Fukien Tea Tree

I went to a local nursery 2 weeks ago to buy a sack of volcanic rocks for my soil mix. While waiting for the gardener, I leisurely walked around the nursery. I'm not really expecting to find anything in the nursery since they mainly cater to garden landscapers. Then I found a 7-foot fukien tea. It seems that they have forgotten about it, grew out of control, broke the plastic container and managed to anchor itself to the soil. The caretaker was very happy to get rid of the tree so she gave me a big discount. I purchased it for $12 and the gardener had to dig up the roots since it was already deeply anchored.

When I got home I immediately removed the plastic container and to my dismay I saw thick coiled roots and few feeder roots. I was really worried that it will not survive. Even worse, my biggest pot available could barely house the fukien tea. So I crossed my fingers, repotted and defoliated my new fukien tea. I also sprayed some vitamin B1 to encourage root growth. After three days in full shade I saw some buds. It was definitely a good sign but it does not mean it will surely survive. I've seen a couple of bonsai materials still die after buds have appeared.      

After 2 weeks,





Fukien tea tree is doing well with bright green leaves and shoots all over. I'm planning to repot after 10-12 months and split it into 3 bonsai. Not bad for $12  

Mark> wrote:

I'm planning to repot after 10-12 months and split it into 3 bonsai.

Your tree looks like if it has survived the transplant well.

Don't be in a hurry to split it up - maybe cutting it down a bit more later on, you may end up with an interesting clump style tree.

Splitting it up you may end up with three boring trees?

Lennard

lennard wrote:

Mark> wrote:

I'm planning to repot after 10-12 months and split it into 3 bonsai.

Your tree looks like if it has survived the transplant well.

Don't be in a hurry to split it up - maybe cutting it down a bit more later on, you may end up with an interesting clump style tree.

Splitting it up you may end up with three boring trees?

Lennard

I agree. a lot can happen during those months especially for a very fast growing plant like the fukien tea. Splitting into 3 bonsai is just my initial assessment.