Albuquerque Bonsai Club Advice Column

This guide does not apply to indoor tropical, semi-tropical, or trees in a greenhouse. The sources for this material are:

Bonsai Techniques I, John Y. Naka
Southwest Gardening, Rosalie Doolittle
New Western Gardening Book, Sunset Publishers "Bonsai Clubs International Magazines"
Albuquerque Climate Calendar, Paul H., Taft, Meteorologist, National Weather Service Forecast Center

JANUARY

Watering: Albuquerque's climate is predominately in Zone 10 and considered high desert which is hot daytime temperatures and cool to very cold nights. The low relative humidity, high altitude, and high winds contribute to the desiccation of container grown trees. DO NOT allow thebonsai to dry out even in winter. Dormant trees in a cold frame do not use much water. Every ten days to two weeks should be enough, but check every week to be sure. Water trees planted in the ground once a week to ten days when the dirt has thawed, usually around noon. DO NOT water frozen bonsai.

Fertilizing: This is a good month to apply a light (2 strength) solution of MirAcid to neutralize the alkaline soil and watering done from the city tap. The "sitting" water barrel is now frozen and inaccessible. Apply fertilizer or any chemical to moist soil to prevent root damage.

Spraying: Dormant spray both in cold frame and in ground if the temperatures are not too severely cold outside. Bonsai may be brought indoors for display for a short period of time, but place them in the coolest place available.

Helpful Equipment: 2 whiskey barrel to let water sit and add conditioners small rose watering can quart sized zip lock bags for soil mixtures

FEBRUARY

Watering: Same as January, except toward end of month on warm days the planted trees may need more frequent watering.

Fertilizing Once during the month add small amount of MirAcid to the water again and a weak solution (2 recommended) of 5-50-17 fertilizer. No nitrogen yet.

Spraying: Not necessary.

Repotting: At end of month, the warm weather may have started the Japanese Maples and other deciduous trees to swell before budding. If they need repotting this year, do it before the buds open. Put them back in the cold frame after repotting. Prepare soil mixtures for repotting the next two months. If you use any garden dirt, bake it at 150N for 1 hour to kill snail eggs, pill bugs, and weed seeds. Soil mixtures may be found in Naka's Bonsai Techniques I. Add a bit more peat moss to hold water in our drier climate.

MARCH

Watering: Trees in the cold frame will not need much water, but do not let them dry out. Keep slightly damp. One time during the month, water with mild solution of MirAcid again. The trees planted in the ground will need more water; probably once a week , depending on winds. The winds will dry out the soil very rapidly. Water in the morning.

Fertilizing: Start adding some nitrogen in weak solutions. Use some phosphorus for flowering and fruit trees.

Spraying: Spray with dormant spray up to the time deciduous trees are budding. Discontinue after buds appear and control insects with other products. Watch for black aphids now. Check just beneath soil level at base of trunks on fruit and flowering trees for borers. Use borer crystals immediately.

Trimming & Pruning: Prune out winter damage as soon as it can be determined what is alive. Seal cuts not only to keep sap in, but to keep infection out. Save scions for mid-April (see April, Grafting). Keep in damp paper towels in refrigerator.

Repotting: If buds have appeared on deciduous trees, repot now before the leaves open and before the plant flowers. Evergreens can wait as long as the end of May. If repotted last year, they may not need it this year. This depends entirely on the growth pattern of the species. Place the newly repotted trees back in the cold frame until the first part of April.

APRIL

Watering: Don't over water, but the winds are very drying. Deciduous trees need a bit more water than Juniper and pines. Generally, one watering a day in the morning is adequate unless the winds are up. By mid-afternoon ( 1-3 PM) they should be checked. Water the entire area; ground under the trees, walks, cover overhead, and surrounding garden plants to build up humidity in the air that the winds are drying out. DO NOT WATER a tree if it is in the full sun. Add MirAcid or a small amount of vinegar to your water barrel to neutralize alkaline tap water.

Fertilizing: Use all purpose fertilizer with nitrogen in mild solutions (2 to 1/3 amount called for in package instructions) or mild solutions of soil sulfur, iron tone, or MirAcid. Feed small amounts once or twice a month, not large doses every six months or so. Heavy concentrations of fertilizer can be toxic. See chapter on fertilizers on Naka's Bonsai Techniques I.

Spraying: Spray for aphids. Mild detergents or insecticide soaps can be used. Protect soil with foil and wash off after treatment.

Trimming & Pruning: Toward the end of April, Flowering and fruiting trees will probably be in bloom. After 80% of buds have blossomed, remove all flowers and remaining buds. Berries may be left on. On fruiting trees, leave a few blossoms or there will be no fruit. See article on nipping and pruning in BCI magazine Jan/Feb 1988.

Repotting: Continue from March. If tree is in bloom, do not disturb it. Deciduous trees are repotted first. In late April, pot trees that have wintered in the ground, but the same "budding" rules apply.

Grafting: In mid-April, use scions from the refrigerator. Late April--time to start cuttings and seeds under glass jars.

MAY

Watering: Water well every morning, hosing entire area on windy days. Keep pines and junipers a little drier.

Fertilizing: No fertilizer at all for any trees just repotted. Wait four weeks before feeding them. Apply some bone meal to fruit and berry bonsai. Continue a regular program for the remainder of the trees, increasing nitrogen content. Change fertilizers periodically to pick up different trace elements.

