Hi, do you realize that isn't even a Jade (Crassula) but a Portulacaria afra? Same family, same needs, but more fun for bonsai! Now, this is not the time of year at all for you to be pruning anything - spring is the right time. As far as what branches to cut, or whether to trunk chop altogether would be up to you I guess, after you've looked at similar trees (Jades, P. afras or whatever) and found styles you like. In all honesty, I would not bonsai that tree, but allow it to just do what it's doing as it's gorgeous! I would maybe get it into a pot that won't be problematic in future re getting it out (the overhanging rim) and you'll have to be very careful when you move it (again, tho', in spring). Once you have it out of there into a better pot (tho' having it 'spill' over the sides of that one is cool) maybe you can get a better idea of where to go with it. Do you know that you can just pinch/snap off any leaf, stick it back in the soil and it will take root? Just think, you could have a 1,000 baby trees in one season :-)! Wiring is not often done on these trees because the branches tend to snap (also) easily unless allowed to go very dry, in which case they'll be soft, but the wire can also cut into them easily, so basically I'd use 'clip n' gro' styling vs wires. You must also be aware by now that it's best to let most of the mix get dry between waterings, though what you've done with it outdoors I don't know of course, not being in a place where I can grow these outside! In a pot, it's much better to not use 'potting' soil, which is full of peat that hangs onto water and can rot roots - certainly makes it harder to water when you find the top dry but the rest still damp or even wet lower down. A mix of some small (1/16") soft wood bark bits as 20% of fast draining grit (natural colored small aquarium gravel works fine) will allow water to go right through without causing problems.

Ok, wow. I mean WOW! You're getting the wrong advice on every front. St Aug would THRIVE in that shade. The grass died because they didn't water it. Actually it might have died the first time from a disease left to run out of control, but in any case, the solution now is new sod (NOT SEED) and water. That cheap builder grade bermuda is only one notch below the very best bermuda grass you can buy at any price. The reason it is cheap and "builder grade" is that it is easy to grow and every grower in Texas grows it. The supply of that stuff is inexhaustible, but you cannot get a better turf grass without paying through the nose. The name of it is TIF 419 or TifTurf, or something like that. It has been around for 40 years or more and is very popular. The more expensive TIF varieties are only used in professional sports stadiums. I should note that ALL seeded varieties of bermuda are basically common bermuda, not the TIF hybrid. Thus if you start with a TIF lawn, you should never reseed bermuda into it. The common bermuda looks like a weed in a hybrid turf. Here is a picture of common bermuda invading a TIF turf. Note the common is bluer in color, coarser, and has a different growth habit. It's a mess once you have them mingled. If you have already seeded with common bermuda, I would not attempt to install a hybrid (sod) lawn without a lot of prep to kill the common. June is the time to take on that project. Whatever you do, do not fall into the trap of watching all the golf TV where they are urging you to get out and do something to the lawn. Bermuda needs hot soil to do much of anything to it. The reason your neighborhood lawns might look cheap is because they don't know how to care for them. Bermuda needs a LOT of maintenance to keep it nice. It should be mowed to about 1 inch high, 2x per week and 3x per week during the spring flush of new growth. It also needs heavy fertilizer applied monthly all season long. Most people are unwilling to do what it takes to make bermuda look great. Having said all that, I still prefer a St Aug lawn if you can keep it watered. All lawns need exactly the same amount of water to keep them looking nice through the summer. That amount is one inch per week, applied all at one time. The problem with St Aug is if you fail to water it for 3-5 weeks, it can die on you. Other grasses will go dormant first, but St Aug just dies. That's what happened in your yard. Bermuda would never grow in your shade, but St Aug should do fine. In fact, St Aug will take over your yard even if you have bermuda now. You would have to keep the St Aug mowed at the mower's highest setting and allow it to invade the bermuda. Bermuda cannot invade into tall St Aug because the tall St Aug provides too much shade for bermuda. But if you mow the grass at the lowest setting, then the bermuda can invade just fine and will give you a mess. Absolutely DO NOT rototill the soil in prep for a lawn. You might want to rototill for a vegie garden but never for a lawn. The tilled soil will take 3 years to settle, and it will settle unevenly. There is hardly anything worse than mowing a bumpy lawn.

Good thing I'm not alone with jade cuttings. hehe. I'm not sure what the succulent is. I do know the label said it was something like burro's tail or donkey's tail or something like that. Here's some close-up pictures I took. Sorry about the weird quality. The sun was setting and the digital camera spent most of its time complaining about the light. The last was of a segment that broke off and rooted in a jade plant pot. I've pretty much learned to ignore this plant. It'll thrive then suffer... thrive then suffer... I have no idea what makes it stay happy. Do you still think it's Aurora, paracelsus? If so, I'll have to look up information and see what this plant is about.

I understand this. Certain crops do well with direct sowing but I've had contrary to the norm experiences to date. Carrots and onions and beets---eh, not as great as I hoped despite over seeding. Radishes all sprouted though using same method. Same with zuch, watermelon and winter squash---the seedlings I have had to pull that I hate because they weren't cheap and frankly, I'd love lots of all three---and both marigolds and nasturtiums too. My comment context is on several fronts. I did all transplants last year from mail order and a nursery. It was not cost effective but only one seedling of 15-20 didn't make it. This year was all direct sowing in contrast minus the yarrow left from last year. So yes, seed is cheap overall but I have empty space where I over seeded and not enough space where I counted each individual seed---100% germination with those seeds to be exact so I moved what I could to empty pots with crap soil to see how they do. It was a simple observation that others might find useful/intriguing because there is no right or wrong way to garden and why not share? But thanks for the information.