To plant or not to plant?

[ljp2706]

This is my first post on this forum and this plant will be my first introduction to the bonsai world—which I’m really excited about! I recently purchased a 1 gallon Shin Deshojo. I was wondering if it would be better to plant it in the ground now, or leave it in my garage and wait for spring. I am in North Carolina in zone 8a.


I was thinking that if I left the container on the ground outside, it might have a higher risk of freezing because the container is fairly small. Right now it’s hovering around the low 30F range but in a month it will probably be around the 15F range. Either way, I want to plant it in the ground so it can recover and grow a bit before I air layer the left branch.

 

[doc spring _work]

Wait until spring, far to late in the year to plant, could've gotten away with it in October but you need to give it time.

If your worried about it freezing through get a five gallon pot and fill the larger pot with either straw or sphagnum moss, both should provide plenty of insulation.

Good luck! Look forward to seeing what trees you produce from the mother plant!

 

[19Mateo83]

This is my first post on this forum and this plant will be my first introduction to the bonsai world—which I’m really excited about! I recently purchased a 1 gallon Shin Deshojo. I was wondering if it would be better to plant it in the ground now, or leave it in my garage and wait for spring. I am in North Carolina in zone 8a.


I was thinking that if I left the container on the ground outside, it might have a higher risk of freezing because the container is fairly small. Right now it’s hovering around the low 30F range but in a month it will probably be around the 15F range. Either way, I want to plant it in the ground so it can recover and grow a bit before I air layer the left branch.

Welcome to the nut house from Charlotte! I have tons of JM and unless you are planning on working the roots, you can plant it in the ground any time. It will also be ok in an unheated garage or mulched up against the side of your house. Just out of curiosity, where did you find your shin deshojo?

 

[ljp2706]

Welcome to the nut house from Charlotte! I have tons of JM and unless you are planning on working the roots, you can plant it in the ground any time. It will also be ok in an unheated garage or mulched up against the side of your house. Just out of curiosity, where did you find your shin deshojo?

Neat, I am currently living about 20 minutes south of Raleigh. As for the JM, I actually bought it online from the maplesnmore nursery which is also in NC. It was a good experience, they provided me plenty of pictures of different options to pick from. I settled with this one because I’m finding myself really liking the hokidachi style and it had the straightest options for trunks.

I’m still trying to figure out the best place for it to live on my property because I have a lot of clay soil which I’ve heard may not be the best for this tree and I also have a bit too much shade in many areas I’d prefer to put it.

 

[19Mateo83]

The folks at Maplesnmore are awesome! Luckily maples generally have shallow root systems. You should be fine if you amend the clay where you want to plant it, just make sure it drains well.

 

[rockm]

Fwiw hokidachi or broom style trees aren’t a great match for maple’s growth habits. Sure it will work but you might be a little frustrated with it. Maples don’t have the extremely fine ramification that makes a good broom style tree.

Elms are the best option for brooms. They twig out more than maples

Maples are great for moyogi (informal upright) styles as they develop more movement and grace in their branching and trunks

The next couple of weeks are going to be challenging as we get the influx of arctic air. We’re forecast here to be in the teens at night and no thawing during the day. Protecting the root mass from temps below 20 f or so is probably necessary. Mulching the pot into the garden or storing it in an unheated but relatively warmer structure is another option.

 

[Shibui]

FWIW, I would never again plant a tree destined for bonsai in the ground without root work first.
Been there and done that - quite a few times.
Container plants generally have circling or crossing roots because of how they are grown. Small root problems in a container plant rapidly become big problem roots in a ground grown tree. You can undo small problems but rectifying thick roots is nigh on impossible.

You may be able to get away with poor nebari on some species but good nebari is a feature on maple bonsai.

 

[ljp2706]

FWIW, I would never again plant a tree destined for bonsai in the ground without root work first.
Been there and done that - quite a few times.
Container plants generally have circling or crossing roots because of how they are grown. Small root problems in a container plant rapidly become big problem roots in a ground grown tree. You can undo small problems but rectifying thick roots is nigh on impossible.

You may be able to get away with poor nebari on some species but good nebari is a feature on maple bonsai.

I was under the impression that the roots wouldn’t matter too much from a nebari standpoint because it’s a grafted tree and I don’t really want that in my final trees so I would have to air layer, and at that point I could address the root system appropriately.

Ideally, I would like to see if I could get two bonsai plants from this and one full-sized in ground tree. But even with the full size tree, I’m not sure if I want the graft compromising the integrity of the tree.


Decisions, decisions….If I end up touching the roots I will definitely leave it in my garage. And if I don’t, then 50/50 toss up between putting it in the ground vs leaving it in my garage. Thanks everyone for all the useful advice, I think it was exactly what I was looking for (and more!).

 

[Shibui]

I was under the impression that the roots wouldn’t matter too much from a nebari standpoint because it’s a grafted tree and I don’t really want that in my final trees so I would have to air layer, and at that point I could address the root system appropriately.

If you don't intend to keep the roots then you are correct. No need to address whatever issues they may currently have.
At what stage do you plan to do the layer?

 

[ljp2706]

If you don't intend to keep the roots then you are correct. No need to address whatever issues they may currently have.
At what stage do you plan to do the layer?

Not sure yet, but I think I’m not in a rush. I am still watching YouTube videos on that topic to improve my understanding. I was thinking in the next one to three years though.

 

[Shibui]

Not sure yet, but I think I’m not in a rush. I am still watching YouTube videos on that topic to improve my understanding. I was thinking in the next one to three years though.

The question relates to how developed the roots will be in relation to the trunk.
If you leave layering until the trunk is grown it will take quite some years for the new roots to catch up to the trunk size.
If you leave layering till last when you already have developed branching you'll need to slow growth to retain good ramification, in which case new roots will also develop slowly so could take many, many years to catch up and match the tree.

I think I'd put layering as a priority as trunk shape and good tree styling needs to match the nebari. The trunk and branch growth to develop those will also help the new roots thicken and grow to match your trunk. I've also found that good, strong lateral roots help the base of the trunks flare out too.