Thank you, I'm still growing the canopy wider, but slowly it will get there!

Hello Dawid, look for books by Paul Lesniewicz, they are excellent! There is a strong Polish bonsai community, hopefully you will find a club in your area, happy growing!

Nigel Saunders wow, I didn't expect such quick response. thank you! :) I have never been into gardening but I hope it will be what I need and also as mind therapy which I need. I think of starting with at least two trees so I won't be disappointed if the seeds are bad. I will look for books of P. Lesniewicz :)

Just checked. There is only English version of this book :( I don't know if I would be able to translate all unknown to me phrases correctly

Thank you CJ, this tree has probably developed the fastest of all my bonsai!

Thanks Sid, I look forward to seeing your Privet.

Yes, I'm amazed when I look back!!!

Fred Grech Awesome Fred, good luck with it. You can style these trees into almost any style you can think of!

I'm staying at home as much as possible and hopefully we'll all get through this OK. Thanks Sona!

Obrigado!

Hi Jack, there is not much you can do with the temperature variations. This naturally happens outdoors also. The lower light levels in your garage should keep the trees dormant. Sometimes in spring the trees can begin to bud out early, and this new growth will require frost protection. Your dormant trees can go out on the benches again when the temperature gets close to freezing in spring Keep a check on your soil drying out, keep it moist but not wet. Good luck, Nigel

Thanks Craig, you can send a picture to... thekwbonsaisociety@gmail.com I look forward to seeing your tree!

I think mid summer is best, let the tree gain vigor in spring and early summer and then re pot. The tree has good conditions to recover for the rest of summer until fall when I bring them back indoors. I will re pot in February and March in my plant room also. I get good light in the south facing windows and the trees grow really well this time of year indoors.

I find them online, as no one carries these types of pots around here. Here is a link to an American supplier... www.bonsaiboy.com/catalog/product634.html You can fins a lot of nice pots on eBay also. Good luck with your trees!

Thanks for responding. I will check out ebay to see if I can find a cheaper pot. Thanks again. Have a great day. :)

I would prune it after the shoots have extended about 27 mm or 3 inches. This will ensure the tree stays strong. This can be done year round.

I have two species of Acacia's that I started this year. The seeds are from Africa, so I treat them with extra care. I hope to grow them into the flat top African style. Both the Serissa and the Acacia are not winter hardy.

Thanks...I thought not..

I find the Serissa fairly easy to grow. There are times when it will drop a lot of leaves, usually when over watered and little light. They bounce back quickly when conditions improve. Shaping is a little harder, as the shoots are very fine for wiring. As the branches get older, wiring is easier, but the branches get tough and brittle. I have had good luck with them, but I know people who just can't seem to keep them alive.

Not very often, if I prune back leaving no leaves, I sometimes will get that branch to die back at the tip. I only get leaf drop when the tree goes from outside to back in doors in the winter. The winter plant room if similar to a greenhouse in humidity and in summer I keep the tree in the greenhouse also. I think this humidity helps a lot.

thanks Nigel

Tropical trees can be wired any time, but the best time is just before a growth spurt. The more the tree grows with the wire in place, the quicker the wired branch or trunk will set in its new position. Many people leave the wire on until the branch grows slightly into the wire. Leaving the wire on this long will scar the branch for a while, but the branch will usually stay in the wired position.

thanks very much !

That's the first one, I think it is about 4 years old here from a small cutting.

If you remove the leaves and let the top grow, the energy will be directed to the top of the tree and gradually you will get less branches trying to sprout from the trunk. As the trunk gets more shaded by the top growth, sprouts from the trunk will decrease also. I'm going to do a video soon on soil, as it can be a very complicated subject. The Serissa roots like to be keep moist at all times, but not wet. A free draining bonsai soil is the best, and you will need to water quite often if the soil is drying out. In the winter this depends a lot on the amount of sunlight the plant gets. Sunny days may require watering twice a day and in periods of no sun, you may need to water only once a week. Watching your soil for dryness is more critical after re-potting. A good time to repot is the end of Jan., as the sun begins to shine more brightly and your tree will come out of dormancy. In winter you should give the tree as nuch light as possible and mist the tree to keep the humidity up. If you just prune off one bad root each time you repot, you will slowly get a nice root base and even overcome your fear of re-potting. Good luck!

It can be used as a top dressing on the soil of newly repotted trees to keep the surface moist and to encourage the formation of moss. It is also useful for creating airlayers.

Александр Козинец It's about 17 years old, started from a very small cutting about 5 cm high. They will grow very quickly if left to grow freely.

