Bonsai Growth

Question

So someone was nice enough to try and help with this and asked for photos but I can’t upload on a reply for some reason soooo, I’m just gonna post it again.

Ok, so I planted a Pinus Aristata about three months ago to grow as a Bonsai. It sprouted just fine and seems to be healthy but after the initial growth of about two inches it stopped. Like no more growing at all. I repotted it in a normal looking Bonsai pot thinking that would help but still nothing. But again, it seems pretty healthy. Should I be worried at all? What’s the normal growth I should be looking for? Thanks!

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Answer 1

I'm looking at the tips, and I notice a little burning. What is your soil mixture? It could be that your soil is not acidic enough to support this tree. Do you feed, or have any compost in the soil mix? It could be the start of a nitrogen deficiency as well, although too high of a pH would do the same.

First you will want to try and correct this with a small amount of iron sulfate. Just a teaspoon will be enough to tell whether this is the issue. If it respond with an uptick in growth, then this was the issue. If this does not solve the problem, then there could be an actual lack of nitrogen.

Used coffee grounds, and small amounts of Very diluted coffee can help supplement nitrogen from something that is already considered a waste product.