Critical fall pruning of Juniper Bonsai

In winter most bonsai are dormant. Evergreens however remain active during the winter in periods that the tree is not frozen. As such, any energy dis-balance that is present in fall, is enhanced during winter. A good fall-thinning can help to re-balance your Juniper Bonsai apical dominance.
Why prune a Juniper bonsai in Fall?
How to prune a juniper in Fall?
How to encourage lower canopy dominance in Juniper bonsai
Did you know ‪@XaviersBonsaiRetreat‬ did a special breakfast session with me?
• Know your Bonsai: Thin...

[@Hollylivengood]

Thank you much for this. I LOVE it when you show the process of pruning, itself. That's how we learn.

[@rebeccahunter725]

Thank you! Obviously, as an Aussie, I am 6 months behind, but this is good information to file away for when it starts cooling again. . . still waiting for the warmth, though!! I am enjoying the series with Xav, you bounce together very well. I think it is the influence on both of you from that Great Southern Land! 🦘🐨

[@deepanjanbanerjee3491]

Excellent, as always

[@MattiasTiivel]

Going to prune mine today! Great video as always!

[@GrowingBonsai]

Enjoyed it?

[@MattiasTiivel]

@@GrowingBonsai Yes, it was great!

[@r.evanmiller1030]

Excellent work and explanations, I really appreciate it!

[@GrowingBonsai]

Thanks for letting me know!

[@andreasleiker262]

I Like the way you Talk about topic and how you serve us informations. Would be funny to have a Video in german 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@oachkatzlsmum]

👍 Including the charming Dutch accent 😍🙏😘

[@oachkatzlsmum]

Let’s go to work on juniper 👍🥰 Thanks for brush up, Jelle 🙏😘 Cheers 🙋‍♀️ Martina

[@brucedeacon28]

👍👌🙂

[@ChillGuyBonsai]

Great video! This will help me in the fall, but I'm currently watching your repotting videos as it is spring over here in South Africa 🇿🇦

[@GrowingBonsai]

aaah spring, the best time of the year

[@adzstanyer3000]

Thank You Mate. Legend.

[@XaviersBonsaiRetreat]

Very helpful and I only hope my trees can wait 2 weeks for me to finish my holiday 👍

[@mcbabs7495]

Très intéressant. Un grand merci pour la vidéo!

[@joegarland4885]

Very interesting video Jelle, there are so many different Junipers, they all have different characteristics and may need treating differently throughout the seasons. All the best.

[@blacklabelbonsai]

Good explained!

[@themichaellerner]

Thank you for this timely reminder. I do have a healthy cascade Itoigawa that needs thinning at the top!

[@ciprianienciu3565]

You are the best in my opinion! Keep nice work

[@kevinglenn9279]

My juniper pushed out juvenile foliage after i did a repot and trim. I didn't know it would happen. But, if there is any consolation it's been interesting watching it revert back to mature foliage. Hope it never happens again though😎 Thanks for this information, it'll be very helpful​for the future. My question is, my juniper hasn't finished the transformation to mature foliage so, should i do any trimming or, wait till next year?

[@scheers100]

Very nicely compacted info there, nice and clear. We don’t need to see every cut you make, you show in detail how and where to cut. (Maybe a overview of everything you have cut, to have a feel for how much is left)

[@scheers100]

And then a of topic question about a 3 to 4 meter high (blood good) acer, planted I the ground. I want to make it a garden tree from about 2 meter tall by cutting hard back to a trunk with stumps for branches and build it from there on. NOW THE QUESTION : would you cut back in the two weeks window after the falling of the leaves? Or at the end of spring-early summer when the first flush is hardend of?

[@lukasmihara]

Great video again. Very helpful 🌲 7:20 as you were talking about spraying the tree, I thought maybe an episode about what pesticide/fungicide to apply when would be interesting. Preferrably with homemade / easy to get options as well 🙂 I've tried neem oil against insects, and something I cooked with onions and garlic as a fungicide recently (not sure how effective they are yet, but I didn't see any adverse effects at least) but I wondered if you have some good tips or ideas as well!

[@GrowingBonsai]

have you seen kzbin.info/www/bejne/eaulZKB_hc95i9E

[@lukasmihara]

I just checked it out. Thanks for the good recommendation!

[@joannebramwell821]

Another great video ❤, what do you use to spray your junipers and pines? Can you use neem oil ?

[@Bonsaicrazy]

Great video Jelle If only you fix this 2 days ago 😂

[@TheBonsaiGarden]

Junipers grow frustratingly slow in my garden. 😕

[@GrowingBonsai]

More water & fertilizer ? And.. What is slow? 10-15cm in a year is a normal rate for many chinese junipers, anything over 15cm in a year and I am very very pleased.

[@brucejeffcott1104]

Im in canada and i dont think its a good idea to prune ours in fall? In Alberta to be exact. Gets extremely cold in winter. -40c in January. Root balls are frooze solid for about 6 months.

[@stevemorgan9687]

Thanks jelle like all my bonsai at the moment I need to learn patience. would you prune next year if you were trying to grow a tree and if so when

[@trainfanattic]

Nice vid. Question, when I trimmed my Juniper in spring, I got a lot of dead brown ends. Do you know how to avoid this?

[@GrowingBonsai]

Did you see the general video on pruning Junipers I put out a few months ago?

[@woutmoerman711]

30 years ago I was taught not to cut juniper foliage but to pinch it. Are the insights changed?

[@johnmccomic3890]

@@woutmoerman711 yes apparently the pinching can discourage growth from the area pinched from.... I'm suffering from that now unfortunately

[@woutmoerman711]

@@johnmccomic3890 thanks for the info! This is very valuable to me.

[@laddieokelley6095]

Do you know if junipers are salt-sensitive? Perhaps depends on the variety and place of origin. I now live with a private water well with higher sodium content than I would like (cannot grow azaleas or most Japanese maples). I lost a large juniper after I moved here, though the cause might have been other factors. Thanks for your video. It makes me want to acquire another cascade juniper.

[@woutmoerman711]

I can't answer your question, but do you think it is really the sodium and not lack of acidity in the water? Just curious.

[@laddieokelley6095]

@@woutmoerman711 Thanks for your idea. I can't answer your question. I did have the water tested twice by my state's biggest agricultural university. It tests high in sodium and the SAR (sodium absorption rate) is a concern. In conversation with an outreach counselor, I was told that data shows high sodium in some parts of the state of Texas, with some municipalities having more sodium than I do. Should I test my well water for acidity?

[@woutmoerman711]

@@laddieokelley6095 no, if the water was tested and this was the outcome you already can be certain what the problem is. Maybe try it with a piece of litmus paper, if that's available.

[@oachkatzlsmum]

@@laddieokelley6095 Interesting. I found out the pH value in my area is not perfect for some of my trees. So this might be because of sodium as well? Any idea how this can be compensated?

[@laddieokelley6095]

@@oachkatzlsmum I might not be of much help; I am not educated in agricultural or water science. The university gave me a general list of plants to avoid--it did not include junipers. A reverse osmosis system might be of help, but that removes most minerals from water, which is perhaps not a good thing for plants. Capturing rainwater is another option. (A local two-year college deals with more sodium than I do and cannot propagate some plants from seed. But some plants apparently adjust to the sodium content as they emerge from seedling status.)

[@chrissnyder8415]

Funny, you are contradicting the advice you gave on your last video.