How to make a wintersweet bonsai? Wintersweet bonsai cultivation techniques

Growing Techniques Jan 1, 1970 0 views

In winter, many flowers have already withered, yet only the wintersweet can bloom alone in the biting cold wind. Wintersweet is an ideal flowering plant for winter viewing, suitable both for courtyard planting and for old-trunk bonsai, flower arranging and shaping art

Pot and soil selection

Pot selection: Because wintersweet bonsai is drought-tolerant and afraid of waterlogging, whether for new stumps or formed bonsai, when choosing a pot you should try to avoid using porcelain and other pots with poor permeability. You should choose an antique-looking, highly permeable deep purple, ochre-red or blue-black purple clay pot or earthenware pot, which sets off the golden-yellow flowers of the wintersweet with strong contrast, enhancing the ornamental effect.

Soil: Wintersweet is not strict about the soil medium, but as a flowering bonsai the choice of soil medium is especially important. If wintersweet grows in poorly fertile pot soil with poor permeability, it cannot meet the needs of plant growth and development, still less accumulate nutrients for flower bud differentiation, resulting in few or no flower buds on the wintersweet plant, causing the wintersweet bonsai to bloom sparsely or not at all. Wintersweet likes sunlight and does not fear severe cold; it likes warm, humid, loose, fertile, well-permeable sandy loam, or grows well in neutral fertile soil rich in humus, blooming abundantly. When choosing the medium for wintersweet bonsai, you must select loose, fertile, well-permeable fertile sandy loam, to lay a good foundation for the wintersweet bonsai to achieve abundant flowers, large flowers, bright color and strong fragrance.

Water and fertilizer management

Moderate watering: Wintersweet bonsai should be placed in a sunny, dry place, and watering should follow the principle of "water only after the soil has dried out." In April to May, during the peak growth period of wintersweet, according to its growth vigor, when new shoots grow to 10cm, carry out intermittent water withholding in good time, and continue control until mid-to-late June, when flower buds have differentiated, before resuming normal watering. During this period, for the branches and leaves of water-withheld potted plants whose new shoots have wilted considerably, you may spray an appropriate amount of water on the canopy to prevent excessive water loss from harming the plant. Entering autumn, keep the soil moist and reduce the amount of watering. Around the flowering period, water moderately; too little watering leads to uneven flowering and a poor ornamental effect. Too much watering easily causes bud and flower drop, and also shortens the ornamental period of the wintersweet bonsai flowers, failing to achieve the expected ornamental effect.

Rational fertilization: Wintersweet likes fertilizer; timely and rational fertilization can promote the normal growth of branches and leaves of wintersweet bonsai, and also promote flower bud differentiation and more blooming. Generally, apply 1 leaf-unfolding fertilizer in spring, and apply 1 decomposed liquid cake fertilizer each in May and mid-to-late June. During the hot dog days, when it is the flower bud differentiation period of wintersweet and also the stage of vigorous new root growth, you can spray 0.25% potassium dihydrogen phosphate as a foliar application about 5 times to promote flower bud differentiation; after autumn apply 1 more decomposed liquid cake fertilizer to accelerate the filling and rapid swelling of flower buds. In early winter apply 1 complete fertilizer mainly of phosphorus and potassium fertilizer. Only by carrying out scientific and rational fertilization according to the growth characteristics of wintersweet can the wintersweet bonsai's need for abundant blooming be met. However, do not fertilize during the flowering period of wintersweet, otherwise it will shorten the ornamental period of the wintersweet flowers.

Pruning and shaping

The pruning and shaping of wintersweet bonsai is mainly carried out in 3 stages.

After the flowers fade and before budding, in combination with changing the soil and repotting, carry out pruning while shaping: cut off dead branches, diseased and pest-infested branches, vigorous water sprouts, crossing branches, overlapping branches, overly dense branches and all other branches that affect the tree shape, and for the one-year-old branches to be retained, according to the shape needs of their respective positions, generally leave 1 to 3 pairs of buds for short pruning, to promote new shoots, so that the tree shape is symmetrical and full, with dense nodes, thick branches and dense flower buds.

