Help! Boxwood Pre-Bonsai

markhr · 07-26-2009, 03:28 AM

Hello everyone, this boxwood has been growing freely in my backyard for many years now. The trunk is a nice 10 inches in diameter. The boxwood is about 4 1/2 feet tall and about 3 feet wide full of tons of green leaves and branches. THese pictures were taken at a side view next to a medium size tomato. The branch structure can bee seen much more clearly from this angle. I am very very new to the art of bonsai and have some other material that will be posted to seek advice on. Basically my questions are as follows:

1. Does this tree have good bonsai potential?
2. How should i begin shaping this to appear like a bonsai rather than a hedge?
3.What time of year can this be repotted and how should this be done?
4. What should NOT be done? Perhaps this is a strange question but as i am a beginner i don't want to make any major mistakes.

Thanks to anyone and everyone for their advice. Please let me know if you would like to see more photos.

-Mark

JLDoggett · 07-26-2009, 12:28 PM

The trunk looks quite good, I would remove the dead internal branches, feed it well and keep it happy until late fall. Once the weather there cools you can consider digging it up. From the looks of it it will have a fairly massive root system so that will be difficult to do for a first collected tree. When you are ready to dig it, I am sure you will get plenty of suggestions from folks here. One things I would do now is to try to get a shovel behind it (it appears to be growning in front of a fence) and sever the roots at the back now. A very sharp shovel and rather wet soil shoul allow you to plunge the shovel straight down, as far behind it as possible. Doing this now will allow it to start to heal on that side before you remove it. This is often done to increase the possibility of survival.

treebeard55 · 07-26-2009, 03:56 PM

Jim's right, that lower trunk is superb.

Maybe it's just the angle of the picture, but it looks like over half the branches have died. That could be due to many things, but one thing it means now is that the tree will need extra TLC once lifted.

Besides what Jim has said, I'll add this right now. You may have already heard this, but don't pot it up in garden soil. (That's because, once you put any potting medium into a container, its drainage characteristics change. I can give you the basic science if you want.) Get good bonsai soil, of which there is probably a ready supply in your part of the world.

Then be ready to baby it for a year while it recovers.

This tree has some good potential. Best wishes with it!

markhr · 07-26-2009, 04:21 PM

Thank you treebeard! Any suggestions on what size container would suit this ?

treebeard55 · 07-26-2009, 04:42 PM

Long-term, it's hard to say until you see what you have left after all the dead wood is pruned away.

When you lift it, tho, you want something roomier than its final home will be. Box, nursery pot, doesn't matter as long as it allows good drainage. Ideally you want something with about an inch of space to spare all around the rootball, in 3 dimensions.

markhr · 07-26-2009, 09:44 PM

More Pics of the aforementioned boxwood.

philgrayser · 07-27-2009, 02:28 PM

Hi there, If this was my tree i would take the plunge and give it a severe haircut and prune it right back to about a foot high!!!! Very severe i know but it looks healthy enough to recover quick and these trees do regenerate quite well especially since its in the ground.
I would then give it a healthy feed and leave for a month then i would do as suggested above with the roots. Cheers Phil G

markhr · 07-27-2009, 03:30 PM

Yes phil i like this idea. As its going to be severely pruned anyway. It seems logical to do it while its still in the ground and can recover. Sounds like the whole process will be much easier that way. I think I will do some moderate cutting and then post a new photo.

markhr · 07-27-2009, 03:34 PM

What sort of feed should i use?

philgrayser · 07-28-2009, 10:15 AM

I dont know the brands of feed in California but use something with a high Nitrogen content for vigerous growth but dont make it too strong, start with about half the reccomended dose and see how it goes. cheers Phil G.

07-26-2009, 12:28 PM	#2 (permalink)
JLDoggett Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: New Hampshire, USA, Posts: 642	The trunk looks quite good, I would remove the dead internal branches, feed it well and keep it happy until late fall. Once the weather there cools you can consider digging it up. From the looks of it it will have a fairly massive root system so that will be difficult to do for a first collected tree. When you are ready to dig it, I am sure you will get plenty of suggestions from folks here. One things I would do now is to try to get a shovel behind it (it appears to be growning in front of a fence) and sever the roots at the back now. A very sharp shovel and rather wet soil shoul allow you to plunge the shovel straight down, as far behind it as possible. Doing this now will allow it to start to heal on that side before you remove it. This is often done to increase the possibility of survival. __________________ "Resolve to be tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant with the weak and wrong....because sometime in your life you will have been all of these" And I further resolve to click on an ad, each time I visit, to help support the site and to be welcoming to lurking guests when you join! After all, you're already here.

07-26-2009, 03:56 PM	#3 (permalink)
treebeard55 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Warsaw IN, USA USDA zone 5b Posts: 511	Jim's right, that lower trunk is superb. Maybe it's just the angle of the picture, but it looks like over half the branches have died. That could be due to many things, but one thing it means now is that the tree will need extra TLC once lifted. Besides what Jim has said, I'll add this right now. You may have already heard this, but *don't* pot it up in garden soil. (That's because, once you put any potting medium into a container, its drainage characteristics change. I can give you the basic science if you want.) Get good bonsai soil, of which there is probably a ready supply in your part of the world. Then be ready to baby it for a year while it recovers. This tree has some good potential. Best wishes with it! __________________ Treebeard 55 Steve Moore http://hoosierbonsai.blogspot.com The most important bonsai tool is your brain.

07-26-2009, 04:42 PM	#5 (permalink)
treebeard55 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Warsaw IN, USA USDA zone 5b Posts: 511	Long-term, it's hard to say until you see what you have left after all the dead wood is pruned away. When you lift it, tho, you want something roomier than its final home will be. Box, nursery pot, doesn't matter as long as it allows good drainage. Ideally you want something with about an inch of space to spare all around the rootball, in 3 dimensions. __________________ Treebeard 55 Steve Moore http://hoosierbonsai.blogspot.com The most important bonsai tool is your brain.

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07-26-2009, 04:21 PM	#4 (permalink)
markhr Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Southern California Posts: 14	Thank you treebeard! Any suggestions on what size container would suit this ?

07-27-2009, 02:28 PM	#7 (permalink)
philgrayser philgrayser Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Scotland Posts: 132	Hi there, If this was my tree i would take the plunge and give it a severe haircut and prune it right back to about a foot high!!!! Very severe i know but it looks healthy enough to recover quick and these trees do regenerate quite well especially since its in the ground. I would then give it a healthy feed and leave for a month then i would do as suggested above with the roots. Cheers Phil G

07-27-2009, 03:30 PM	#8 (permalink)
markhr Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Southern California Posts: 14	Yes phil i like this idea. As its going to be severely pruned anyway. It seems logical to do it while its still in the ground and can recover. Sounds like the whole process will be much easier that way. I think I will do some moderate cutting and then post a new photo.

07-27-2009, 03:34 PM	#9 (permalink)
markhr Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Southern California Posts: 14	What sort of feed should i use?

07-28-2009, 10:15 AM	#10 (permalink)
philgrayser philgrayser Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Scotland Posts: 132	I dont know the brands of feed in California but use something with a high Nitrogen content for vigerous growth but dont make it too strong, start with about half the reccomended dose and see how it goes. cheers Phil G.

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