Douglas Fir Trees: Learning from Mistakes Improves the Artist Too [Bonsai]

over 3 years ago (Edited)

Here I am showing two different trees of the same variety.

Douglas Fir, I am learning sheds needles like crazy. It pushes out new needles from the branch tips and sometimes along the middle of the branches. It does does this two or three times a year when the growth season goes well.

Historical Information

ID: 0010
Nickname: Christina
Type: Douglas Fir
Age: 7 years
Grown: yamadori (collected from my own yard)
Last repotting: late spring 2017
Wired: April 10, 2019

In Bonsai form, my trees tend to form very bare patches on older limbs, and it has been a challenge to figure out ways to make the trees look more lush and full.

Historical Information

ID: 0017
Nickname: Elsa
Type: Douglas Fir
Age: 6 years
Grown: yamadori (collected from my own yard)
Last repotting: August 2020 (emergency fix)
Wired: Mid November 2019

Here on the other tree, I learned the hard way some potentially deadly mistakes to avoid.

Even though my Douglas Fir trees were due for another monthly dose of fertilizer, it can be dangerous to do so in heavy amounts. Especially during the heat wave we were experiencing with triple digits.

The frequency of watering the tree had been increased as well. Sometimes I had been watering many of my trees twice a day because they were in the full sun and heat. The soil on this tree, however, was not always fully drying out

So with the combination of high heat, scalding sun, increased fertilizer, and waterlogged soil, rot began to set in, attacking the roots. Soon the needles began to fall.

This tree is still slightly alive with one open bud still showing new yellow green needles, while all other needles turned brown and fell off. Another bud is starting to open up. I have been keeping the tree in the shade and watering it less often than before.

Additionally I pruned off some of the blackened, soggy roots around the outside, and added fresh bonsai soil to fill in the gaps. On the inside base of the pot I put a layer of living moss. Moss can aid in restoring damaged and diseased roots. Lastly, I applied a weak dose of disease control formula to kill off any bad fungus.

We shall soon see if the tree is able to restore some of the energy it lost.

Last year, I was told by an elder in the bonsai club that it looked like these trees were not being fertilized enough, which is why they did not have enough needles. Now I know that this is not something that can be fixed quickly in a single summer by increasing the amount of fertilizer. Not everyone who calls themselves a master gives great advice. A tough lesson learned.

Thankfully, the first tree is not showing as much signs of stress, and should pull through unscathed. I am not so sure this second tree will survive.

Photos in this post are all #originalworks by @creativetruth, unless stated otherwise.

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