Because wintersweet has strong sprouting ability, in order to reduce nutrient consumption and make the retained branches grow robustly, promptly cut off useless branches such as basal sprouts, overly dense branches and slender moderate branches as needed for shaping. When a branch grows 8 pairs of leaves, leave 6 to 8 pairs of leaves (10cm long) and cut off or pinch out the tip; generally it will still grow second and third flushes of shoots, and use the same method to cut and pinch, which can remove their respective apical growth vigor, helping to promote new branches and concentrate nutrients to promote flower bud differentiation.

In early winter, when the flower buds on the wintersweet branches have swollen and shown color, promptly cut off all leaves and the 2nd to 3rd flush shoots growing on some branch tips; for secondary shoots with few or no flower buds, according to the needs of the wintersweet bonsai shape, cut off this part of the branch tips, reducing overly dense branches and flowerless branches, fully highlighting its few branches and many flowers, with an obvious ornamental effect.

Wintersweet bonsai production: Wintersweet bonsai care

Regarding the production and care of wintersweet bonsai, first let us talk about the production process of wintersweet bonsai.

1. Material collection and cultivation measures (source of tree stumps)

1. Artificial propagation.
Wintersweet propagation is generally mainly by grafting; division, sowing, cuttings and layering are also possible. Grafting is mainly by cut grafting; approach grafting and bud grafting can also be used.
[Sowing]
The sowing time for wintersweet is to collect seeds in June, and sowing immediately after collection is best. Before sowing, soak the seeds to promote germination for 24 hours, ensuring uniform seedlings and early germination. They germinate in 10 days; the current-year seedlings grow 10-20 cm tall; generally seedling plants begin to bloom in 3-4 years.
[Layering]
In spring, after ring-barking at the base, mound layering can be done; air layering can also be done in the plum rain season (late June to mid-July).
[Cut grafting] Mostly carried out in March to April; when the leaf buds swell to the size of a wheat grain, grafting is most likely to survive. If the buds have grown too large, it is very difficult to survive after grafting. One month before cut grafting, from a vigorous mature mother tree, select a thick and relatively long one-year-old branch, cut off the top shoot, so that nutrients concentrate in the middle section of the branch, which is favorable for graft survival. The scion is about 6 to 7 cm long; the rootstock can be [Dogfly wintersweet] or 4- to 5-year-old [wintersweet seedling]. The rootstock cut can be slightly longer, preferably reaching deep into the xylem; after tying, the cut should be coated with mud slurry, then earthed up to cover. About one month after grafting, the covering soil can be opened to check survival. Wintersweet propagated by cut grafting grows vigorously and can reach 40 to 60 cm in the same year.

Use red-hearted wintersweet seedling or division plants as rootstock; Sunshine Nursery Stock Network suggests using cut grafting, approach grafting or bud grafting, with cut grafting used most often. Cut grafting is carried out when the leaf buds swell in March to the size of a wheat grain; approach grafting is best in May-June, at the turn of spring and summer; bud grafting is carried out in July-August. The time for cut grafting is around mid-March, best done when the wintersweet leaf buds have just sprouted to the size of a rice grain; if the timing is missed, and you wait until the leaf buds have grown too large or leaves have already emerged, then cut grafting is unlikely to survive. Cut grafting usually uses dog-tooth wintersweet seedlings as rootstock, and precious varieties such as Suxin or Qingkou wintersweet as scions. For the scion, one month in advance select a robust and relatively long one-year-old branch and cut off its top shoot, so that nutrients can concentrate on the buds in the middle section of the branch. The scion is about 7-8 cm long, retaining 1-2 pairs of buds. When cutting the scion, do not cut too deep; it should just slightly expose the xylem. Cut the rootstock stump 5-6 cm above the ground, cut downward from 1/3 of the rootstock diameter, splitting 4-5 cm, insert the wintersweet scion into the rootstock cut, align the cambium, and after joining tie it firmly with soft hemp rope, then seal both rootstock and scion together with loose soil until the top of the scion is covered. Thereafter keep the soil moist. After one month, loosen the covering soil and check whether it has survived; if it has survived, remove other new buds on the rootstock to promote growth of the grafted bud. Then cover with loose soil on top, to prevent the newly grafted tender buds from dying from wind and sun. After another month, gradually remove the soil, letting the buds and seedlings gradually receive sunlight. Wintersweet propagated by this method grows vigorously and can grow to about 50 cm in the same year.

