How to recognize spring

[AlainK]

The "real Sping" is the sun/lunar spring in Europe, before the 21st March.

Flowers you can see in my garden today (exept the snowdrops, Feb. 2nd) :



Buds of trees beginning to swell : Prunus pissardii, Acer sieboldianum (?), Acer laevigatum :

 

[Dav4]

This is going to be my first maple repot, so I want to do it at the safest time possible. It's good to understand the window though.

So, imo, this is the safest moment to re-pot, with the buds extending quickly and leaves primed to fully open and begin to photosynthesize. Until the leaves open up, the tree is in a energy deficit, and the time between the re-pot and a positive energy balance is at it's shortest here. A shorter period between re-pot and active photosynthesizing means less susceptibility to infection and more vigor moving into the growing season. Anyway, I've re-potted maples with buds at all 3 stages, as well as maples with 4-6 inch long extensions ( 2-3 internodes with extending leaves present) and all have done just fine. You will be fine if you re-pot with buds swollen but not opening (the 2nd picture). Good luck!

 

[0soyoung]

And, of course "repotting" means

• Transferring from one pot to another that is slightly larger
• Loosening the roots that were between the substrate and pot walls and trimming them off before replacing it into the same pot
• Combing out the outer inch of substrate and pruning the exposed roots
• Yada
• Yada
• Yada
• Partial bare rooting with no root pruning
• Partial bare rooting with roots pruned back an inch or so short of the pot walls
• Yada
• Yada
• Yada
• Total bare rooting ....
• ....
• Total bare rooting and pruning them all off (back to the base of the trunk - bare rooting was just to facilitate amputating the roots)

 

[AlainK]

And, of course "repotting" means

Trop de blabla.

 

[Wulfskaar]

So, imo, this is the safest moment to re-pot, with the buds extending quickly and leaves primed to fully open and begin to photosynthesize. Until the leaves open up, the tree is in a energy deficit, and the time between the re-pot and a positive energy balance is at it's shortest here. A shorter period between re-pot and active photosynthesizing means less susceptibility to infection and more vigor moving into the growing season. Anyway, I've re-potted maples with buds at all 3 stages, as well as maples with 4-6 inch long extensions ( 2-3 internodes with extending leaves present) and all have done just fine. You will be fine if you re-pot with buds swollen but not opening (the 2nd picture). Good luck!

I'm really glad we're having this conversation. I just went out and looked:

Most buds look like they have looked for the last month or so, but I just noticed that a few are actually about to burst! Holy crap! Can repotting wait 2 days until Saturday???

 

[AlainK]

I think you've got time : even if your climate is milder than we have here, I think you have about a week or two to repot.

And actually, when properly done, you can repot a lot of trees, especially maples, from the time the sap is beginning to flow (here, February) throuhout the Summer, and then in Autumn...

 

[Dav4]

I'm really glad we're having this conversation. I just went out and looked:

Most buds look like they have looked for the last month or so, but I just noticed that a few are actually about to burst! Holy crap! Can repotting wait 2 days until Saturday???

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Easily… I’d say you can repot now and at any point for the next 10-14 days… but I’d shoot for this coming weekend

 

[Wulfskaar]

Thanks guys, and @dbonsaiw for starting this conversation! It got me looking extra close today.

 

[MSU JBoots]

Great conversation here thanks for all the knowledge. Can anyone provide some clarification on what to look for in junipers? The best I’ve found is that when the tips start turning a bright shiny green. That’s my best tree and the one I’m most concerned about getting right this spring.

 

[Dav4]

Great conversation here thanks for all the knowledge. Can anyone provide some clarification on what to look for in junipers? The best I’ve found is that when the tips start turning a bright shiny green. That’s my best tree and the one I’m most concerned about getting right this spring.

Yep, bright green tips on the foliage. Fwiw, you usually re-pot junipers after everything else has been re-potted.

 

[crea7or]

To "Spring" or not to "Spring"... some of the trees don't want to sleep anymore

 

[leatherback]

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To "Spring" or not to "Spring"... some of the trees don't want to sleep anymore

it almost looks like those are inside

 

[crea7or]

it almost looks like those are inside

the trees are inside indeed, in a balcony with 2 large windows always open. This is the "best" I can offer them, since I don't own a house on the ground. But they are happy, they had their dormancy period for more than 2.5 months.

 

[Frozentreehugger]

Trees are truly amazing . I find native full-size trees . Very informative to your local climate . What we do with this info is up to us .Example here in zone 4 Ontario Canada silver maple bud swelling and leaf out . Proceeds all other trees . They seem to know exactly when winter is over . No matter what the tech guys say . Silver and red and sugar maple all drop seeds at different times. But again predicts climate patterns every year . Sugar maple drops in the fall . Always a few days of heavier winds . Disperses the seeds . About a week of rainy weather follows . Then the first true drop in night time temp . To signsl

 

[Frozentreehugger]

This is all great advice based on the bonsai tree your working on . But I have found that study of native trees to your area . Is very educational about your seasons and climate . Example native maples where I live zone 4 Ontario Canada. . Silver maple will bud swell and leaf out before any tree. Indicating the end of winter . Red maple will drop seeds predicting the few days of windy conditions . And about a week of consistent rainy weather . That is the start of summer . Sugar maple exact same thing . Start of true fall . I feel the plants have perfected there native growing environments. So you can learn a lot about your climate conditions. I’m confident this can be duplicate anywhere .just make sure you are watching a true native tree , amazing what they seem to get right no matter what the weather channel says observe carefully your environment.

 

[Frozentreehugger]

Sorry for the duplication.

 

[Srt8madness]

This one leafed out late Dec/Early Jan, before our first freeze. Silly bush.