Basin selection
Generally, the pots used for apple bonsai are vegetarian brazier, purple sand basin, porcelain basin, plastic basin and wooden basin. Plain burning pots and wooden pots have strong air permeability and good ventilation, which is beneficial to the growth of seedlings. Porcelain pots, purple sand pots and plastic pots have poor air permeability and permeability, which is not conducive to the growth of seedlings, but their appearance is beautiful and generous, which can enhance the appreciation. Flower pots have many shapes, such as square, rectangle, circle, octagon, diamond, fan and so on. However, the round basin is mainly round, which is beneficial to the uniform spread of roots around. The specifications of the basin are generally 20 ~ 50 cm in diameter and 20 ~ 60 cm in height. The depth of the basin depends on the condition of the tree. Dynamic bonsai should be deep and static bonsai should be shallow. The general rule of using pots is that pots with more scenes are bigger and pots with less scenes are smaller. In a word, the collocation of basin and landscape should be appropriate in size, coordinated in color and commensurate in form.
Preparation of nutrient soil
Preparing cultivation soil is an important part of apple bonsai cultivation technology. The cultivated soil should have good physical and chemical properties, be rich in humus, maintain fertilizer, have strong water storage capacity, be well ventilated and have appropriate pH value. When preparing, it is best to use decomposed garden soil, river sand and plant ash, fully and evenly mix them according to the ratio of 5: 3:1,and grind and sieve them. If the permeability of the basin is poor, 10% ~ 20% slag can be added to the culture soil to increase its permeability. Before use, the cultivated soil should be cooked, baked or disinfected by drugs, and the pH value of the soil should be measured and adjusted. The optimum pH value of apple is 5.7~6.7.
Selection of rootstocks and varieties
Rootstock selection
Dwarf rootstocks, such as M9, M26, M27, Laoshan Hippo Chef, etc. Apple bonsai should choose varieties with good dwarfing and early fruiting. M27 is the strongest dwarf; After M9 and M26 are grafted, the rootstock grows thicker and faster, but the scion grows slower, forming a "big foot" phenomenon, which is easy to obtain beautiful and compact tree types and has certain ornamental value. The trunk root of Laoshan hippopotamus chef is obviously thick, which can be shaped by lifting the root. In addition, semi-dwarf rootstocks such as M2, M4, M7, MM 106 can also be used as rootstocks, but weak growth varieties and short-branched varieties should be grafted. When Qiao Hua rootstock is used as bonsai rootstock, on the one hand, it should be matched with short-branch varieties or short intermediate rootstock with grafting length of about 12 cm, and the effect of being too short and dwarfing is not ideal, and the shape and appreciation are affected by being too long and too high. On the other hand, dwarf technology should be adopted. No matter what type of rootstock is used, it is required to have strong affinity with the selected variety.
Selection of varieties
It is best to choose mid-late maturing varieties with bright colors, early flowering and fruiting, high fruit setting rate, long fruiting time, strong disease resistance and strong adaptability to the environment, especially short-branched varieties. According to our cultivation observation, the varieties with better performance are Xiao Guoguang, Marshal Short Branch, Red Fuji, B Female, Winter Red Fruit, Ballet Apple, Golden Crown, Cocktail Crown, Qin Crown and so on.
Grafting and potted plants
Grafting is generally carried out in spring when the terminal bud has just germinated and the new branches have not yet grown. At this time, the juice in the branches has begun to flow, the joints are easy to heal, and the grafting survival rate is high. Before grafting, the rootstock selected for bonsai should be pruned, and the backbone branches and nutrient branches should be selected according to the needs of bonsai modeling creation to determine the grafting position. The scion used can be selected from 1 annual branch, flower bud branch and large scion. The quality of scions directly affects the artistic modeling and rapid flowering and fruiting of bonsai. To make bonsai take shape quickly, 2-3-year-old scions with 2-6 branches are generally used, which can form a beautiful bonsai posture in a short time. Generally planted in pots before germination in spring or after defoliation in autumn. When planting, first lay a few pieces of broken tiles on the bottom of the basin, then lay 2-3cm thick slag as a drainage layer, then put 1/3 culture soil, and then put seedlings to stretch the roots, while filling the soil, slightly shake the seedlings to make the roots closely connected with the soil. When the root is large, gently insert a wooden stick into the soil around the root to prevent the formation of a large gap. Finally, the surface of the basin soil should be more than 5 cm away from the basin edge, which is convenient for watering. After the basin is put away, water it in time, and the mouth of the basin should be covered with plastic film. After 2 ~ 3 years, when the nutrients in the basin soil are seriously deficient, the basin soil should be emptied in time to replenish new soil. In order to increase the ornamental value of apple bonsai, you can also turn the pot once a year after the leaves fall, so that Ge Nian can move upward and be exposed. The specific method is to dump the apple trees in the pot, gradually remove the topsoil, uproot 1/3 old soil, cut off the net root mat, then fill in the new nutrient soil for planting and compaction, and pour enough water.