[Approach grafting] Propagation is mostly carried out around May, and the rootstock is often several-year-old [wintersweet seedling]. First pot and cultivate the rootstock seedlings until they survive, move them near the mother branch used as the scion, select a branch on the mother branch comparable in thickness to the rootstock seedling, and cut a spindle-shaped incision at an appropriate place, about 3 to 5 cm long, reaching deep into the xylem. The cut should be flat and extended, and the cuts of the rootstock and scion should be consistent in length and size; then bring them together so that the cambium layers around them align with each other, and bind them tightly together from bottom to top with plastic tape. After the graft survives, first cut off the scion below the junction, then cut off the rootstock shoot above the cut, and it is done. Bud grafting propagation is best carried out from late May to late June; wintersweet bud grafting must use latent buds on first-year growth branches, whose survival rate is higher than that of new buds on current-year branches, and an "x"-shaped grafting method can be used.

[Division] Wintersweet division propagation is generally carried out in spring between February and March, when the leaf buds have not yet sprouted. When dividing, first dig away the soil on the side of the mother plant's root near the offspring plant, use a sterilized sharp knife to cut the offspring plant away from the mother plant's roots at the base, forming a new plant. Then plant it, and after planting pay attention to shading, keeping the soil moist; after the dog days are over, apply liquid fertilizer once every half month, and in the same year it can grow vigorous branches and leaves, blooming after 2-3 years. Propagation by this method is simple and easy, with a high survival rate, a short seedling-raising time and quick flowering.

2. Collection from mountain wilds:Using wild wintersweet old root stumps from mountain areas for ground cultivation to make wintersweet old-trunk bonsai is relatively common and yields quick results. Select old tree stumps that have sprouted after many years of cutting; after digging them back, prune the branches and take care to protect the root system. Choose a place with moderate light, loose soil and good drainage for "stump cultivation"; after survival, move them into pots for cultivation. If it is an old dogfly wintersweet stump, you can select [Suxin wintersweet] for grafting, and after survival it can be processed and shaped as needed.

2. Bonsai type and style

Wintersweet has many excellent characteristics suitable for making bonsai, and can be made into various types of bonsai, such as: straight trunk, slanting trunk, lying trunk, curved trunk, withered trunk, split trunk, double trunk, multiple trunk, cliff, weeping branch, root-on-rock, group planting, hanging branch styles, etc. According to the size of the tree stump, large, medium and small bonsai can be made, and miniature bonsai can also be made (pot diameter below 10cm); wintersweet is also suitable for making bonsai in combination with heavenly bamboo, with yellow flowers and red berries setting each other off delightfully. Collection of wild stumps.

3. Potting process

1. Pot selection. Wintersweet is suitable for purple clay pottery pots, and glazed pottery pots can also be used. Generally, seedling wintersweet mostly uses round pots, square pots, hexagonal pots, etc.; old wintersweet stumps can use medium-deep horse-trough pots or crabapple pots; cliff styles mostly use thousand-tube pots. In color, deep purple or ochre-red is better, to set off the wax-yellow flowers and increase the ornamental effect.
2. Soil. Wintersweet is not strict about soil, but well-drained sandy loam is best. For potting, decomposed garden soil or leaf mold mixed with 20 to 30% [rice husk ash] is commonly used as the growing medium.
3. Planting. Transplanting wintersweet is mostly carried out in early spring, preferably around early March before and after the new buds sprout on the flower stems. Generally it is suitable to plant at a slant, making it easy to take on a posture when shaping. Before planting, shaping and pruning can be carried out once. When potting, sufficient base fertilizer can be applied at the bottom of the pot.

