Bonsai maple - growing from seeds at home

Bonsai is a miniature copy of any tree that has been grown at home. This effect can be achieved by adjusting the size and shape of the roots. It is not easy to grow bonsai maple on your own, the process requires a lot of patience and free time. Due to its compact size, the dwarf plant can be kept in the apartment, and larger trees can decorate balconies, terraces or a summer cottage.

Maple tree type for bonsai

Bonsai maple, whose homeland is Japan, is a deciduous species. Unlike the coniferous miniature evergreen, it can have different shades of leaves and sometimes changes color as it grows.

Bonsai maple

The most famous maple varieties that are ideal for growing bonsai:

• Palm-shaped;
• Rocky;
• Ash-leaved;
• Field;
• Platan-leaved.

Palm maple bonsai

Execution options

Styles of growing maple bonsai trees:

• Erect;
• Inclined;
• Broom-shaped;
• Grove.

You can independently grow an elegant tree from seed or cuttings in any style, you just need to adhere to a clear sequence of actions and not ignore important points.

Bonsai maple

Seed selection and planting

You can grow a bonsai tree at home from seeds if you follow certain rules exactly.

Preparation of planting material

For planting, the seeds need to be prepared as follows:

1. First, break off the wings on the seeds, place them in a plastic cup. Cover with hot water and leave to swell overnight. Drain the water in the morning.
2. Dry the damp seeds a little and put in a plastic bag. Add cinnamon powder on top, shake it to spread over the entire surface of the seeds.
3. Close the package, but not tightly, and put it in the refrigerator. Check periodically that the mixture is slightly damp.
4. After 60 days, the seeds will begin to germinate. Weak and thin sprouts need to be removed from all, the rest should be placed in the refrigerator.
5. When a root system appears, planting material should be placed in prepared soil.
6. Place containers with plantings in a warm and bright place.

Soil and capacity

To grow maple bonsai, you must:

1. Take alumina, humus and sand in equal proportions.
2. Heat the soil in the oven, then cool, dry and sift through a sieve.
3. Treat the soil with bioactive additives such as Fitosporin.
4. Feed the soil with fertilizers.

Planting seeds

How to plant maple seeds bonsai step by step:

1. Pour soil into the prepared container.
2. Spread the seeds at 1 cm intervals.
3. Press the layer of seeds with a wooden board.
4. Cover with soil on top (thickness 3 cm).
5. Water the ground and cover the container with foil.
6. When the first shoots hatch, remove the film.
7. After the leaves appear, transplant the plant into a new container.

Working with a handle

Propagation of maple bonsai by cuttings should be done as follows:

1. Make a circular cut on one side of the bonsai maple handle. Make the second similar cut 2-3 cm higher above the previous one.
2. Remove the bark between the incisions.
3. Apply root former to the cut area.
4. Attach sphagnum moss to the cut, seal it with foil and leave in a dark and cool place.
5. When the roots sprout in 3-4 weeks, the moss must be removed.
6. Plant the stalk in a separate container.

Bonsai maple cuttings

Escape landing

Take a pot (with a drainage hole), pour round pebbles, soil (chopped bark and rotten peat) into it. Take the volume so that there is a strong enough fixation of the tree. Remove the thin bark from the shoot (without touching the roots) and plant it in the prepared soil. A little sphagnum moss can be added to the ground. It will serve as a fertilizer and soften hard water.

Planting care

Maple blue, cyan and red develop in the same way as regular green. A plant transplant should be done in the spring every two years. The soil is completely replaced, and the central root and side roots are trimmed by 1/5. The shoots are pinched after the formation of two leaves.

Location

Optimal conditions for growing maple bonsai:

• sunny place;
• a sufficient amount of fresh air;
• shade in hot weather.

The plant must be protected from sunburn, otherwise it is quite unpretentious.

Cold protection

In the house, bonsai should not be left in drafts, placed outdoors, where the temperature can drop below 0 ° C. During the flowering period and when the first leaves appear, maple should not be stressed in the form of low temperatures (below 6-10 ° C).

Care and watering blue maple

The root system of bonsai is shallow, the minimum amount of soil creates the danger of drying out the soil. For proper growth and development, it is necessary to properly care for the plant:

• water the tree daily;
• spray the crown at least once every 3 days;
• in hot weather, moisturize several times a day;
• in winter, water no more than once every 7 days.

Pruning branches

Shoots can be removed all year round. If there is a need to prune old thick branches, it is best to do this in the fall.

When pruning, you must comply with the following conditions:

• remove young shoots up to the first pair of foliage;
• pinch the growth on bonsai with strong branching so that the branches do not thicken;
• take sharp tools for trimming;
• pinch the tops as soon as a pair of leaves bloom to stop further growth;
• treat the wounds at the cut sites with special compounds that prevent the penetration of infection and accelerate healing.

Transfer

Maple bonsai should be transplanted carefully and carefully, trying not to damage the delicate roots. Procedure:

1. Water well.
2. Prepare a new pot, shallow and wide.
3. Fill up the drainage layer.
4. Fill the container with soil.
5. Take out the tree and move it to the prepared container.
6. Sprinkle with black earth and sand on top.
7. Seal with hands and water liberally.

Maple transplant

Crown formation

The most common types of crown formation:

• Fan or broom (hokidachi);
• Formal vertical (tekkan);
• Informal vertical (moyogi);
• Oblique (shakkan);
• A tree bent by the wind (fukinagashi);
• Roots on the rock (sekiyoyu).

Maple bonsai crown shaping techniques

You can make a maple bonsai by pruning branches when five pairs of full-fledged leaves open on the shoot.It is necessary to shorten them by 2-4 leaves, separately plucking out large leaf plates, leave their cuttings. Over time, the cutting will fade and fall off, and the large leaves will be replaced by small ones more suitable for bonsai.

Plucking out growth buds from healthy trees with green foliage in the summer will result in:

• to growth retardation;
• the gradual formation of shorter shoots;
• increase in crown density.

Diseases and pests

Bonsai blue maple is a plant that is resistant to various pests and diseases that other types of bonsai can be susceptible to. In the spring, aphids often attack the miniature maple. It is easy to kill with insecticides. Another attack is a fungus that can completely destroy a tree. Fungal disease, verticillary wilting, manifests itself as black spots on the sections. It is impossible to cure this disease, but it is necessary to protect neighboring crops from the spread of infection to them.

Red maple bonsai

In order for the plant to grow properly, when pruning, transplanting and with general care, it is necessary to follow safety rules, as well as thoroughly disinfect the tools and all materials used.