Fertilizer and water management
Fertilize soil or land
Fertilization of apple bonsai should master the principle of "thin fertilizer and diligent application, nutrition collocation" before and after germination, and apply 0.2% available nitrogen fertilizer 1 time to promote germination and orderly flowering; After flowering, topdressing liquid fertilizer 1 time every 10~ 15 d, with 0.5% solution organic cake fertilizer as the main fertilizer, topdressing outside the roots, spraying 0.2% urea, potassium dihydrogen phosphate and other inorganic liquid fertilizers for 2~3 times to promote the expansion of young fruits and accelerate the growth of new shoots; During flower bud differentiation, dilute fertilizer water (such as soaking bean cake fertilizer water, sesame sauce residue water or human feces, etc.). ) it can be applied once every 10 d for 2~3 times continuously, which can promote flower bud differentiation and improve fruit setting rate; Spraying 2.067% potassium dihydrogen phosphate every 15 d during fruit expansion to promote fruit expansion and fruit coloring; When the fruit is close to maturity, topdressing with 0.2% inorganic nitrogen fertilizer 1 times of 0.5% organic liquid fertilizer every half month; After defoliation, apply decomposed manure as base fertilizer.
water
The frequency of watering varies with the season. Water once every 1 week in spring; In summer, the temperature is high and the transpiration is large, so water can be poured once every 1~2 d, and foliar spraying is needed in high temperature season; Water should be controlled in autumn to prevent white growth; Generally, if you don't water in winter, the soil in the basin will not be too dry. No matter what season you water, generally avoid watering the basin with cold tap water (or well water) in the scorching sun, and water it in the morning or at night. The soil of potted apples should be thoroughly dried and watered, and water should be replenished in time during germination, flowering and fruit expansion. In June, in order to promote flower bud differentiation, water should be properly controlled. Porcelain pots, teapot and plastic pots should be watered less, while vegetarian pots and wooden pots should be watered more.
Do plastic surgery
The tree shape of apple bonsai should not only be beneficial to the results, but also have aesthetic effects. According to the specific situation of seedlings, they can be cultivated into natural round head shape, tower shape, small spindle shape, folding fan shape, happy shape, "Y" shape and so on. The cultivation of bonsai modeling can be accomplished by measures such as root lifting, plastic airing and crown pruning. Rooting is generally carried out every time you plant or change pots. The top layer of the basal soil is removed and the fibrous roots in this part are cut off. When planting, raise the roots properly to expose the thick roots at the base of the trunk. After 2~3 times of rooting, the plant can have high feet and vicissitudes. The trunk can be shaped by twisting, tying, bending, cutting and sawing branches.
decrease
Apple bonsai generally adopts short branch pruning method. When pruning in winter, leave 1~2 or 2~3 dead buds at the base of the branches that need to be cultivated. When cutting in summer, leave 2~3 or 3~4 short leaves at the base of sprouting new buds to promote the formation of short secondary buds. If long branches are formed, 3~4 short leaves can be left at the base. Repeatedly, you can get short branches, dwarf the tree and bear fruit early. In addition, according to the variety and shape of apple bonsai, various measures can be taken to create the basic form of bonsai, such as branch pulling, core removal, tip twisting, girdling, branch thinning, shrinkage, plant growth regulator and so on.
Guo Hua management
Flowers and fruits are an important part of apple bonsai, and the uniqueness of apple bonsai lies in its fruit, shape and shape. According to the shape of apple bonsai, determine the number and layout of fruits, sparse flowers and fruits, timely artificial pollination, bagging and picking, and fully color the fruits by picking leaves and rotating pots. In order to improve the ornamental value of apple bonsai, we can use the technology of pasting words on the fruit. Generally, after picking the bag, paste the words or patterns such as "Fu", "Shou" and "Auspicious" on the sunny side of the fruit before 10 in the morning. The best viewing period of apple bonsai is after the fruit is colored. As the fruit matures, a large amount of ethylene will be formed, and the fruit will fall off in layers between the fruit stalk and the fruit surface. In order to prolong the ornamental period, 1 30-50 mg/kg NAA can be sprayed 25-30 d before the fruit ripens.
Pest control and overwintering
Because the management of apple bonsai is very fine, there are fewer pests and diseases. Once pests and diseases occur, it is necessary to remove diseased branches, diseased leaves and diseased fruits in time and artificially catch pests. When the pests and diseases are serious, the control measures can be carried out with reference to the field. After defoliation, wrap the flowerpot with straw rope, sack, etc. In order to prevent the cold, the pot should be dug and buried in the ground for the winter, or placed in the cellar, corridor and other places. Or move the pot to an idle room for the winter. During the winter, pay attention to replenish water to people who lose more water.