4. Shaping techniques

Bonsai types: Wintersweet has many excellent characteristics suitable for making bonsai, and can be made into various types of bonsai, such as: straight trunk, slanting trunk, lying trunk, curved trunk, withered trunk, split trunk, double trunk, multiple trunk, cliff, weeping branch, root-on-rock, group planting, hanging branch styles, etc. According to the size of the tree stump, large, medium and small bonsai can be made, and miniature bonsai can also be made (pot diameter below 10cm); wintersweet is also suitable for making bonsai in combination with heavenly bamboo, with yellow flowers and red berries setting each other off delightfully. Collection of wild stumps.
There are roughly 4 ways to shape the branches and trunk.
(1) Upward-extending branch style, also called antler style. The main branch's branches and twigs mainly bend downward and then grow upward, increasing from few to many; the form is relatively natural, and it is mainly formed by pruning and pinching.
(2) Horizontal branch style: the main branch and branches grow nearly horizontally, and the twigs can be slightly upward; it is formed comprehensively by wiring, pruning and pinching.
(3) Weeping branch style: the main branch is curved, and the branches and twigs all droop downward; it is mainly formed by wiring and knife-cut branch bending.
(4) Coiled style: the main branch and branches all have relatively large bends, and the twigs can be bent or straight. It can be formed by wiring and branch bending, or by pruning and pinching, giving people a sense of antiquity, oddity and elegance.

Shaping:

1. Knife-cut branch bending. This shaping design is made according to the habits of wintersweet, such as brittle branches, fast wound healing, easy bending and not easy wiring; it can generally be carried out during the growing season, but it is best when the buds have just sprouted and not yet unfolded leaves. When cutting down with the knife, form a 45° angle with the longitudinal axis of the branch, reaching as deep as two-thirds of the diameter. Generally, according to the size of the bending angle, a small angle can be shallow and a large angle can be deep, as long as the branch is not broken and the required shape can be achieved. After bending, it can be fixed with iron wire, and the cut can be wrapped with plastic tape; it can be removed only after the cut has healed.
2. Wiring. When carried out during the growing season, it can be done after knife-cut branch bending, or it can be wired after water withholding. Generally, after wiring with iron wire, gradually achieve the requirements.
3. Pruning. Generally at the end of the flowering period, combined with branch training and shaping. Cut off branches that do not match the main branch shaping, cutting at a 45° slant 0.5-1cm in front of the leaf axil. Special attention should be paid to the bud direction at the leaf axil.
4. Pinching. This is an important shaping method; generally when there are 2 to 3 pairs of leaves, pinching can be done, and when necessary even one pair of leaves is enough. It can be pinched 2 to 4 times a year, so that the main branch quickly takes shape.
4. Processing. Wintersweet shaping and training is mainly by pruning and bud pinching, supplemented by wiring. Xiyaojia Village, Yanling County, Henan, has long been known as "Yanling wintersweet tops the world." Its traditional shaping arts include "screen-fan wintersweet," "knot wintersweet," "hanging-branch wintersweet," etc. Screen-fan wintersweet is especially popular; its shaping process: the time should be during March to April, using the "rolling knife method" and "dragon knife method" to make the main branch twist and spiral upward; when the buds have just sprouted, make a slanted cut at the place to be bent, with the cut slanting in and reaching a depth of 2/3 of the branch diameter. Carefully bend it, so that the upper section of the split xylem is supported on the lower section, use a vertical pole to support the newly bent trunk, and tie it firmly with rope. Then make all the tips of each branch point downward. Within 1 month the cut should be coated with mud, and kept from falling off; if it falls off, replace it immediately. After the basic skeleton is formed, pay attention to pruning and timely pinching, to maintain the screen-fan shape.
5. Tree shape. Although wintersweet and plum blossom are not in the same family, their flowering periods are similar, and the flowers and fragrance are also similar. Wintersweet is delicate in color and rich in fragrance, no less than red plum, so the shaping principles of plum blossom can be borrowed: "Plum is beautiful when curved, straight has no posture; beautiful when slanting, upright has no scenery; beautiful when sparse, dense has no form"; "Plum is valued for being sparse rather than numerous; valued for being old rather than young; valued for being thin rather than fat; valued for being combined rather than open," etc. Therefore the main trunk should be slanting and horizontal, the branches and leaves should be sparse and spreading, and the old stump should show strength. Traditional shapes, besides Henan Yanling's "screen-fan style," "knot style" and "hanging-branch style," also include "downwind style," "weeping branch style," "swimming dragon style," etc. In current shaping, the tree shapes are mostly [slanting trunk style] and [natural style].

