AusBonsai

Another summer, another two dead shohin (15 year old azelea trained for 5 years, 5 year old exposed root olive - both transplanted last winter).

I've got another ficus struggling - either they are too wet and hot or too dry and hot.

I've tried burying them in sand, covering the pots with cloth, keeping them in shallow but wet trays. Yet every year another few shuffled off this mortal coil.

I'm about to try and talk the better half into bringing the littl'uns inside on 40C+ days out of sheer desperation. But then I worry about the dreaded aircon killing them.

Any ideas?

Have a look at my setup in the Shohin page. We get regular temps of above 37 and I have trees less than 4cms that survive and have done for the last 10 years.

Cheers Pup

do u have a link to the post pup ?

I have not lost any this year but the temps here in wagga only got to 37c
our normal summer's its nothing to see weeks of 45c

so any help hints is good

( alpineart showed me some of his tricks to keeping plants alive, but i'll take as many as i can get.)

Search is your friend...

viewtopic.php?f=138&t=252&hilit=shohin+collection#p1709

Scott Roxburgh wrote:Search is your friend...

viewtopic.php?f=138&t=252&hilit=shohin+collection#p1709

Thank you Scott, as I said look in the Shohin section you will find it you have done it for them!.

Regards Pup

Pup wrote:

Scott Roxburgh wrote:Search is your friend...

viewtopic.php?f=138&t=252&hilit=shohin+collection#p1709

Thank you Scott, as I said look in the Shohin section you will find it you have done it for them!.

Regards Pup

Great set up - am I correct in assuming that the gravel-filled plastic trays have water in the bottom of them to?

thoglette wrote:

Pup wrote:

Scott Roxburgh wrote:Search is your friend...

viewtopic.php?f=138&t=252&hilit=shohin+collection#p1709

Thank you Scott, as I said look in the Shohin section you will find it you have done it for them!.

Regards Pup

Great set up - am I correct in assuming that the gravel-filled plastic trays have water in the bottom of them to?

The water drains away slowly as they have drainage holes so in extremes like yesterday at 41 here they were watered 3 times.

Cheers Pup

Nice set up pup, I've been looking for ways to improve my arrangement here in Adelaide. I imagine something similar will work great for our weather here too.

How fast do you have to water draining out of the gravel?

perhaps a Light coloured shadecloth blanket on each pot(reduce direct sun on the pot but not on the plant)-overhanging by an inch or so --cut from the edge with a hole big enough to accommodate the trunk-fastened with a wire hook--allows watering --check under every couple days for pests

Reddragon wrote:Nice set up pup, I've been looking for ways to improve my arrangement here in Adelaide. I imagine something similar will work great for our weather here too.

How fast do you have to water draining out of the gravel?

About an hour, so the trees are not sitting in water they sit on the gravel, when we have a forecast of temps above 35 for a week or two, I will sit the smaller ones ( under 7 cms ) in the gravel as it keeps the pot cool.
I have used this system for 18 years, the only time I lost a tree was when I did not re pot it, and the roots got burnt it was a shohin size at 18cm and was a very nice tree.
I have the remains sitting on my desk to remind me not to let that happen again.

Cheers Pup

This summer has been unusually hot and dry here - everyone else, even in the next towns, have had some rain but we have had none at all. I have lost a lot of trees in the ground in my leased block where I have no water. I have never had to water them there in the past as the soil has held moisture.

Luckily I have some of my benches on a tall fence shared with a neighbour. They have a huge ornamental grape growing on it. I curse it most years when I am forever cutting it back but its shade has been a godsend this year, keeping everything cool and moist.

thoglette wrote:Another summer, another two dead shohin (15 year old azelea trained for 5 years, 5 year old exposed root olive - both transplanted last winter).

I've got another ficus struggling - either they are too wet and hot or too dry and hot.

I've tried burying them in sand, covering the pots with cloth, keeping them in shallow but wet trays. Yet every year another few shuffled off this mortal coil.

I'm about to try and talk the better half into bringing the littl'uns inside on 40C+ days out of sheer desperation. But then I worry about the dreaded aircon killing them.

Any ideas?

It's a little hard to help if we don't know where you are

Cheers,
Mojo

mogo i think he is in wagga.? a Ba#%&rd of a place climate wise.

rowan wrote:This summer has been unusually hot and dry here - everyone else, even in the next towns, have had some rain but we have had none at all. I have lost a lot of trees in the ground in my leased block where I have no water. I have never had to water them there in the past as the soil has held moisture.

Luckily I have some of my benches on a tall fence shared with a neighbour. They have a huge ornamental grape growing on it. I curse it most years when I am forever cutting it back but its shade has been a godsend this year, keeping everything cool and moist.

Maybe I could send some rain your Rowan I've had to adjust just about everything from positioning to watering for my little babies

mattgatenby wrote:

rowan wrote:This summer has been unusually hot and dry here - everyone else, even in the next towns, have had some rain but we have had none at all. I have lost a lot of trees in the ground in my leased block where I have no water. I have never had to water them there in the past as the soil has held moisture.

Luckily I have some of my benches on a tall fence shared with a neighbour. They have a huge ornamental grape growing on it. I curse it most years when I am forever cutting it back but its shade has been a godsend this year, keeping everything cool and moist.

Maybe I could send some rain your Rowan I've had to adjust just about everything from positioning to watering for my little babies

The differing problems of this huge country of ours are endless, too much sun wind and in some cases, which I have yet to experience is too much rain.

In Japan they have the monsoonal rains, they get over this by tilting the pot to help with drainage, have been for 100's of years.
Hope this is of some help.
Cheers Pup