On Fri, 03 Jun 2011 11:29:43 +0100, Frank wrote:

Mike Lyle wrote:
On Thu, 2 Jun 2011 14:37:27 +0000, Granity
wrote:


queen eleanor;925216 Wrote:
Hello,

I was wondering if someone could help me. I have recently acquired a big
ceramic pot which would be suitable for a small tree. Can anyone
recommend a nice looking, easy to care for, small tree? I don't want it
to grow massive... am I being stupid in assuming I could get a small
tree that will stay small?!?

Also, someone has given me some cherry tomato plants which are in my
kitchen window. I don't know how to care for them, can someone give me
some tips. I would prefer them to be outside. I don't have a proper
greenhouse but I do have a mini greenhouse from Homebase.

Thanks very much for your help!

We have a red leaved Acer, I think it's 'Garnet', in a largish pot,
provided it is regularly watered it does very well although it got
caught by the late frost this year.

Yes: I've got a Japanese maple in an 18" pot, in which it's perfectly
happy. It'll need moving on or chucking out one of these years, of
course. A problem with all these imported ceramic pots is that the
drainage holes are ridiculously small: if you haven't got a suitable
drill, you do need to avoid over-watering as much as underwatering.

How long do you keep a small tree or shrub in a pot in the same soil
before changing it?

You probably need to ask a gardener a lot less approximatory than this
one; but if it starts looking tired, "tip it out and see if it's
filled the container with roots" will usually do.

When you do tip it out, you may very well find that the main roots
have got tangled and started choking one another: that's why, of
course, they always say to spread a tree's roots out when first
planting. You''ll also very possibly find that the root ball is
completely dry in the middle: peaty mixtures are famously hard to wet
again once they've dried, and the plant may have been thirsty for
years. Best to use John Innes, or mix garden soil into commercial
compost, and put a trace of washing-up liquid in the watering can
(when a squirter is empty, I fill it with water, and keep it handy for
this purpose).

Hope this helps: but there are far more knowledgeable people in the
group.

--
Mike.