Next I need to figure out how much akadama I’m gonna need.
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Looks good. Will all those pots be used? Are you doing 100% akadama or a 1:1:1 mix?
I’m thinking 2 bags depending on usage.
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Most will be 100% akadama. I only have 4 that will be a 1:1:1 mix. I hope that it’s just a couple of bags of akadama. I already have 2, but I’ll probably buy 2 more just to be safe.
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Yeah, with 100% akadama I’d get one one or two more too.
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So sift all the components and get the surface treatment ground and ready to go in zip lock bags.
Not too early to prepare pots with screening. Lots to do over a few months. Take your time and do it right to ensure an organized and thoughtful process.
Very true! If I sift now I’ll have an even better idea of how much soil I have after removing the fines and jumbos. Great idea! I do have a lot of screening to do too. 
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I keep the fines after sifting to grow moss and to make muck for slab and stone planting.
Recipe from Michael Hagedorn: This idea comes from Hawaii, adding corn starch as a binder. Roughly (and you can adjust proportions according to need): 1/3 small akadama plus dust, 1/3 long fibered sphagnum moss (not peat), and 1/3 corn starch. The trick is how you treat the corn starch. Before adding them together, take the corn starch and mix it in some water, then pop it in the microwave. You might have to add more water and cook it several times, but you want a jelly. Then add that to the others.
We’ve found that more corn starch than 1/3 is often needed.
It’s very pliable, and forms a dense mass once it’s dried a bit that has great penetrability when watered.
From this blog:Shore Pine on a metal post… https://crataegus.com/2017/03/21/shore-pine-on-a-metal-post/
The application and photo steps are always intriguing to me!!
Have fun, learn lots, share with others.
This is awesome! I’m planning on doing a group planting of nandina on a slate slab next year. Not necessarily “bonsai”, but I was going to use the fines for the muck creation. I haven’t looked into what muck involves just yet. Your mix sounds pretty good though. Definitely gonna give that a shot. Would I still need drain holes or is the muck permeable enough to allow the water to escape?
I believe there’s a stream on muck creation as well. 
Renewing an old conversation - and I haven’t had time to review the crataegus post - but I was curious about how critters react to the corn starch in this recipe? Does anyone have experience?
No personal experience but found the article regarding using corn starch in the garden. 6 Best Cornstarch Uses in the Garden | Balcony Garden Web It is supposed to repel ants, so could control aphids as well. Not sure what you mean by critters. Insects? Microbes? Nematodes? Earth worms? or large critters like deer and rabbits?
I was wondering about squirrels, racoons and perhaps rats…
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