Parrot's Beak Growing Slowly

[2manycooks]

I've got a variegated Parrot's Beak bonsai that is generally healthy at the moment but I've noticed it's been growing somewhat slowly for what I understand is supposed to be an aggressively-growing species. I've been keeping it outside on my patio in Minnesota summer where it should be getting full sun and heat. Over the winter it was not healthy after some over-watering and a fight against fungus gnats that started in the fall. I gave it an emergency re-pot and the plant has bounced back since then. In the late winter I went light on watering (and fertilization) to prevent the return of root rot or fungus gnats but I believe the light fertilization (using 7-9-5) might be responsible for my plants slow growth this summer. I had given it fertilizer in the spring, but is it too late to continue providing fertilizer to the plant given that climate dictates I bring this tree inside come September/October? I've been told fertilization starts in late winter/early spring to pump energy into the tree for spring/summer growing but I don't know when to stop fertilizing.

Also while I'm posting, is there a best time with tropicals to propagate cuttings? I'd like to try growing more of these.

 

[Shibui]

There's not really a general best time for cuttings, tropical or not. Success depends more on the conditions you can provide. Provided you can give warmth and humidity you should be able to strike cuttings any time of year but generally quicker when the trees are growing.

Tropical trees often grow all year round if temperatures allow so you can fertilise all year round too. Maybe just a little less often while it is inside for winter as I suspect growth will be slower then.
7-9-5 seems like an odd NPK ratio. Very low Nitrogen (growth) and much higher P (roots and cells). I'd be trying something with N higher than both P and K for growth.
Your stalled growth could be conditions but may also be related to the lack of N in your fertiliser regime.
Modern bonsai soil mix holds very little nutrient so regular fertiliser is essential to get good growth.

 

[2manycooks]

There's not really a general best time for cuttings, tropical or not. Success depends more on the conditions you can provide. Provided you can give warmth and humidity you should be able to strike cuttings any time of year but generally quicker when the trees are growing.

Tropical trees often grow all year round if temperatures allow so you can fertilise all year round too. Maybe just a little less often while it is inside for winter as I suspect growth will be slower then.
7-9-5 seems like an odd NPK ratio. Very low Nitrogen (growth) and much higher P (roots and cells). I'd be trying something with N higher than both P and K for growth.
Your stalled growth could be conditions but may also be related to the lack of N in your fertiliser regime.
Modern bonsai soil mix holds very little nutrient so regular fertiliser is essential to get good growth.

That's good to know so thank you. The 7-9-5 fertilizer was something I bought from my garden store that was labeled specifically as bonsai fertilizer so odd that it's proportions aren't working. I suppose I can still use it on future cuttings.

 

[MSGhero]

A variegated species will grow more slowly than non as well

 

[Shibui]

The 7-9-5 fertilizer was something I bought from my garden store that was labeled specifically as bonsai fertilizer so odd that it's proportions aren't working

May not be that it isn't working. It's just a very unusual fertiliser ratio with such high P. My guess is that the lower N is probably meant to reduce growth so there's less pruning to manage and shorter internodes to promote more dense ramification? Who knows unless you can talk to the manufacturer.
Maybe the lack of growth you have noticed is exactly what's supposed to happen when using that fert?

In any case that formulation does not look like it would promote a lot of vegetative growth so if you want to see more growth I'd switch to a more conventional NPK formulation.