Silk Tree Bonsai Making and Potted Cultivation Methods and Precautions
Hearing the name silk tree flower, many people are surely familiar with it. It is a plant with high ornamental value, and the shape of its flowers is just like feathers, very beautiful. Nowadays many people make silk tree flowers into bonsai for viewing, so what exactly are its specific making methods?
Silk Tree Flower Bonsai Making Methods
1. Choosing the tree species. The tree species is best a stump with a full form, straight branches and green leaves, and fibrous roots that have not yet dehydrated. Generally, you can choose from mountain-collected stumps or field-cultivated stumps, selecting tree species with relatively small, glossy leaves, that can be transplanted, tolerate pruning, and sprout easily; those with exposed roots and a strong grip on the ground are even better as tree species.
2. Choosing the flower pot. A shallow-mouthed pot can show off the tallness of the silk tree, while a deep-mouthed cylinder can set off an old silk tree stump styled as a cliff, and a purple clay pot is favorable for support. In short, whatever effect you hope to achieve, you should choose the flower pot according to your expectations; different flower pots will yield different feelings.
3. Potting and pruning. Choose a suitable flower pot according to the size of the silk tree species, first prune the roots, remove excess bottom roots and overly long roots, place it into the flower pot, hold the tree species with one hand, and fill in the potting soil with the other hand, then press firmly with your hand after filling. Prune the branches and trunk of the silk tree, removing overlapping branches, crossing branches, whorled branches, and parallel branches. Shorten the top-central branches and back branches.
Silk Tree Flower Potted Cultivation Methods
1. Temperature. The silk tree flower is a temperate, subtropical, and tropical tree species. It likes a warm environment, and the suitable temperature for growth is 13℃—18℃. In winter it can tolerate a low temperature of minus 10℃, but in a cold environment it grows slowly. When cultivating silk tree flowers in southern regions, there is no need to move them into a greenhouse in winter.
2. Light. The silk tree flower relatively likes sunlight and does not tolerate shade, so during the growth period you should pay attention to providing sufficient sunlight. However, when the summer sunlight is too strong, shading is still needed to avoid scorching the leaves.
3. Soil. The silk tree flower has few requirements for soil. Its roots have rhizobia and have the ability to improve the soil. It tolerates poor soil and mild salinity-alkalinity, but grows best in fertile, moist, well-drained sandy loam and limestone loam.
4. Fertilization. The silk tree flower does not have high requirements for fertilizer and can be managed extensively; even in poor soil it can grow vigorously.
Precautions for Potted Silk Tree Flowers
1. Dislikes noise. The silk tree flower does not like noise and dust during growth, so when cultivating it you need to control the surrounding sound, and be careful not to cultivate it in areas with severe air pollution.
2. Moderate watering. The silk tree flower can tolerate drought but not waterlogging. During maintenance, do not water too much, so as to avoid waterlogging, which affects root respiration and causes root rot of the plant.
3. Less pruning. The silk tree is a shallow-rooted tree species with weak sprouting ability, so during daily maintenance try not to prune, and just maintain a normal growth rate.
Diseases of Silk Tree Flowers and Control Methods
1. Rust disease. Control method: spray 0.3 lime-sulfur mixture, or 75% chlorothalonil wettable powder 400 times liquid, spraying once every 10—15 days, for 2—3 consecutive sprays.
2. Fusarium wilt. Control method: choose varieties with strong disease resistance for cultivation. When the seedlings grow 2—3 true leaves, spray once with methamidophos 2000 times liquid to prevent pests such as ants from harming the seedlings, and thereafter spray foliar fertilizer on the leaf surface at fixed times and amounts to improve the disease resistance of the seedlings. For plants that have just become diseased, while replacing the soil, combine chemical treatment for control. You can use 70% thiophanate-methyl wettable powder, 60% carbendazim · thiram wettable powder 100 times liquid to spray or smear the trunk; or use 14.5% duoxiaoling water-soluble powder, 40% quintozene powder 300 times liquid, as well as kangkuining, thiophanate-methyl, carbendazim and other pesticides at conventional concentrations to irrigate the soil, irrigating once about every 8 days, for 3—4 consecutive times. Using 70% thiophanate-methyl wettable powder 300 times liquid and introducing it into the plant by infusion can improve the curative effect.
The making method of silk tree flower bonsai is actually still quite simple. The main thing is to do a good job in selecting the species and selecting the pot, then choose an appropriate time for potting, and prune after potting. If you want it to grow well, in the later stage after it is made into a bonsai, you can strengthen management, and thus ensure its growth.