Understanding the Phases
Phase One
The first phase of transplanting a Japanese garden occurs in the first year when the seedling is potted. Young seeds are transplanted individually into containers of desired size. Flowerpots, dry orange peels and cartons are some of the easily available cheap options for planting the seeds. The size of the container will determine the final size of the tree by constricting the growth of roots. In order to facilitate root pruning, the best container is orange skin. The roots can be trimmed easily with scissors as they grow through the skin. However, when using a carton as a container, remember to make sufficient holes at the bottom and on the lower sides, enabling the roots to grow without suffocating.
Fill the container with enriched soil and plant only one seedling at a time. Not much effort, other than maintaining the humidity and temperature of the soil, is required during the first year. You could add a bit of fertilizer. The main goal during the first year of transplanting a Japanese garden is developing the seedling into a young, healthy plant. Root tips should be pruned occasionally, restricting them from emerging outside the container. In the case of any other container, you will need to take the seedling out a few times in order to prune the roots.
Phase Two
The second phase of transplanting your Japanese garden starts immediately after the first spring. All major dwarfing techniques are performed during the second year from when the seed was planted. They include pruning of roots, manually pinching excessive growth off the shoots and shaping and twisting for desired shape and size. After any of the above stunting operations, the plant should be allowed sufficient time to recuperate in a shaded area.
After Phase Two
The effort put in during the second year eventually determines the final appearance of the miniature tree and ultimately your Japanese garden. Although it is advisable to wait for a year or two, as the second year advances the tree gets ready to be transplanted in a mini-garden of your own. In the progressive third and fourth year of its growth, the tree requires further pruning and pinching, which might prove to be a bit difficult if you have already transplanted it in a Japanese garden. The miniature tree attains complete maturity in approximately five to six years, after which it requires minimum attention except for occasional pinching during spring.
Transplanting
The tree or plant should be transplanted into poor, meager soil, which has just enough sufficient nutrients to keep the plant healthy but does not promote surplus growth. This transplant should be done by the end of the second year, irrespective of whether or not you plant the treelet in a Japanese garden. When the treelet is two years old, it should have acquired the desired shape and size.