow by the removal of the branch. When you cut the branch, leave a stub, this will make sure the collar of dormant buds is not disturbed. A year or two later you can go back and remove the stub to clean up the wound and promote healing smooth. If you cut flush immediately , there is the possibility that you remove the dormant buds with the branch. Then replacements would have to come from elsewhere on the trunk.

If you just want to shorten the existing branches, to grow them with more movement. Cut sometime in late spring, after active growth has begun. Buds should sprout in a few weeks.

Repotting - One treatment that I have tried and seems to work for me in my colder than yours climate is to repot Eugenia, Syzygium, Luma, and Jaboticaba in the later part of summer, or early autumn, within a week or two of the autumnal equinox. When you repot, defoliate the tree. A new flush of leaves should appear within 6 weeks. This might not be necessary in your climate. Check with others growing Eugenia in your area.

In general Eugenia are easy to grow. They want at least half a day of sun. It should be outdoors on a balcony, windowsill or in a courtyard, or patio most of the time. Bring indoors for display. Return back outdoors when guests leave. Keep moist, and you should get flowers and fruit at least once a year, possibly more frequently. Should make a nice bonsai.

 

[smilezzz]

Oh, I see that. From your experience, is cutting the trunk "doable" (without killing the plant) during a specific season? We are facing the start of Autumn here in Brazil, with temperatures averaging 23°C. Thanks!

What you've got there is an Australian Brush Cherry. Extremely hardy, evergreen and mostly used for hedges or ornamental outdoor bubble trees here in South Africa (very similar climates to yours from my experience, seeing as we are more or less I the same latitude). We're also moving into autumn and I picked up a few on discount. My cousin and I had a go at the one with a burn mark on it about a month back. He said cutting back as much as we did was fine, but I sneakily covered all the major cuts with vaseline to prevent moisture loss. I haven't taken any recent pics, but theres a flush of new growth and the trees doing really well. Would you consider air layering the side you want removed? You might end up with another tree with a nicely defined trunk and root system? If not, the species is hardy enough to snip now as long as you seal the wounds, though I'd wait until very late in winter. As it stands, I've been advised to do root-work only once it warms up a bit (mid Sept).

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

@smilezzz
The original poster, is living in Brazil. The species Eugenia mattosii is native to Brazil. I do not doubt Heitor Silva's identification of his tree, it is Eugenia mattosii, which is different than the two species call Australian brush cherry. Syzygium australe and Syzygium paniculatum are the two species called Australian brush cherry. They are not even in the same genus as Eugenia mattosii. Now the genus Syzygium and Eugenia are somewhat related, and techniques for handling as bonsai are indeed similar, the two are distinct.

 

[BubblePopScott]

Will you keep both trunks?

 

[smilezzz]

@smilezzz
The original poster, is living in Brazil. The species Eugenia mattosii is native to Brazil. I do not doubt Heitor Silva's identification of his tree, it is Eugenia mattosii, which is different than the two species call Australian brush cherry. Syzygium australe and Syzygium paniculatum are the two species called Australian brush cherry. They are not even in the same genus as Eugenia mattosii. Now the genus Syzygium and Eugenia are somewhat related, and techniques for handling as bonsai are indeed similar, the two are distinct.

Thanks for the clarification. I think I read somewhere that Syzygium species were classified as Eugenia until fairly recently? They are very similar so the principles applied to one should then theoretically be applied to the other? In any case, got ahead of myself there. Both classes are not a common bonsai subjects over here, for some reason, despite it's good qualities. A bit like Escallonia and Privets.

 

[Heitor Silva]

Well, thanks for all the support! Some weeks after this post, I decided to wait till Spring so as to do some major pruning. Btw, I'm intending to keep those two main trunks intact, while cutting back the left one, which is waay too straight. Perhaps I'll do some deadwood work in this one, or wait for it to show some buds. There is much to do with this seedling/pre-bonsai. Thank you very much for the support! It is kinda hard to find an active bonsai forum as good as this one in Brazilian Portuguese