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Good Choice For Beginners!
A Chinese Elm Bonsai Tree Makes A Very Special Gift For Someone |
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More Attractive & Cheaper Than Akadama!
Moler Bonsai Soil |
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Chrysal Bonsai Food |
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Akadama Bonsai Soil |
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Rainbow Flower,Bonsai Fertilizer 33ml |
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Serissa Foetida (tree of a thousand stars) Bonsai Tree Care Sheet Tender/Evergreen/More Challenging
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Introduction. This Bonsai tree care guide describes how to look after a Serissa Foetida (Tree Of A Thousand Stars) Bonsai tree. Serissa's are a genus of only one species which is a small evergreen shrub which is native to South East Asia where it grows wild in moist woodland. There are two verities of Serissa used in the art of Bonsai, a green leaved verity and a variegated verity, both just as attractive as each other in their own ways. Serissa's are more challenging to keep than most other Bonsai trees, however a green fingered newcomer to Bonsai with experience with other plants should be ok with this species but people who have no experience with plants at all might want to purchase a Ficus, Crassula or Chinese Elm for a beginner Bonsai tree and then move on to this species after mastering one of those species. Where To Keep Them/Watering. Serissa Bonsai trees will enjoy a spell outdoors in summer when temperatures stay above 7c, late May - mid September in the UK, place them in full sun, although in very hot sun it may be necessary to move them in to partial shade, try to keep moving of your Bonsai tree to a minimum though. Indoors you should place your Serissa Bonsai tree on a bright window sill away from a heat source, a humidity tray is a must for indoor Serissa Bonsai trees to do well, the tray should be a few inches larger in width and length than the Bonsai pot, and the Bonsai pot should not come in to direct contact with the water in the tray, the feet of the Bonsai pot should be placed on some small stones to raise the pot above the waters surface, or you could place fine gravel up to the rim of the tray and place the Bonsai pot on top of the gravel. Make sure the humidity tray has the water topped up at all times and as the water evaporates it will rise up through the leaves of your Bonsai tree and help to keep the local area more humid. The trick with Serissa Bonsai trees is that once you feel you have met all the above conditions place your Bonsai tree in the spot you have chosen and leave it alone and do not move it unnecessarily as Serissa Bonsai trees don't take kindly to being moved around too much and can drop their leaves due to stress, however if this occurs this will be followed shortly by new growth. You should water you Serissa Bonsai tree thoroughly when necessary, however it is best to let the Bonsai soil dry a little between waterings. Repotting/Wiring/Feeding/And Pruning.
You should aim to re-pot your Serissa Bonsai every 2-3 years in early to mid spring, however do not re-pot unnecessarily as re-potting can do more harm than good if not needed. If your Bonsai tree has a good root system you should be able to gently lift it out of the pot in spring (you may need to snip the Wire underneath the pot if the Bonsai tree is wired in) and take a look at the roots to see if they are pot bound, if so you should repot your Bonsai tree, if the roots seem ok then leave re-potting till the following year. when it does become necessary to repot your Serissa Bonsai tree, you should use a good quality free draining whilst still being water retentive Bonsai soil. Akadama Bonsai soil is an excellent choice, this will need to be made more moisture retentive by adding some fine potting bark to the mix, Moler Bonsai soil is another good choice, again add some potting bark to the mix for moisture retention, you can also add pumice granules to your soil mix as this aids drainage but also holds moisture for your Bonsai tree. It is important not to fertilize your Bonsai tree for around four weeks after re-potting as doing so can burn the new roots that your Bonsai tree will be developing, after this period carry on fertilizing as usual. You should fertilize your Bonsai tree from spring onwards with a balanced fertilizer such as Chempak, you will usually fertilize your Bonsai tree once a week during the growing season and once a month in autumn and winter but feeding guidelines will differ from brand to brand so it is best to refer to the instructions on the particular brand you decide to use. Prune your Serissa ever few weeks throughout the growing season to keep it in shape, prune shoots back to one or two leaves as required. Serissa Bonsai trees can be wired ideally between early summer and early autumn, make sure the branches/ shoots are woody before you apply the wire and don't leave the wires on for more than a year, also keep an eye on the wires to make sure they don't start to cut in to the bark if this happens the wires need to be removed immediately.
The best way to ensure you keep your Bonsai tree healthy is to do as much research as possible(Internet and or books) on the particular species you own and also Bonsai in general as this will give you a broader understanding of the subject and will give you a far better chance of success with your Bonsai tree. I hope this care sheet has been of interest and helpful to you, if so you might want to read the other care sheets on this site. It is up to you to use the information given here responsibly and Bargain Bonsai holds no responsibility as to how you use it. |
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