bonsaikc- The soil is very fast draining. Is it safe to bare root the tree twice in one spring or did you mean to do this over two seasons? I did not remove all of the old soil (the soil that came with the tree from wild collecting.)Are these pines sensitive to repotting or are they vigerous root growers? stephenl- I live in Rockford, IL. There is a bonsai club at Rock Valley Greenhouse which I have been wanting to attend. I will take your advice and leave the tree alone for a while. Should the tree be out of the wind and kept on the dry side? Is it safe to pinch the fresh needles down to two or three per bud?

Hi, not sure what you mean by 'after the sap has fallen' (you mean when it starts to flow in the spring?), but late fall might be good for some trees.. what are you thinking of? It's best if you do it with the largest possible rootball, get it into either a ready-dug hole (at home) in a filtered sun or shady area and water and mist well (til freeze-up). Don't cut any more roots than you have to when getting it out, and none til spring, or ideally leave it for 2 yrs - it takes that long to re-establish for a lot of trees, but then cut the ones necessary at the same time. Best bet is not to do it at all til early spring, and with help from a local bonsai club member who's had experience. Tap roots can be gradually cut back over time. People who dig big trees and have them survive in shallow pots in 2 yrs know what they're doing (have done it often) usually. Big stump? You never know, but obviously less likely as time goes on. You might get little sucker sprouts at some point, but then you also have a big rotting stump to contend with.

Post a pic. Sounds like it won't make it. Roots are essential to wild collection. Stop misting the leaves, as that does no good - but can do harm. Josh

Well, at least they are taking good care of the Aloes