4. Care and management

1. Location.Wintersweet bonsai should be placed in a wind-sheltered, sunny place, avoiding cold wind; in summer it needs slight shading; in winter, potted plants should be moved indoors to overwinter when the temperature is below 1°C.
2. Watering.Wintersweet is relatively drought-tolerant, and has the reputation of "a wintersweet that cannot be killed by drought," but it should not be too dry either. Usually the pot soil can be slightly dry; watering should be "see dry, see wet"; if you do not water, then do not water, but when you water, water thoroughly. The dog days are the flower bud formation period, and water must not be lacking; water once each morning and evening; after autumn when leaves fall, the pot soil can be on the dry side, watering once every 5 to 7 days.
3. Fertilizing.Wintersweet likes fertilizer; from April to June, in the early stage of flower bud formation, it is suitable to apply cake fertilizer water once every 10 days. From the end of June to before the dog days, apply once a week a thin fertilizer water combining nitrogen and phosphorus, to promote flower bud formation. During the dog days, apply 1 to 2 times, with thin fertilizer. After autumn, apply 1 more time and that is enough. When repotting, sufficient base fertilizer such as bone meal and bean cake can be applied at the bottom of the pot.
4. Pruning.To make wintersweet have luxuriant branches and abundant flowers year after year, pruning and bud pinching are extremely important. [Pruning is generally done from March to June], and stops after August. After flowering each year, the old flowering branches should be cut short immediately, leaving only 15 to 20 cm at most per branch. After the new branches grow 2 to 3 pairs of buds, pinch off the terminal bud; before long side branches grow again, and after they grow to 10 cm, pinch the buds once more, repeating several times until the flower buds are basically formed. Also thin out various crossing branches, parallel branches, overlapping branches, opposite branches, water sprouts and overly dense, thin and weak branches that affect the beauty of the tree shape. There is a saying in flower proverbs that "wintersweet has no lack of branches," so wintersweet can be heavily pruned.
5. Repotting.Wintersweet bonsai should be repotted once every 1 to 2 years, preferably at the end of winter and beginning of spring after the flowers have faded. Before repotting, first pick off the buds that have already sprouted; after about 5 days, when the latent buds swell, transplant again. When repotting, remove 2/3 of the old soil, cut off rotten roots and dead roots, and trim away overly long old roots. Replace with frost-crumbled pond mud or humus-rich leaf mold, mixed with an appropriate amount of rice husk ash and sandy soil.
6. Prevention and control.Wintersweet bonsai is usually placed in a ventilated and well-lit place, so pests and diseases generally occur less. Because of overly dense placement, insufficient light and poor ventilation conditions, dead branch disease and leaf spot disease may occur, which can be prevented and controlled by spraying with 500-fold diluted carbendazim or zineb wettable powder. Individual plants may suffer a small amount of damage from pests such as red spider mites, scale insects and whiteflies, which can generally be prevented and controlled by using acaricides and scale insecticides such as Jiemanling.
Wintersweet has strong resistance to pests and diseases; occasionally there are pests such as stinging moths, large bagworms, aphids and scale insects, which can be prevented and controlled by spraying [80% dichlorvos 1500-fold solution] or [90% crystalline trichlorfon] [1000 to 1500-fold solution].
7. Apply more phosphorus and potassium fertilizer
The flower buds of wintersweet bonsai are mostly borne on the short branches of the current year's spring shoots; generally after the new shoots lignify in June each year, they enter the flower bud differentiation stage, and from July to September flower bud differentiation ends and development is complete; summer shoots and autumn shoots cannot form flower buds. Therefore, in summer it is necessary to apply additional potassium dihydrogen phosphate or boric acid once every half month, preferably at a concentration of 0.5%. Either foliar spraying or watering into the pot soil can greatly increase the bud-setting rate of potted wintersweet and accelerate the growth and development of flower buds.
8. Daily care
After the wintersweet bonsai flowers fade and before budding, in combination with changing the pot soil, carry out shaping and pruning, cutting off dead (root) branches, diseased and pest-infested branches, overly dense (root) branches and all other branches that affect the tree shape; and for all one-year-old branches to be retained, according to the shape needs of their respective positions, generally leave 1 to 3 pairs of buds for short pruning. Only in this way can the new shoots it sends out grow normally, with a full tree shape, dense nodes, thick branches and dense flower buds, laying a good foundation for the wintersweet bonsai to bear many flower buds and bloom abundantly later.

