Digging & Field Growing Bonsai in the Early Fall 8/21/15

This sumptuous Satsuki is from Bill Valavanis' 2014 Japan Satsuki tour. Though I don't know for sure, based on the massive trunk it's easy to imagine that it was originally field grown. 

Early fall is good times to dig and transplant. For me, it’s mostly native larch (some cedar and spruce too) from a friend’s land here in northern Vermont. However, unless you live in the frozen north or blazing tropics, Satsuki azaleas just might work for you.

This post (from 2009) is taken from one of many field growing posts we’ve done over the years. I have edited (italics) based on what I’ve learned since 2009 and because it was originally written for spring transplanting.

In our last field growing post we mention planting directly into native soil without digging in amendments when you plant (Cornell University and others have researched and compared planting in native soil versus amended soil pockets, and native soil wins for size and health). A friend of my points out that she has no native soil; her house and yard were built on fill. In our usage of native soil, we mean whatever soil is already there. In other words, my friend’s fill would be her native soil.

What if your native soil isn’t very good? Too acidic, too alkaline, too heavy, too poor? How do you know if your native soil is good enough to simply plant as is?

The simple answer is; just look and see what’s growing there. If relatively vigorous plants are already growing in your native soil, then it should be okay for field growing. If not, you might want to consider building raised beds, or hills with enriched soil.

Here, even though the soil around the house is quite sandy, plenty of trees and other plants were growing just fine when I moved in five eleven years ago. So my lazy person’s method of enriching by top dressing and fertilizing after planting, has worked quite well (continued below the photo).

Here's another powerful Satsuki azalea that may have been field grown (it's from Bonsai Today issue 40, courtesy of Bonsai Focus magazine).
 

 

In some cases, I just plant directly into the ground (this works because the drainage is excellent). In other cases building little 1 t0 3 foot mountain ranges works for me, using soil from around my land and some fill from outside (also quite sandy). This way future future bonsai stock is incorporated right into the landscape (some will never be bonsai; they look too good right were they are).

Before planting I top prune (always top prune when you disturb the roots, especially if you rootprune) and rootprune if needed, and spread the roots and dip them in Roots, a rooting compound in solution, and then plant.

I’ve learned to back off on top pruning when transplanting. Some is often necessary, but anything beyond very selective pruning can further stress a freshly dug plant. And I now use Dyna-Gro K-L-N.

Next, I top dress with partially broken down cedar mulch about two inches deep. I used partially broken down mulch because wood robs nitrogen in the early stages of breaking down and then gives it back to the soil in the final stages. This mulch blanket helps protect the roots from the cold and the soil from drying out too fast.

Then, because the plants need help at first and because my soil is very sandy, I top water deeply (unless there’s a good soaking rain). Deep enough for the water to soak well below the roots. If the weather stays dry after transplanting you might need to deep soak several times during the fall.

Starting in the very early spring and three or four times a season I sprinkle on a local organic granular slow release fertilizer (I use Green Dream and other bonsai fertilizers for plants in containers, but they are a little expensive for field growing).

In the late summer and early fall it’s important to reduce the amount of nitrogen so energy is directed to the roots and nutrient storage and away from top growth, so I use a more highly diluted mix of fish/seaweed and instead of Dyna-gro 7-9-5, I switch to 3-12-6. Now I just stop fertilizing in the field around August first.

There’s much more to say for sure, but meanwhile, if you have any question or objections, or just want to share your field growing techniques, don’t hesitate to comment.