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prismism


Registered: 05/11/09
Posts: 5,570
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Baobab bonsai 1
#21730724 - 05/27/15 11:32 PM (8 years, 8 months ago) |
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Another plant special to me, this Adansonia digitata, or African Baobab, was grown from seed back in March of 2013. Being a large tropical seed prone to mold, it was one of the most difficult seeds I've ever attempted to germinate. This was the only one after many failed attempts.

Here it was a year later.

This year I've topped the plant, root pruned, and placed it into a bonsai pot. After it showed new growth I decided to wire the branches. Here it is now.

Cutting rooted and showing new growth.

If you've never heard of a Baobab. Here are some examples of how awesome they can get when mature.
-------------------- ephemeral anomalous
Edited by prismism (05/27/15 11:57 PM)
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cowsRmeat
Don't step on the MomeRaths



Registered: 04/23/14
Posts: 3,153
Loc: Wonderland
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Re: Baobab bonsai [Re: prismism]
#21730776 - 05/27/15 11:53 PM (8 years, 8 months ago) |
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Amazing! I have seen them in pictures before but never realized they were SO HUGE! Don't think I have ever seen a pic with something nearby for comparison! Good job with the germination!
-------------------- One day Alice came to a fork in the road and saw a Cheshire cat in a tree. 'Which road do I take?' she asked. 'Where do you want to go?' was his response. 'I don't know', Alice answered. 'Then', said the cat, 'it doesn't matter.'
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prismism


Registered: 05/11/09
Posts: 5,570
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Hey thanks, man. I know it doesn't contain etheneogens, but it's a very interesting plant, and I plan on having it the rest of my life and watching that trunk get fatter and fatter.
-------------------- ephemeral anomalous
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cowsRmeat
Don't step on the MomeRaths



Registered: 04/23/14
Posts: 3,153
Loc: Wonderland
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Re: Baobab bonsai [Re: prismism]
#21730946 - 05/28/15 01:13 AM (8 years, 8 months ago) |
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Well, I find it interesting. I'm glad you shared it. I wonder at what age it really starts to fatten up and look almost disproportional at the trunk? Any idea?
-------------------- One day Alice came to a fork in the road and saw a Cheshire cat in a tree. 'Which road do I take?' she asked. 'Where do you want to go?' was his response. 'I don't know', Alice answered. 'Then', said the cat, 'it doesn't matter.'
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prismism


Registered: 05/11/09
Posts: 5,570
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Re: Baobab bonsai [Re: prismism]
#21730971 - 05/28/15 01:23 AM (8 years, 8 months ago) |
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It will be at least ten years or more before the trunk becomes real fat. The ideal Baobab looks like an upside down tree. As if you planted a tree upside down and the roots are up in the air. As with any bonsai plant though, pruning is key. When you prune back the new growth year after year and keep the plant the same size two things will happen- One is that the trunk and branches grow denser year after year. The other is a thing called ramification. Which basically means that you force the plant to grow more branches with smaller leaves by selectively pruning. When you prune branches back over and over the plant responds by growing new branches and smaller leaves. It takes many years to achieve this. That's what makes it such a great hobby.
-------------------- ephemeral anomalous
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kosmokratorshaman
Cosmic Creator

Registered: 05/13/15
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Re: Baobab bonsai [Re: prismism]
#21731363 - 05/28/15 06:42 AM (8 years, 8 months ago) |
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so this is crazy, but I guess that location in the pic is famous. I pulled this image of the exact same stretch of road with the same trees in a different season.
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LSoares
Farmer



Registered: 10/09/13
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I believe it's in Madagascar and the trees are not the "true" baobab, Adansonia digitata, but a different species (very similar, nevertheless).
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prismism


Registered: 05/11/09
Posts: 5,570
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Re: Baobab bonsai [Re: LSoares]
#21732652 - 05/28/15 01:42 PM (8 years, 8 months ago) |
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True, the last photo looks to be Adansonia grandidieri specifically. My seeds came from a digitata. I just quickly grabbed those photos from google image search. There are actually nine different species of baobab.
Of the nine species, six are native to Madagascar, two are native to mainland Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, and one is native to Australia. One of the mainland African species also occurs on Madagascar, but it is not a native of that island. It was introduced in ancient times to south Asia and during the colonial era to the Caribbean. It is also present in the island of Cape Verde.[2] The ninth species was described in 2012, and is found in upland populations of southern and eastern Africa.
-------------------- ephemeral anomalous
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Solipsis
m̶a̶d̶ disappointed scientist



