To ensure success with your bonsai, in addition to knowing the keys to its maintenance, you need to know what you should not do under any circumstances. Below, we show you the precautions you should take into account when purchasing a type of bonsai.
In the popular imagination, the figure of the bonsai is represented as that plant that is extremely sensitive and difficult to care for. Nothing could be further from the truth: there are really resistant species that are perfectly recommended for starting out in this art, but you need to know how to deal with them.
To do this, we are going to talk about the urgent care that we must give to our bonsai trees that have just arrived at home to guarantee their success in our garden.
How to make hydrangeas bloom until autumn?
Bonsai
Bonsai, like the rest of their plant companions, need water as one of their main resources. This aspect is of vital importance because these types of plants are usually contained in small containers, so they tend to dry out very quickly and therefore have greater water needs than other species.
When should we irrigate?
We should not schedule irrigation every few days, but, as a general rule, we should water our bonsai when we see that the top layer of the substrate begins to dry. This watering should be more frequent in spring and summer, and more sparse in autumn and winter, becoming almost completely reduced in those deciduous specimens that go into a state of dormancy during the winter.
It doesn't matter what time of day we irrigate, although the ideal is to avoid the central hours of the day, as the pot and soil are warmer at these times and irrigation causes a rapid drop in temperatures, which can be harmful to our health. plant.
How should we water our bonsai?
Irrigation must be abundant, preferably with watering cans with fine holes, so that the top layer of the substrate is not washed away. Irrigation must be applied until, through the drainage holes of our pot, clear water begins to come out. If possible, let's wait a few minutes and repeat the action.
The best water we can use is that which comes from rain and also from osmosis, due to the low amount of mineral salts they contain. If this is not possible, tap water can be used, although in the long term it may compromise bonsai cultivation due to its high concentration of salts.
When we go to irrigate, we must avoid, especially if it is tap water, getting the leaves or trunk of the tree wet, which would facilitate the appearance of diseases, or could affect the color of the trunk, turning it white.
There is another form of irrigation which is known as immersion irrigation. It allows us to ensure that the substrate has been completely soaked, as it is done by completely submerging the plant in water. It is a technique that can be used occasionally when the substrate is very dry and we cannot carry out the usual irrigation.
Mistakes we can make during irrigation
– Abundant irrigation. Excessive watering in bonsai, as in general in other plants, can be a serious problem, as a constantly flooded substrate increases the appearance of fungi and other pathogens, as well as preventing the roots from breathing, which can even cause the death of the tree. . . This explains why it is not recommended to use a tray under the pot when growing bonsai: if the roots are kept in permanent contact with water, they may rot.
– Abuse of immersion irrigation. Immersion irrigation is a great tool, but it comes with risks. Abuse can cause mineral salts to accumulate in the upper part of the substrate instead of the lower part, so that the roots will tend to grow upwards, greatly damaging the plant.
– Irrigation deficit. Probably one of the most frequent causes of death in the bonsai world, especially during holidays, a period when trees can be forgotten and suffer significant damage. The irrigation deficit causes the leaves to dry out and fall quickly, which requires abundant watering during the following weeks to try to recover the tree. In these cases, if we believe that the tree may suffer from drought for a season, we recommend installing an automatic irrigation system.