Wintersweet bonsai production: Wintersweet bonsai care methods

All kinds of bonsai appear in different places; every radish has its own love. Today our theme is wintersweet bonsai. Wintersweet blooms in winter, a very beautiful flower. Do you want to grow it? When you see it, don't you think it blooms beautifully? This is when it has just bloomed; it has opened after the test of severe winter. In the cold weather of winter, it can still bloom so brilliantly. Let us look below at how to grow wintersweet bonsai.

1. Introduction to wintersweet bonsai

Wintersweet is a traditional bonsai plant in our country; its tree posture is graceful, its roots are antique and elegant, and on its sparse, slanting branches bloom wax-yellow flowers, bright and brilliant, and the fragrance it gives off is even more intoxicating, especially warm in the cold winter. Wintersweet is a deciduous shrub of the genus Chimonanthus in the family Calycanthaceae; it has many varieties, with flower colors including pure yellow, golden yellow, pale yellow, ink yellow, yellow-white, pale white, silver white, etc., and stamens in red, purple, red-brown, pure white, etc. More famous ones include traditional varieties such as Suxin wintersweet, sandalwood wintersweet, tiger-hoof wintersweet, Qingkou wintersweet and dog-tooth wintersweet, as well as famous superior varieties such as Queen wintersweet, tiger-hoof red-silk wintersweet, golden-plate jade-stamen wintersweet, silver-bell wintersweet, white-lotus wintersweet and sword-red wintersweet.

In Yanling, Henan, the "hometown of wintersweet," traditional wintersweet bonsai forms include single-body wintersweet, dragon wintersweet, knot wintersweet, single hanging-branch wintersweet, double hanging-branch wintersweet, round hanging-branch wintersweet, screen-fan wintersweet, pearl upside-down curtain, etc. It can be shaped by wiring young trees, and can also use old, antique dog-tooth wintersweet old stumps as rootstock to graft superior varieties such as Suxin wintersweet and Qingkou wintersweet; its root swells and is knot-shaped, which is called "knot wintersweet."

Because wintersweet branches are relatively brittle and easy to break, large-amplitude bending and shaping is not suitable; generally only brown silk is used to slightly suspend, tie and coil the main trunk or large branches, and then the fine branches are slightly pruned. This is generally carried out from May to August, because at this time the branches are soft; before operating, pay attention to controlling watering to further soften the branches and facilitate shaping operations.

2. Production of wintersweet bonsai

Step one: Material collection and cultivation

Using wild wintersweet old root stumps from mountain areas for ground cultivation to make wintersweet old-trunk bonsai is relatively common and yields quick results. The method is: select old tree stumps that have sprouted after many years of cutting; after digging them back, take care to protect the root system and prune the branches. Choose a place with moderate light, loose soil and good drainage for "stump cultivation"; after survival, move them into pots for cultivation. If it is an old dogfly wintersweet stump, you can select Suxin wintersweet for grafting, and after survival it can be processed and shaped as needed.