Registered: 12/28/09
Posts: 3,398
Loc: the Neitherlands
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Re: Baobab bonsai [Re: prismism]
#23446111 - 07/16/16 07:34 AM (7 years, 6 months ago) |
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Quote:
prismism said: It will be at least ten years or more before the trunk becomes real fat. The ideal Baobab looks like an upside down tree. As if you planted a tree upside down and the roots are up in the air. As with any bonsai plant though, pruning is key. When you prune back the new growth year after year and keep the plant the same size two things will happen- One is that the trunk and branches grow denser year after year. The other is a thing called ramification. Which basically means that you force the plant to grow more branches with smaller leaves by selectively pruning. When you prune branches back over and over the plant responds by growing new branches and smaller leaves. It takes many years to achieve this. That's what makes it such a great hobby.
Hi,
I have a Baobab that is nearly 10 inches tall now - somewhere between 20-25 cm - growing under blue/white LED and doing very well, growing lush leaves..
How long should I wait / how big should it be before pruning or trimming? Do you prune when you notice it starts preparing for 'hibernation' (what is the ête equivalent of that?), every year, or does it first have to get a workable size and age that can withstand pruning etc?
Anyone who has success with this? I'm reading some bonsai rules for it, but they also say you should wait otherwise you just set it back..
I'd like to not be late with trying to make the trunk fat as possible... no real caudex at this point - but does have semi underground caudex, or rather that would be the tuber?
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prismism


Registered: 05/11/09
Posts: 5,570
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Re: Baobab bonsai [Re: Solipsis]
#23548525 - 08/16/16 11:21 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Solipsis said: Hi,
I have a Baobab that is nearly 10 inches tall now - somewhere between 20-25 cm - growing under blue/white LED and doing very well, growing lush leaves..
How long should I wait / how big should it be before pruning or trimming? Do you prune when you notice it starts preparing for 'hibernation' (what is the ête equivalent of that?), every year, or does it first have to get a workable size and age that can withstand pruning etc?
Anyone who has success with this? I'm reading some bonsai rules for it, but they also say you should wait otherwise you just set it back..
I'd like to not be late with trying to make the trunk fat as possible... no real caudex at this point - but does have semi underground caudex, or rather that would be the tuber?
Sorry for the late reply, I don't get on here as much anymore. I haven't done too much research for this project, so I guess you could say that I'm just winging it as best that I can. I try not to prune my bonsai plants more than once per growing season. I've noticed that when I overprune it tends to stall growth. It's tempting to keep pruning in order to achieve the shape that you want, but you need to refrain in order to get those new branches to thicken up, even if it doesn't look aesthetically pleasing during those earlier years. Right now, mine is growing tall and unkempt. I last pruned it back at the beginning of this spring when it was completely bare of leaves. I shaped it to the best of my ability. Since then it has grown like mad, and I want to cut it back, but I'll wait until next spring to do so. I want the new branches to gain some girth as well as the main trunk. Over the winter I only water mine once, maybe twice while it's dormant. The leaves always completely defoliate during this period. You can probably get away with trimming it at any point during the year as long as you don't do it too often. Here's how mine looks currently. I will train the new branches with wire next spring, after I root prune, replant, and top the new growth.

Could you post some photographs of your plant?
-------------------- ephemeral anomalous
Edited by prismism (08/16/16 11:53 PM)
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Acaterpillar
A little mad...



Registered: 06/09/07
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Re: Baobab bonsai [Re: prismism]
#23548633 - 08/17/16 12:15 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Very interested to see how this develops. Have you heard of this being done before? I was under the impression that some trees do not do well as bonsai. Would be awesome if this one responded well!
-------------------- Aaa...E I O Uuu...A E I O Uuu..A E I O uh Uuu.. *Cough* *Cough* Ooo...U E I O Aaa...U E I Aaa..A E I O Uuuuu... At first sight, The Perfection of Wisdom is bewildering, full of paradox and apparent irrationality.
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ferrel_human
stone eater



Registered: 06/26/09
Posts: 16,318
Loc: Texas
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Those mature specimens look like giant bonsai in the ground. Thats excellent prismism. Glad to see youve come back.
-------------------- Nature is my church and walking through it is gospel. It tells no lies and reveals all to those who look, and listen, closely. -Karode
 Looking for Mimosa tenuiflora seeds. Buttons for trade
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Solipsis
m̶a̶d̶ disappointed scientist



Registered: 12/28/09
Posts: 3,398
Loc: the Neitherlands
Last seen: 5 months, 19 days
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Re: Baobab bonsai [Re: prismism]
#23549227 - 08/17/16 08:01 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
prismism said:
Here's how mine looks currently. I will train the new branches with wire next spring, after I root prune, replant, and top the new growth.
Could you post some photographs of your plant?
Thanks very much for the reply! It's good to see someone working with a baobab. Very nicely done.
Mine is very young though, so yeah I assume it will have to grow for several years and at least branch much more before even wiring becomes relevant... or messing with the roots, but mine has quite a big taproot that I doubt I could easily fit in a shallow bonsai pot.
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