Spraying: Keep checking for aphids, grasshoppers, spider mites, and white flies. Sometimes a small pinch of systemic insecticide should be added to pellet-type fertilizers.

Trimming & Pruning: Cut back long sprouts, leaving 2 or 3 buds. On older deciduous trees, shoots should be left on until they harden and stop growing. Remove these shoots the following dormant season. Start wiring again, not too tight. Don't try to wire tiny new growth. The new candles on older pines should be pinched back, but leave the candles on young trees for another month. Do the jin now.

Repotting: Repot junipers and pines. When transplanting a pine, save a small amount of soil which has some white fungus. Mix it with new soil and place in bottom of pot. Pine and this fungus have a joint living relationship.

JUNE

Watering: Water well in the morning until it runs out of the bottom of the pot. Cut off any roots growing out of drainage holes. The deciduous trees will probably need more water in the early afternoon. Check pines and junipers for moisture. It is not advisable to water in the late evening because leaves are subject to mildew if they don't dry off by nightfall. Remember to water the area around the trees.

Fertilizing: Continue normal light feeding.

Spraying: Only as necessary.

Trimming & Pruning: New shoots on older deciduous trees can be cut back now. Start pinching back cypress and junipers with fingers or tweezers. Cutting with shears turns the ends brown. Young pines and vigorously growing older pines should be de-candled. Start with the lower part of the tree first. Leave the top until later. Check all trees for wire cutting into the bark. If it is, remove immediately and rewire.

JULY

Watering: Same as June.

Fertilizing: Continue small amounts regularly. Change types to get different trace elements. The fertilizer should still contain nitrogen.

Spraying: Control insects and check fruiting trees for borers. Borers attack the trunk just under the soil line and can kill a tree in just a few months.

Trimming & Pruning: Later this month, you can de-leaf if necessary. Do not do this every year. Keep the junipers pinched. Paint the hardened off, dry jinned areas with lime sulfur, and place the tree in full sun for a while. You can wire hardened off wood now. Remove most of the fruit so the tree can preserve some strength. See BCI Magazine, July/Aug 1987. Keep checking wires.

AUGUST

Watering: Protect from gully-washer thundershowers, but don't be fooled by a thin layer of damp surface soil. Water every day, twice toward the end of the month. Spray foliage--light misting often. No water late in the evening.

fertilizing: Light mixtures. Cut back nitrogen and raise phosphorus.

Spraying: Keep bugs under control.

Trimming & Pruning: Be careful about any drastic pruning, especially on flowering trees. Check wires again. Remove any tight wires.

Repotting: DO NOT attempt any transplanting or repotting this late in the year.

SEPTEMBER

Days are getting cooler but there are still hot days an it is still very dry (except during the state fair downpours!). The average high is 83 degrees; the average low is 56 degrees. The record high is 98 degrees; the record low is 32 degrees. If freezing weather is forecast, put the trees in the ground.

Watering: You may cut back on water depending of the temperature, but do not let them dry out completely.

Fertilizing: Half normal feeding. No nitrogen.

Trimming & Pruning: Long shoots on new bonsai should not be cut off completely, but slightly trimmed and only after shoot has matured. Some trees will go through a last spurt of growth before going dormant. Remove any wire that is cutting in to bark.

Winter Care: A cold frame is recommended for winter storage of bonsai that need a dormant period. An alternative method of winter care is planting the tree directly in the ground after gently removing it from its bonsai pot. A cold frame should be built on the north side of a building.

Repotting: None.

OCTOBER

Watering: Same as September.

Fertilizing: Same as September.

Trimming & Pruning: Trim strong growth on upper portions of conifers. Trim and clean off dead needles. After leaves have fallen from deciduous trees, it is safe to shorten the year's growth. Clean all dead leaves from soil. At the end of the month, remove all fruit and any seed pods. The berries may be saved until spring if the tree is healthy. Trees may be rewired for winter.

Winter Care: Prepare the cold frame with snail baits and insecticides; purchase fresh straw. Prepare ground for those bonsai that will be planted for the winter. Leave the trees out as long as possible to insure they're going dormant normally. Toward the end of the month, remove them from their pots without disturbing the roots any more than necessary and plant the trees in the prepared ground. Sprinkle pill bug bait generously and cover with straw. Those bonsai that are to be stored in the cold frame for the winter should remain in their pots.

NOVEMBER

Watering: Water less from now to February, but never let them dry out completely. Trees in a cold frame stay damp longer than those in the ground, and they are not using very much water when they are dormant. Never water trees when they are frozen. Water in the morning so all water can drain from the pots by evening. Water trees in the ground at mid-day about once a week. The ground stays damp under the straw. Check for dryness by inserting your finger in the straw. If dry, water.

Fertilizer: None necessary.

Trimming & Pruning: Remove any leaves left on deciduous trees. Remove any extra long second year needles on pines. Time for second trimming on black pines. DO NOT ATTEMPT wiring this late in the year.

Repotting: DO NOT ATTEMPT to repot at this time.

DECEMBER

Watering: Same as November.

Fertilizing: None necessary.

Spraying: Dormant spray can be used again.

Trimming & Pruning: December, January and February are the best months to graft conifers.

Average rain, snowfall and peak winds for the area as compiled by the national Weather Service located at Albuquerque Airport, old building, elevation 5,311 feet.