could you not plant it out Cormac-- or even donate it to the woodland trust or similar--- it wants to be a tree---

id say its going to start being effected very soon if its 5 feet tall . its a good idea to donate it also you could plant it out somewear wild yourself or look into bonzieing it excuse my spelling .

Its probably too big to bonsai Np, I think that you have to start with seedlings, I have grown conifers and japanese Acer in pots but they always go out when bigger. a Pinus we had root wrapped one christmas now needs a ladder to reach the top!

if you want to keep it in a pot then you can trim the roots in early spring and then cut it back to keep it in check.
if you want it smaller (bonsai'd)then trim the roots and put it in a smaller, shallower pot and cut it right back in early spring for the next couple of years. it will bonsai easily.

You could Bonsai it Cormac. It's called 'growing down'. According to Peter Chan in the Complete Book of Bonsai(ISBN 1 85170 2873) 1989. He describes an elm that was 2 metres high. Then planted out in his stock field. Cut down to 2 feet. A leader allowed to grow and cut down each year to a few inches. It is then dug up and planted in a large Bonsai pot (expensive but you can get plastic ones) This is a faster way of getting a mature looking tree. I have a tiny oak that Squirrel Nutkins planted in the 'lawn' in a tiny Bonsai pot. Your tree would look good quicker than my puny little thing.

Yes, the best Bonsai as said above are from large plants that are cut back. A Bonsai grower I know often uses old grubbed out hedges of Hawthorn with huge trunks. Trying to Bonsai a seedling is useless unless you want a really tiny thing! I hate those puny little pieces of scrap that you get charged a fortune for... Far better lift an larger plant with a good fat trunk to achieve the aged look.

Anyway, I would just plant the poor thing unless you are thinking of Bonasi'ing it.

The diameter of any container-grown tree should be TWICE the diameter of the tree's "drip-line" as a general rule.
The reason is that tree's roots will start to circle in a container and often grow around the "root flair" which will cause long-term problems that introduce a plant stress condition.
When a tree is in a state of stress, predators such as web-worms, aphids, borers, or other predatory critters can sense the elevated sugar levels in the tree's upper foliage.
A tree in stress will secrete sugars to "heal" its' situation into the upper foliage to attempt to correct the problem area.

It's a very complicated interaction, but the best thing to do for trees is only 3 steps:
{1} Expose the root flair..
{2} Aireate the root-zone and apply organic amendments.
{3} Eliminate any "salt based" fertilizers around the tree's drip-line.

For more information on rescuing a "sick tree", here's the link:
http://www.dirtdoctor.com/organic/garden/view_question/id/2840/

i was going to say my friend who grows bonsei does get very mature trees and is very brutal id of thaught in getting them down to the size he wants for bonzie but they do realy well .he chopped an oak actualy that was already a bit narley down to about 2-3 feet tall and its girth was about 12-14" round . it looks lovley now after a couple of years .bonzie in japan get handed down through generations and are hundreds of years old and realy expensive .

sorry pamq x .

Yes, you can certainly grow bonsai from seed/seedlings but they are in most cases best planted out in open ground to get plenty of growth at first. Every year or two in winter it could be lifted and root pruned and replanted in the ground. This would speed up the process of thickening the trunk before the proper training in a pot starts.

Anyway Cormac, your oak will be restricted now in answer to your question.

needn't say sorry Np it was only what I thought and am very happy to be corrected--- learn something new every day!--- the only time I tried was with seedlings but I felt so sorry for the little pine tree being constricted ( it always makes me think of those little chinese girls having their feet bound up to keep them small) that I let it be a tree!!

ow i completly agree pamq i have been given a couple of bonsei bye my friend and i put them strate in the ground . one was an acer and you never sore one grow that quick . it had been in a tiny pot for 16 years and it was as if it went yippee . it went from a 16" miniture tree to a 5 foot tree in one sumer . so fast that i had to cut it back to give it some balance . i think donating the oak tree is the best idea myself .

thats lovely Np-- it feels good letting them go!

yes definatly thats how they should be .