Red Chojubai Starter

[Roy9954]

Newbie here and just received 2 new bonsai

1. Red Chojubai (6 inches ht) pot (5x5x3(D). Should i keep this in the original pot it came in or repot it in a larger pot.
2. European olive tree (8 inches ht) oval pot (5x5x2.5(D). Should i keep this in the original pot it came in or repot it in a larger pot.

Thank you.

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

Newbies kill trees fastest by transplanting them. If you’re new and they’re taking water, I recommend not repotting them.
They do not appear to be underpotted.

 

[ralf]

What about giving them a stroll around your garden. Maybe they would prefer to stay there providing the temps are not below 0°C ( Olive, Chojubai will be OK )

 

[Shibui]

Agree that those pots appear fine for the trees. A little overpotted but , as already mentioned, that's insurance for beginners who tend to go away and leave their trees for weekends or holidays and will give your babies some room to grow without resorting to bigger post just yet.
Begin by developing good habits, watering and fertilising skills before moving on to repotting.
Trees will definitely grow and develop quicker in larger containers but it does not make much sense paying a premium for potted trees only to unpot and grow them on. If that's what you want, why not just purchase cheaper nursery stock in the first place? If you are determined to grow these on, wait until next year, taking the whole process a step at a time.

Did you notice the OUTDOOR label on the Chojubai? It appears you have set it up indoors which is likely to lead to disappointment. I see the olive has 'indoor' on it but I suspect that would be stretching the truth just a little. In my experience, Olives need lots of sun and air. Without absolutely perfect conditions indoors Olives are likely to gradually deteriorate and slowly die.
You may (or may not) want to take a look at a thread titled https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/why-you-cannot-keep-bonsai-trees-indoors.66924/ for more opinions on indoor bonsai.

By the way, transplant and many other bonsai tasks are often seasonal dependant and seasons are location specific. If you expect advice suited to your region it's important to let us know where you are. Best is to update your profile with a city or district so we know if it's Spring or Autumn or whether you are cool or tropical climate.

 

[Roy9954]

Good morning everyone.

Thank you all for the great advise. The reason they are inside at this time is because the weather is still kind of cold (long island NY) but they will be going outside in about a month or so. I have had bonsai for the past 7 years but am a newbie when it comes to repoting, wiring etc which I would love to learn more about in time.

 

[stewarjm192]

Good morning everyone.

Thank you all for the great advise. The reason they are inside at this time is because the weather is still kind of cold (long island NY) but they will be going outside in about a month or so. I have had bonsai for the past 7 years but am a newbie when it comes to repoting, wiring etc which I would love to learn more about in time.

Your chojubai may not like the time, albiet brief, inside. they can be a little finicky and drop leaves for the smallest insult, like Chinese elms, but in my experience they are resilient, and with a little cold protection next winter, should be pretty hardy. Id let it live in its current pot until you start to notice a back up in water drainage in the pot(assuming its regular bonsai soil)

 

[Roy9954]

Your chojubai may not like the time, albiet brief, inside. they can be a little finicky and drop leaves for the smallest insult, like Chinese elms, but in my experience they are resilient, and with a little cold protection next winter, should be pretty hardy. Id let it live in its current pot until you start to notice a back up in water drainage in the pot(assuming its regular bonsai soil)

Not sure what type of soil they planted it in but it was dense both plants when it came to watering and loosened it up a little for better drainage.

 

[stewarjm192]

Not sure what type of soil they planted it in but it was dense both plants when it came to watering and loosened it up a little for better drainage.

If you've broken up the top layer and it seems to drain better, you may get away with making it until summer for a repot on the chojubai, an interesting quirk of the species being repotted in summer, but seems to work fine for me. AS long as it lives outside when it can, and you fertilize it well, and seems healthy, for our area, repotting in the last two weeks of august will give it enough time to recover before winter. Theres alot more to that process for aftercare and such, but that is an option for you.

but you'll def want to get it out of the organic mix its in as soon as possible

 

[namnhi]

Am not sure if it will be alive if it has to stay inside for a whole month. How cold is the low at this time of the year for you. If it above 35 degrees, I think it is safer to put it outside. Flowering quince can take the cold very well... they should not have much issue with freezing - 32 F.

 

[yashu]

As others have said the quince needs to be outside… and protected. I can tell by the tag this was a Brussels tree (purchased through HD?) and they are down south so in NY you’ll need to protect it until the temps get steadily higher so as not to shock it. I picked up a plant from them and it’s currently in a climate controlled space maintained at 40°F, under grow lights and on a heat mat until I can get it outside for the season. Also as others have said, they’re finicky and will die on you with little provocation. FYI the tree is in nursery soil but if you don’t have much experience repotting yet you might want to wait a season since lack of appropriate aftercare at this time of year will kill that tree. Chojubai are a very cool plant but are known to be unforgiving to newbs.