Bald Cypress Bonsai Tree

The Bald (or Swamp) Cypress, which has origins in Mexico as well as the Usa - comes in the genus Taxodium, which consists of two species: Taxodium distichum (Swamp Cypress) and Taxodium ascendens (Pond Cypress). Each can be employed for bonsai, while the Bald Cypress is far more usually noticed as such.

This tree thrives in hot, moist situations, and tends to become located all through the American south, although additionally, it grows as far north as Massachusetts and Minnesota.

A deciduous conifer, this can be a hardy tree, capable of living as much as 800-1000 years. See also Bonsai Tree Types and General Care Guides

Trees Attributes:

The Bald Cypress has double rows of tiny needles increasing on narrow green twigs. The needles turn brown in autumn and drop in conjunction with the fronds. The bark is gray or brown and has ridges of a scaly, fibrous nature, along with the tree is conical and upright. These trees develop really vigorously and supply great leaf reduction (by about half), also as a root technique that could encounter substantial visible development in just one particular season.

Temperature / Lighting / Place:

The Bald Cypress bonsai needs to be kept outdoors (but may be kept inside if exposed to adequate sunlight throughout the day and kept cool for dormancy), and may tolerate cold down to 14 degrees Fahrenheit. If winters are much more extreme, make sure to shelter it from intense temperatures and use needles or leaves to shield the roots.

These trees develop greatest inside a climate using a hot summer season, and need to have complete sunlight.

Watering:

Do not be concerned about over-watering this bonsai, it thrives in swampy soils. If kept outdoors, specifically in summer season, it might require watering greater than when per day. Water by filling the pot proper for the rim.

Fertilizing:

The soil pH must be maintained amongst six.five and 7.five. Fertilize weekly with 10/10/10 all through the spring. In late summer time by way of fall, lower frequency to bi-weekly. Immediately after your tree goes dormant, supply it a dose of 0-10-10 and after that refrain from fertilizing till the subsequent spring.

Pruning/Training:

Hold off on cutting your new Bald Cypress to get a couple of years, or else you run the threat of it creating a narrow, scraggly trunk. This bonsai species is properly suited for informal upright, upright, literati, slanting, double trunk, and group shapes. Challenging prune in late winter, this may spur new development. Pruning may very well be carried out all through the summer time, and new development will seem in the pruning website. To thicken a branch, permit it to develop for any season or two ahead of trimming.

Terrific care have to be taken with this fast-growing bonsai for the reason that wires can quickly reduce in to the branches as they thicken. Either retain a really close eye around the wires, or use raffia to tie the branches for the pot's rim and even to a decrease location around the trunk. Shape foliage by pinching it back by hand within the spring and summer time - usually do not reduce the needles as brown spots will seem in the cuts.

Propagation:

Bald Cypress Bonsai is often propagated by seeds, cuttings, or air layering. Execute layering within the spring, and plant cuttings all through the majority of the year.

Repotting:

Only repot or prune the roots inside the spring. Since the root technique with the cypress grows exceptionally speedy, you ought to root prune a minimum of each and every other year, unless you wish to create cypress knees. Knees - these special lumpy growths in the foot of full-grown cypresses - is often reproduced within a bonsai by waiting about 3 years to repot, then gently arranging the "knees" to poke out on the soil a little.

The soil ought to be heavy, swampy, and wet, in contrast to that of most bonsai species. The tree wants this heavier soil to retain adequate moisture. Root rot is quite uncommon in these trees so it is really unlikely that you will get a soil that retains an excessive amount of moisture for the cypress.

Use a shallow, flat, preferably earthen-ware kind pot, as these mimic the tree's organic habitat and also the colors are complimentary towards the appear in the cypress. The container demands to become capable to hold as much as many moisture.

Insects / Pests & Diseases:

A single on the major benefits in the Bald Cypress bonsai is that it doesn't lend itself to pretty many pests. The worst problem that may perhaps occur is twig blight, a fungus that attacks when the tree has dead or wounded tissue, generally due to stress from over-pruning. This disease will kill branch tips; you ought to immediately remove them as soon as identified. Proper pruning and fertilization can ward off twig blight.

The Bald Cypress is usually a beautiful and classic choice within a bonsai, even to get a beginner. Its evergreen appearance too as its development rate - offering a quick reward for the new bonsai artist - make it a highly desirable species. With its thirst for water and resistance to most insects, it is also easy to care for, making it the perfect tree for beginners and veterans alike.

Related search:

bald cypress bonsai for sale, bald cypress bonsai progression, bald cypress bonsai training, cypress bonsai care, bald cypress bonsai winter care, bald cypress bonsai forest, swamp cypress bonsai for sale, bald cypress pre bonsai for sale