Day 90 - Here Comes a New Challenger!

Flourishing Under the Winter Sun

12/6/2014 - 8:30am EST (backing only used for picture purposes)

Number Five! Welcome to the show! While Number Four was previously shown to have overtaken early champion Number Three, imagine my surprise upon return from Thanksgiving break.

Number five has received its own growth spurt. I suspect both Four and Five have received the benefits of greater amounts of sunlight on the window-sill.

Number Four continues its race to the sky, with newly sprouted branches and even more height; Number Four is the strongest of the five (5) plants.

Thus, I have moved all plants to receive greater amounts of sun throughout the day. I thought about leaving Four and Five where they were, but past performance is no indication of future result and I think each new location will benefit each plant to a greater degree.

Side Note: I continue to water as needed to allow each plant to remain moist.

Up Next: Enter the fertilizer!

Grow On!

Day 76 - Yardstick Day

Yardstick is A Generous Description

The last two weeks have flown by! As spoken to in my last post, the Miami weather has been cool (by South Florida standards) and the trees have required less frequent watering. The sprouts are starting to show off-shoot limbs, which is exciting, and the number four (4) spot has flourished under the new conditions. See below for individual plant shots and our first recorded growth benchmark.

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4.7 cm

3.6 cm

4.7 cm

5.5 cm

4.2 cm

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I can't wait for my next measurement in two (2) weeks! Grow on!

Day 62 - Equalizing

Miami Fall

Picture taken around 9:30 am EST

Miami Fall/Winter is a beautiful time of year. Clear skies and 70 degree days replace the humidity and oppressive 100+ degree heat of the Summer.

For our young plants this translates to open windows, fresh air, and relief from the direct sun of their first 50 days.

All five (5) plants are retaining much more water, supplying their young root system with moisture throughout the day.

The new arrangement has also helped the slower growing plants catch up to our vaunted front runner - now in slot #3. Furthermore, the plants have continued to grow upward with fresh green needles. It's exciting to see them filling out and they are bringing much needed color to my room. I look forward to recording our first height numbers for next post.

Grow on!

Day 55 - Rearrangement

To Capture the Light

Photo taken just after 8:00 am, Nov 1

I have rearranged the pots as previous #5 sprout has soil composition that drains water like a sieve:

• #5 moved to #1
• #1 moved to #3
• #3 moved to #2
• #2 moved to #5
• #4 is rock-steady

The #1 spot gets the least amount of sunlight throughout the day and thus should allow that plant to retain a bit more of its water than to exacerbate the process in the sunny #5 spot.

The rest of the moves, I hope, will also allow the other two plants to flourish through increased access to sunlight. I have increased the amount of water provided per pour and now water them once a day, in the morning.

While all trees have slowed vertical growth rates from their "just born" days, they have taken to growing more and more needles of a light green color. They are certainly flourishing and I shall begin to take vertical measurements to quantify the rates. It's all about that measurable data!

Stay Tuned!

Day 45 - The Kraken!

Front-runner Sprout

Between 2 and 3 inches tall

I've spoken about this special plant in previous posts, and here it is in the phloem! This plant started strong and has continued its strong growth pattern. It's not getting more water. It is however in the spot that sees the most shade of the five (5) sprouts, but the difference seems negligible.

I backed off watering the plants earlier in the week as I felt I was getting too heavy handed, but there were no dry-outs and no wilting. They do have a tendency to lean toward the window, but I maintain a rotation schedule every few days to keep them straight.

Release the Kraken!

Day 42 - Five (5) Sprouts

More Water = More Growth

Day 42 - Growing strong in the bright sun of the afternoon

The hot south Florida sun beats on my sprouts for about half the day, starting around 8:30 am and ending around 3:30 pm when it sets below the trees.

I have been watering three times a day for the past 5 days, but never a true soaking - it probably ends up being about two (2) soda caps full of water. The water surrounds the area around the sprouts, drains past the roots, and allows the soil to retain some moisture without being waterlogged. I may experiment with greater amounts of water for some of the smaller plants in the coming week.

Every day they grow a bit bigger and sprout more and more needles. I'm excited for the day they begin to sprout branches. The tree on the left is the strongest of the bunch and as I play around with names, I feel it will be appropriate to call it Atlas, or Zeus, or maybe even Rex.

GO TREES!

Giant Sequoia Bonsai Care

The sprouts are still alive! 

I am watching them intently, watering them, when possible, and opening their window for fresh air. I have yet to name or distinguish them from each other, but will decide their names in the coming weeks. There is certainly a front runner for biggest and brightest, but only time will tell if it is a tortoise or a hare.

I have been browsing and reading giant-sequoia.com for horticulture tips and tricks for giant sequoia bonsai care and have been very impressed with the breadth and depth of knowledge. I highly recommend this site for beginning tree guardians and will myself refer back to the site regularly.

TIP OF THE DAY = From giant-sequoia.com: "The sequoia prefers consistent moisture. An occasional soaking is good, but an occasional drying is bad for the sequoias. Think moist, not muddy."

Next grow status snapshot will be up this weekend!