Step two: Potting process

Wintersweet is suitable for purple clay pottery pots, and glazed pottery pots can also be used. Generally, seedling wintersweet mostly uses round pots, square pots, hexagonal pots, etc.; old wintersweet stumps can use medium-deep horse-trough pots or crabapple pots; cliff styles mostly use thousand-tube pots. In color, deep purple or ochre-red is better, to set off the wax-yellow flowers and increase the ornamental effect. Wintersweet is not strict about soil, but well-drained sandy loam is best. For potting, decomposed garden soil or leaf mold mixed with 20 to 30% rice husk ash is commonly used as the growing medium. Transplanting wintersweet is mostly carried out in early spring, preferably around early March before and after the new buds sprout on the flower stems. Generally it is suitable to plant at a slant, making it easy to take on a posture when shaping. Before planting, shaping and pruning can be carried out once. When potting, sufficient base fertilizer can be applied at the bottom of the pot.

Step three: Shaping and styling

Although wintersweet and plum blossom are not in the same family, their flowering periods are similar, and the flowers and fragrance are also similar. Wintersweet is delicate in color and rich in fragrance, no less than red plum, so the shaping principles of plum blossom can be borrowed: "Plum is beautiful when curved, straight has no posture; beautiful when slanting, upright has no scenery; beautiful when sparse, dense has no form"; "Plum is valued for being sparse rather than numerous; valued for being old rather than young; valued for being thin rather than fat; valued for being combined rather than open," etc. Therefore the main trunk should be slanting and horizontal, the branches and leaves should be sparse and spreading, and the old stump should show strength. Traditional shapes, besides Henan Yanling's "screen-fan style," "knot style" and "hanging-branch style," also include "downwind style," "weeping branch style," "swimming dragon style," etc. In current shaping, the tree shapes are mostly slanting trunk style and natural style.

3. Wintersweet bonsai care methods

Placement location: Wintersweet bonsai should be placed in a wind-sheltered, sunny place, avoiding cold wind; in summer it needs slight shading; in winter, potted plants should be moved indoors to overwinter when the temperature is below 1°C.

Watering: Wintersweet is relatively drought-tolerant, and has the reputation of "a wintersweet that cannot be killed by drought," but it should not be too dry either. Usually the pot soil can be slightly dry; watering should be "see dry, see wet"; if you do not water, then do not water, but when you water, water thoroughly. The dog days are the flower bud formation period, and water must not be lacking; water once each morning and evening; after autumn when leaves fall, the pot soil can be on the dry side, watering once every 5 to 7 days.

Fertilizing: Wintersweet likes fertilizer; from April to June, in the early stage of flower bud formation, it is suitable to apply cake fertilizer water once every 10 days. From the end of June to before the dog days, apply once a week a thin fertilizer water combining nitrogen and phosphorus, to promote flower bud formation. During the dog days, apply 1 to 2 times, with thin fertilizer. After autumn, apply 1 more time and that is enough. When repotting, sufficient base fertilizer such as bone meal and bean cake can be applied at the bottom of the pot.

Pruning: To make wintersweet have luxuriant branches and abundant flowers year after year, pruning and bud pinching are extremely important. Pruning is generally done from March to June, and stops after August. After flowering each year, the old flowering branches should be cut short immediately, leaving only 15 to 20 cm at most per branch. After the new branches grow 2 to 3 pairs of buds, pinch off the terminal bud; before long side branches grow again, and after they grow to 10 cm, pinch the buds once more, repeating several times until the flower buds are basically formed. Also thin out various crossing branches, parallel branches, overlapping branches, opposite branches, water sprouts and overly dense, thin and weak branches that affect the beauty of the tree shape. There is a saying in flower proverbs that "wintersweet has no lack of branches," so wintersweet can be heavily pruned.

Pest and disease control: Wintersweet has strong resistance to pests and diseases; occasionally there are pests such as stinging moths, large bagworms, aphids and scale insects, which can be prevented and controlled by spraying 80% dichlorvos 1500-fold solution or 90% crystalline trichlorfon 1000 to 1500-fold solution.

Finally, let me tell everyone that using wild wintersweet old root stumps from mountain areas for ground cultivation to make wintersweet old-trunk bonsai is relatively common and yields quick results.