The small-leaf boxwood is also called mountain boxwood and melon-seeded boxwood. It is a very popular bonsai plant. It not only has high ornamental value, but also has a good meaning, such as "A boxwood in a family will be a pillar for generations." So if How to cultivate potted boxwood on a daily basis? What matters should be paid attention to? Let’s find out together.
1. Pot soil
Boxwood is a shallow-rooted plant. Try to choose a pot with a large mouth and shallow depth. It is generally recommended to choose a purple sand pottery pot. Small-leaf boxwood is not strict with soil and has strong alkali tolerance. Of course, it is best to use loose and fertile sandy loam for planting. Vermiculite, peat or garden soil can also be used for potted plants.
2. Watering
The small-leaf boxwood bonsai should keep the pot soil moist. The boxwood needs a lot of water during the entire growth process. If the pot soil is slightly dry, you can water it. In addition, watering should be based on the water content. Seasonal climate changes increase or decrease the frequency of watering. If the temperature is high in summer, the frequency of watering can be appropriately increased. In winter, watering should be less during the dormant period.
3. Fertilization
During the growth period, small-leaf boxwood can often be sprayed with some foliar fertilizer, such as thin nitrogen fertilizer. Organic fertilizer can be applied to the pot every month, but immature fertilizer cannot be applied, nor is excessive fertilization. Seasonal fertilizer can be applied before the season changes, such as germination fertilizer in spring, leaf strengthening fertilizer in summer, and some fertilizer after pruning. , you can also add a small amount of nitrogen fertilizer during normal watering.
4. Pruning
The main trunk of the boxwood bonsai grows slowly, but the young branches grow faster. If the branches and leaves are too dense, the entire bonsai will appear messy, so pruning is required. Before the branches become lignified, you can leave one pair and two pairs of young leaves, cut off the rest, and then prune them after they send out new buds. Slowly, the branches will become thicker, and the branches and leaves should be pruned regularly to continuously improve the ornamental value.
5. Pan-tying
It is necessary to avoid branch breakage when tying. Generally, aluminum wire or copper wire is commonly used for tying. Novice friends can try to start with small shapes and use The metal wire with rubber is wrapped into a wire shape to avoid damage to the branches. When pinning, select appropriate metal wires based on the thickness of the trunk. The size of the metal wire should be about 1/3 of the thickness of the base of the pinning branches. The tying is carried out from bottom to top, from thick to fine. When tying the main trunk, you should first insert a piece of metal wire into the soil near the main trunk and fix it before wrapping. When wrapping the wire, you need to pay attention to the contact between the metal wire and the bark. Fit, avoid being too tight or too loose. When tying the main branches and side branches, you can use the shoulder-to-shoulder method to wrap the middle sections of the metal wire around the two adjacent branches to avoid finding a fixed point during the tying process and causing it to loosen and slip. Purpose.
6. Repotting
The best time to repot is in early spring. When repotting small-leaf boxwood, the root system must be pruned, because the roots of boxwood are fleshy and fine. If it is left too long, it cannot be stretched out in time after repotting, and the bending and twisting are very detrimental to the growth of small-leaf boxwood potted plants. Therefore, long roots, dead roots, diseased roots, and messy roots must be pruned when repotting. After changing the basin, it can be placed in a cool and ventilated environment for normal maintenance.
7. Precautions
Boxwood is a light-loving and fertilizer-loving plant, so it should be cultivated in a sunny or semi-shady environment. In addition, when the temperature is low in winter, it must be done well. Overwintering protection of small-leaf boxwood. When maintaining small-leaf boxwood, attention should be paid to pests and diseases. Common pests include scale insects and boxwood inchworms. Scale insects can be eliminated by manual brushing; inchworms can be killed by spraying with 80 trichlorfon sniper powder, or spraying with 40 omethoate 1000 to 2000 times. The main disease is sooty stain. The key to prevention and control is to remove scale insects. You can spray water on the leaves frequently to wash away the dust.
Boxwood is known as the "gentleman among trees". There are many varieties of boxwood. Common ones include big-leaf boxwood, small-leaf boxwood, sparrow-tongue boxwood, melon-seed boxwood, mountain boxwood, trichocarp boxwood, water boxwood, etc., and Small-leaf boxwood is often used to make bonsai and has extremely high ornamental value. If you like it, you can try planting and breeding it.