HBWR Bonsai

[Heffa]

Have heard that Argyreia Nervosa is a popular bonsai, has anyone tried making this beautiful vine into a gorgeous little bonsai bush?

It would be pretty sweet to hear some ways to do this and any pictures.

[mutant]

No, but If you find anything please write it here...

where did you get this hbwr bonzai thing info?

[ref1ect1ons]

Yes this would be an ideal way to go, restricting such a nortorious root system. I have a seedling and would like to give it a try as I was concerned about how I was going to get a big enough pot ...a bonzai may be the solution.

an ebay ad said this about hbwr:

These hardy vines can grow to 10m in ideal conditions but this plant also makes for a decorative bonsai plant if trained right it will not climb but produce a nice small bush.

Its in the thread, its an old bonzai trick to force flower. Just trim off the outer 1" of roots and repot.

in relation to hbwr, but not directly ..at http://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/3361893

all I could find, not much.

[Heffa]

This ebay quote was one of my references to discovering the technique of growing this plant in said fashion. I would be really excited to see a picture of a bonsai. I shall research further tomorrow afternoon.

[mutant]

if we're talking about 'a HBWR in a small pot' , just surviving, yeah, it can do it.

I have seen unhappy hbwr in small pot. is it a bonzai?

I wonder what it could do if you ferted 20-20-20 hbwr in such a small pot though, I doubt it can do much

can you really unpot and trim the root each year or more than once a year, treating this as a bonzai? Maybe, so let's see the 'bush'

In any case, they're said they don't really like root disturbance

I would really be interested if there's actual info on some of this 'bonzai'

[zero]

Yer I have been working on this one for some time, and HBWR does like a large pot, depends what size bonsai we are talking about as there is not just one size.

I think the plant would do better as a Med to Large sized bonsai.

peace

zero

[Moses]

Yer I have been working on this one for some time,

peace

zero

 

do you have pix of progress?

i've given away bonsai growing over the last decade(grew them for 22 yrs) but this question of ethno-bonsai keeps coming up and i'm considering taking up the challenge.

Agree with your size choices too, leaf size alone would need medium bonsai to keep proportion.

i'd love to see a good cascade or twisted weeping HBWR in flower.

Edited August 2, 2010 by Moses

[t st tantra]

read recently about growth habit of plants.horizontal growth has slower sap flow ,it was said, leading to fruiting process.

vines usually grow as high as they have support then fill out and flowering follows.low nitrogen and high potassium helps.

t s t .

[Heffa]

Interesting stuff guys, excitement is brewing .

What if you were to take all the soil off the roots of a smallish sized plant, place roots over a rock/piece of wood, place on a tray, such as this:

Then cover back up with soil and place in another tray that can be collect any debris.

Wet the bottom of the plant and the roots will poke through looking for more water and this is when they can be trimmed (without further disturbance).

If you guys approve that this may work, attempts will be made to start this immediately.

[Chiral]

Vines are incredibly difficult to bonsai as there is no solid trunk as such to fatten and make old looking and twisted, plus the leaf is so very large...it could be done but would take some knowledge and a serious amount of patience...perhaps vine over rock might work but the leaf is so big so getting the miniature look would be incredibly difficult.

Mimosa hostillis is one that would work...and I've been tinkering with doing cactus over rock at some point..pretty sure with some patience it could be done.

[Moses]

Interesting stuff guys, excitement is brewing .

What if you were to take all the soil off the roots of a smallish sized plant, place roots over a rock/piece of wood, place on a tray, such as this:

Then cover back up with soil and place in another tray that can be collect any debris.

Wet the bottom of the plant and the roots will poke through looking for more water and this is when they can be trimmed (without further disturbance).

If you guys approve that this may work, attempts will be made to start this immediately.

 

to train "root over rock" my tech was to bare majority of roots.

leave small root ball.

place plant on top of rock placing roots evenly over surface.

cover roots with a thin clay mix to help them bond to rock.

place this all on top of pot full of soil.

small black tree bag had bottom cut off to make it a tube.

place it over rock/roots and fill with soil.

slowly as time goes by roll the plastic bag down to expose roots.

this helps roots slowly harden off and forces them to go further down into bottom pot.

[Chiral]

yes and let erosion and some water wash away the soil and clay to reveal the lovely old root systems...be careful with cactus as the roots exposed may not take to being in the sun once hanging outside of soil...mind you there's a million tons of PC pach to practice with...lol

I've a few on trial at momenet and should see them next season hopefully.

Edited August 6, 2010 by Chiral

[Heffa]

Ok thought it should be tried.

Washed away the soil surrounding roots, trimmed them and placed the roots around a rock, tying them on.

Cut out the bottom of a pot and placed it around the rock and roots and filled it up with soil.

[mutant]

hehe you got it going , cool!!

[Heffa]

Around two months down the track and after the plant lost all of its leavesduring the end of winter, then was kicked over a few times and had its roots trimmed again.... the bonsai project is still underway and its leaves have sprung back!

Got a few photos.

[btotl]

I am excited!

[gogogadget]

i'm very keen to see the results, i'm going to try various ethnology style bonsai, Australian natives in particular, i had a bottle brush wattle at one stage i may have some pcs, but i really don't think i have any left, had a very dry summer and i forgot to water them during our move and he was one of the ones that died, it even had a miniature mushroom growing in it at one stage it looked so surreal i've just potted a murraya paniculata, as a root over rock style (although not ethnogenic i love bonsai and look forward to seeing the unveiling.

[mutant]

hey heffa how is the plant going?

[Bert&Ernie]

come on heffa we need an update please

edit:spelling

Edited February 21, 2011 by aussiejwerta

[Heffa]

Well it has been over 6 months and there have been no dramatic changes, it keeps growing new leaves then dying back every time i trim the roots. I fertilise fortnightly as i do with all my plants but i dont believe that it will flower this season.

Just as a comparison, this was planted from the same batch of seed a month or two after my bonsai trial specimen. Hahaha quite a difference.

Edited February 22, 2011 by Heffa

[Bert&Ernie]

coolies does anyone think that i would be able to bonsai a morning glory

[Yogibear]

coolies does anyone think that i would be able to bonsai a morning glory

 

Morning Glories grow like weeds, can't see why they wouldn't make perfectly nice bonsai

..I'm wondering though.. Since the seeds contain - what is it 0.3% alkaloids, by weight - wouldn't one require 3-4 times the seeds to match those of a standard, un-trained A.Nervosa vine?

[Heffa]

Who knows? seems a little off topic though.

In relation to your question aussiejwerta, i talked to a man who seemed to know quite a bit about bonsais and said vines would make great bonsais however, due to mg's stature, especially when they are smaller and without a woody stem, it would be quite a challenge.

[mutant]

Once I saw an unhappy plant in an cold climate grown in a small pot, smaller than what you're using. It had grown an interesting shape and never threw a vine out.

Turbina might make interesting bonzai if it is possible due to special trunk.

For what is worth I doubt it can bloom in a small pot, even after years, but who knows?