Tropical Bonsai Tasks in October:
Now that summer weather has finally arrived in the fall, we are not in a big hurry to get our tropical and not hardy bonsai indoors. Some of the night-time lows have been dipping in the upper forties. If you have tropical bonsai still out of doors, and I still have all of mine out there, be especially vigilant. Most tropicals should not be subjected to temperatures below 50 degrees. Some will stand a slight dip into the high forties for a short duration. If you are a gambler you may try to guess which those are. If you are not, then watch the weather reports and move those plants inside for the night and back out in the morning. I do a lot of this during this time of year. I don’t like to gamble with my tropical trees.
Before moving your tropicals inside for the winter, clean up the pots, pull all the weeds and spray to prevent any critters that would love to spend the winter in your house. Pay attention to light requirements for the various plants and supplement with artificial light if necessary. Since most of our homes are much too dry, give some thought to providing adequate humidity. Humidity trays or dishes with gravel work well. Do not let the pots stand in water. Occasional misting is also a great help.
Once your trees are indoors for good, begin your winter fertilizing schedule. Do not over fertilize and be alert to not over water. The toothpick (chop stick in Japan) method or a moisture meter is helpful in this regard.
