I got around to purchasing a JBP that I mentioned in another thread. Its quite leggy, but has several low branches on a nice trunk with a little movement. I can see a shohin happening here. My question though is what do I do with it now. While at first glance that question may seem a little vague, thats the PRECISE question that I'm concerned with.
Its August here in Upstate SC. We've probably another month of the heat and humidity (85+F, 80-85+
. Then it'll taper off to warm with comfortable evenings til about mid-October. We probably won't have frost 'til November, maybe later. My
climate can be seen here. (Remember that last years info is a bit skewed with 5 hurricanes.)
I spent about an hour last night searching for this answer. My conundrum unfolds as such. Its in a 5-gallon nursery container. I know it needs to be in something more appropriate with more appropriate soil. I've a pond basket, turface and perma-till with some pine bark mulch appropriately sized. Even some grit (chicken grit... 's that ok?) Theres been some talk of summer repotting and the luck others have had with mugos. That talk has also mentioned the dissimilarities of mugos and jbps. Do I repot it now as opposed to the spring when every other source says to repot, or let it go thru winter in the bad soil? Do I let it sit in the soil its in while I prune and wait ANOTHER year before starting to repot?
One much less technical question: How long before a healthy, leggy, overgrown shrub-looking JBP takes on what can be mistaken for a bonsai shape? Just wondering what I'm up against. I know I need more patience. I've a chew toy for my dog in the shape of a dead mugo to remind me of that constantly. (Vance: The trunk on it we'd talked about really had character instead of the reverse taper you feared. Its evident now that its ...DEAD.) I guess I'd be happy to have this looking like decent potensai stock right now.
Thanks for your help,
Wayne F.
ps. I was thrilled to find JBP with potential. Thats why I bought it.