My first trees

[bonsaitrees]

Hi, I'm new to bonsai. I recieved two trees (Ficus microcarpa and Chinese elm) back in September but I've mostly only been watering and keeping them alive through the winter. (The Ficus is indoors and the elm is outside.) Now that it is spring I have been thinking about styling and pruning back the elm, and possibly repotting them. They don't yet look the greatest - what would be your advice?

 

[Shibui]

Advice is that Chinese elm is very resilient. Can be cut back as hard as you like and should still shoot again. Even chopping at ground level it will still sprout new shoots from the stump and from the roots. You can probably see the response where there's a cluster of new branches growing where an older thick branch was chopped off.
No need to go that hard usually. Just an illustration not to worry about cutting branches that require shortening.

Most commercial Chinese elm bonsai tend to have way too many branches for long term good but it makes them saleable.
Try to thin out existing branches. Remove excess where more than 1 branch is growing from the trunk close together or on opposite sides. Leaving too many close together tends to form lumps on the trunk which doesn't look good.
Removing close branches allows the remaining branches space to develop into better branches with more secondary side branches and tertiary twigs.
Shoots tend to grow long and unbranched. Pruning helps form more side shoots and therefore density on the branches. Generally let new shoots grow to 4-6 leaves then chop back to 2-3 leaves to maintain a compact tree and promote density.

The final choice of shape is yours as the owner. You know what you want to look at so aim to grow that.

Water needs will surge soon as spring takes hold over there. Not only are days longer and hooter but the tree will also use up more water to grow and cool itself so monitor soil moisture more closely through spring and summer. Even after 40 years of doing this I still get caught occasionally at the change of seasons.

 

[Bonsai Forest]

Maybe consider pumice, akadama, and lava rock together as the soil components for both trees.

 

[bonsaitrees]

Thanks for the advice!

 

[rockm]

The soil in both is very bad--mucky, compacted and filled with roots. That situation will lead to problems. Its past repotting time for the elm. The ficus can be repotted in the heat of summer. You will have to monitor watering carefully until both are repotted into decent bonsai soil. Conditions like those in the pots tend to stay wet on the outside of the root mass and possibly dried out on the interior--compacted roots tend to shed water. IF that's the case (and you should poke around a bit to see if it is-but not aggressively) You can submerge water them EVERY SO OFTEN, like once every couple of weeks to help keep the interior of the root mass moist.

Repot the elm next spring before leaf buds break open into leaves. Repot the ficus this summer when it's hot. Leave it outside for the duration of the summer. Bring it in in the fall when temps go below 50. It will appreciate it.

 

[bonsaitrees]

Thanks, I appreciate your advice. Would making holes in the soil help? So that the water enters the holes and wets the entire root mass.

 

[Bonsai Forest]

I wonder if creating a mote around the soil may allow the root system to evenly uptake water (with additional watering of soil surface for good measure)


Edit:

Wrong thread, my apologies (I thought this was the ‘knife into soil’ post)