I just got a stressed juniper and thought organic cakes would be a gentle
time released fertilizer. My thinking is to stimulate the roots as the
priority while using organic cakes for a little, time released, nutrition.
Then ease into regular fertilizer after the tree seems de-stressed. Normally
I'd just use a weak fertilizer solution for a while but I'm trying to be
extra careful.

[note: see my post titled "new juniper - stressed - need help with plan of
attack" for pictures of the tree in question]

Speaking of superfeeding cake recipes... What's your current recipe? Or
even your latest published recipe? All I have is your original recipe.

Best,
John

"Michael Persiano" wrote in message
...

In a message dated 8/9/2005 9:23:11 PM Eastern Standard Time,
writes:

As Jim Lewis will point out. Organic is not always better. You want
the fertilizer to be available to the tree ASAP, organic has to break
down
first.



Both organic and chemical fertilizers place crucial roles in the
development
of bonsai. Without delving into inordinate detail in this brief message,
organic cakes are indispensable for those of you who are growing bonsai
in
akadama soil. Akadama does not effectively transfer nutrients to the
bonsai's
root system (low cation exchange ratio), so the constant presence of a
slow-release fertilizer fuels desirable growth.

For immature trees, I would agree that chemical fertilizers accelerate
growth. For mature trees (trees that have achieved their design
objective),
organics assist in maintaining the tree's design while keeping it
healthy.

Cordially,

Michael Persiano
members.aol.com/iasnob

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