The tree sounds ideal as a bonsai, at 6 years old it should be getting some nice bark and branches! The Serissa doesn't really have a natural tree form as they are generally a small bush in nature. A Serissa bonsai can be grown in any style successfully, and a suitable style for your tree would depend on the structure it has now. I can offer suggestions, but in the end it needs to be shaped in a style that appeals to you! My email is... thekwbonsaisociety@gmail.com I look forward to seeing your tree!

Thank you

That is moss. The tree has changed a lot since this video, it's always nice to look back at a tree's humble beginnings!

No, I wait until I see signs of new growth on the tree, then I start to fertilize very lightly, every time I water.

Thanks for the response. I will try that when I repot.

The first step is to keep them alive and healthy. The trees don't like to dry out and they don't like too dark of a location. Here is a good care sheet for the serissa... www.bonsaiboy.com/catalog/snowrosecare.html The styling is up to you, but only prune the tree when it has had a period of strong growth. It needs lots of energy to recover from the pruning to generate new growth. Never work on a weak tree, just take care of it and let it grow!

Nigel Saunders how do I avoid leaf drop? Seemed to be a big problem on my previous trees. I would turn completely Brown and then the new growth would do well for a week and then also die?

It sounds like a problem with the roots. They might be getting too little water and then too much. Once the tips of the roots die from too little water, watering the roots heavily can kill the tree. The dead root tips cannot take up water and supply the leaves. This causes the soil to stay wet and can rot the roots before they get a chance to start growing again. A good draining bonsai soil, helps a lot to eliminate any excess water in the soil. A tree in this state should be kept humid and misted frequently. The soil should be watered once thoroughly and then drained well, by tipping the pot up on end for a while. The tree should not be watered again until the soil just starts to dry out a bit. Keep the tree in good light. It should recover in a week or two. Do not fertilize until you have strong growth. Do not fertilize strongly, a weak solution is all that is needed. Too strong a mix will kill the roots!

Nigel Saunders thanks a lot. Really enjoy your African style bonsai 👌

Thank you L L, you can see the latest videos on this tree here.... kzfaq.info/sun/PLQouTWwmTQowyWO84FYL9q6MzsGx708Qx

@@TheBonsaiZone OK tx will look now Also do u still mist when in bloom? Thank you for all your awesome videos ❤️

Yes, but very lightly, too much water and it can ruin the flowers.

All my trees are clip and grow bonsai, inspired by the Lingnan school of bonsai from China. There are some websites dedicated to Lingnan bonsai.... www.penjing.hk/?lang=en swindon-bonsai.co.uk/2016/01/05/the-art-of-lingnan-penjing-bonsai/ www.bonsaiempire.com/blog/grow-clip

I didn't have one and had never seen one in Canada. I didn't think they would do well over wintering in the plant room, but I'm going to give it a try this winter. I was sent some acacia seeds from South Africa and they are growing well. This tree is more of a styling exercise now.

I just remove the lower leaves and stick the cutting in a pot in full sun. Most of the cutting root well in the summer. In the winter, I have little success.

No, it has a nice flat radial root base, so it is quite stable.

Some people have no luck with them. They have their ups and downs through the year, sometimes losing most of their leaves, but generally they are quite easy to grow with few pest problems. If you let them grow with little pruning, they will thicken up quite rapidly. The roots are always wild and need frequent pruning to keep them from becoming a tangled mess! Hong from our club has some really nice ones. He has a real green thumb with his Serissa trees.

Nigel Saunders Wow I would love to see Hong's serissa's! I have some in the neiborhood of 1 and a half inch trunks and that is not too common with this species. But then again I have been growing them for over 30 years!

rickstreeart Check out the club show and open house video. You can see Hongs trees there. I think they are about half way through the video. They put mine to shame!

They like moist well draining soil with frequent watering and fertilizing. I keep mine in full sun in the summer, but just be careful with the transition from indoor light to sun light. It is best to keep them in the shade for a week or two.

@@TheBonsaiZone I think i have missed being able to repot this year in UK, I wish we had better winters here but i have a few months to plan for winter care ;-)

Tropicals are best re potted in the summer months. The first half of summer builds strength in the tree, the second half of summer allows the tree to recover.

thanks.

when would you repot a Asian elm?

I can't ship any plant material out of the country without a special permit, if you are near by, no problem!

@@TheBonsaiZone i live in Denmark

@@TheBonsaiZone but i really want one from your serissa

There is a genetic anomaly that causes some people to be able to smell some things others cannot, as well as taste. It's similar in nature to how color blindness works. That might account for you both having different experiences with the aroma. Glad you enjoyed the smell!

Thank you Mary!