Juniper and Hinoki slip potting advice needed!

[JBuckley]

Hi all,

I hope you are well. I’m planning to slip pot an Itoigawa Juniper and a Hinoki Cypress in spring and I’m looking for some thoughts on what soil mix I should give them to encourage the best growth?
I live in the south of the UK and the trees are small and young, perhaps four years old or so.

Does anyone have experience of doing the same thing?

Any advice is greatly appreciated, thanks!
Jake

 

[Hartinez]

Hi all,

I hope you are well. I’m planning to slip pot an Itoigawa Juniper and a Hinoki Cypress in spring and I’m looking for some thoughts on what soil mix I should give them to encourage the best growth?
I live in the south of the UK and the trees are small and young, perhaps four years old or so.

Does anyone have experience of doing the same thing?

Any advice is greatly appreciated, thanks!
Jake

Hi Jake. Folks are gonna ask. But I’ll ask also, If you’re doing the work in spring and the trees are young and healthy, why not just do a proper repot? Slip potting is only a great idea under very specific circumstances. But IMO, if things are timed right and the tree is healthy, when we make interventions we should be doing the most o move the tree along to its next level. Working the roots to be their best is part of that.

In terms of soil, a standard 1:1:1 mix of akadama pumice lava is great for either.

 

[JBuckley]

Hi thanks for the response!

Yes very good point.
My plan was to slip pot them in plastic grow pots and let them loose for a couple of yearly cycles to get them bigger and stronger with thicker trunks. The juniper in particular has had minimal training and is pre-bonsai.

The Hinoki I’m definitely more open to finding another bonsai pot but to be honest I think it’s quite happy in its current set-up. Again, it’s just size I want to build.

My idea to do it in the spring was just to cause minimal stress to the trees as it’s getting cold here now. But do you think that’s a non-issue with slip potting? Could I do this now for instance?

Good to know about the soil ratio, thank you.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

I’m looking for some thoughts on what soil mix I should give them to encourage the best growth?

I agree to either do a full repot into bonsai soil. Or, if you don't, then slip pot it into the same soil medium they're already in.
Slip potting plants with organic soil rootballs into bonsai soil is great for drainage. So great that halfway through summer, the organic soil will mess up your plants. Either by lack of proper adhesive contact with the bonsai soil (meaning roots will not grow into the bonsai soil, and water would not leave the organic soil), or by the organic soil drying out and becoming hydrophobic which does a number on your plants.

 

[Hartinez]

Do you have pics of the stage they are in?

Regardless I don’t think slip potting is the right move. Some sort of intervention or work on the roots should be performed at the right time, which is almost always spring.

 

[bwaynef]

If the trees aren't going to die due to the poor soil, wait 'til spring. Basically, everything Hartinez is telling you, I cosign.

 

[Paradox]

I agree with others above.
Do a proper repot at the correct time in the spring. Especially if they are currently in nursery pots and soil, just slip potting to a bigger pot and putting a new soil type around the edges usually results in problems due to how water behaves in the different soil types

 

[JBuckley]

Do you have pics of the stage they are in?

Regardless I don’t think slip potting is the right move. Some sort of intervention or work on the roots should be performed at the right time, which is almost always spring.

Hi yes absolutely, I’ll be able to send a few photos on Thursday, apologies for the delay. Leaving home in the dark and coming back in the dark is proving difficult for photos at the moment!