JBP 'Kotobuki' Yellowing needles

stephenr

I have a JBP 'Kotobuki'approx 3ft in hight with a 1 1/4 inch caplier trunk.
The tree is in a 12 inch diameter pot. The tree was very healthy when I purchased it 4 weeks ago from a specialist conifer nursery in the mountains near where I live.

The tree is placed in full sun & the soil moister level is checked daily using a chopstick. Soil adheres to the chopstick but the stick is not overly wet when tested. I allow the soil to dry out slightly between watering.

The current average daily temp here is 30-35 C (85-95 F)
Problem -
Needles are starting to yellow on the trunk and close in on branches. The apex and needles at the ends of the branches are all still green.

I have searched various forums on JBP and I have gleaned that yellowing needles is usually indicative of over-watering. We have had some thunderstorms & associated rain over the past couple of days but I withheld watering on these days. I don't think it is due to over watering but I am not sure. Any ideas??

BTW - Don't have a digital camera but will borrow one ASAP so as I can post a pic.

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randyclark

Stephen

I don't think you have a problem. Yellowing needles on the inside are usually the plant converting green tissue to wood. It will happen every one to two years depending upon the kind of pine. So long as the buds and foliage from the last couple of years are green, you should be just fine. A photo would help however.

Randy

stephenr

Thanks Randy..
Yes the needles from the past couple of years growth are very health & green. Recent candles are also very green & the tree has two small cones in the apex.
'All in All' the tree appears to be fine. The problem is very recent (last week) hence the post. I will post a photo as soon as I can borrow a camera.

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stephenr

Finally got a lend of a digital camera so here are some pics..

As you can see the top of tree looks health but the yellowing and dying needs are occuring around the lower limbs of the tree. I have retested the moister of the soil using a chopstick & again just barely damp with some soil adhering to the stick. I tested by placing the chopstick 6-8 inches down into the soil and also through the pot drain holes to see if there was any water pooling at the bottom of the pot.
The tree is in the orginal pot as purchased from the nursery and the soil is relatively free draining. BTW the average daily temperature here over the past couple of days has been around 95 - 107 F so I have placed the tree under shade-cloth..

Attached Images

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pootsie

StephenR:

I am not a pine expert, but since no one is responding I'll toss in my 2 cents (AU)

The tree looks healthy. The needles it is dropping look to be 2-3 seasons old, just as Randy said.

pootsie

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stephenr

Thanks mate,
Both your and Randy's comments have helped to relieve my mind. I do appreciate your feed back and help. This is my first pine and I don’t want to lose it. I think it has great potential as a bonsai. Style & form is yet to be decided in the near future…

Cheers,

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TreeBay

You should probably strip those older needles anyway, especially from the junctions around existing branching points the {Y}
parts in and around where the branches bifurcate (and if they trifurcate, that's an opportunity to do some branch selection, too! They typically start to turn in fall. Needles can last a couple years but it's usually best to keep the newest ones, unless you don't have many to choose from.


Regards,

Matt

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Ashbarns9999

What Randy and Matt have said is quite true. The yellowing on my JBP dwarf was I thought too much water so i slipped it into a styrene container and now realise it was pot bound as after two weeks it is turning a nice green colour. I had given the tree chelates of iron but that did not work so i am happy with my decision. The years slip away and you get fooled as to when to re-pot and i confess it happened to me. But your situation is as described by Randy and Matt so be guided by them.

Kind Regards Ash

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randyclark

Stephen,

Sorry it took so long for me to reply. I was out of town. Thanks for the photos. The brown needles on you pine are standard fall needle drop. It happen to old needles every one or two years. Everything is fine. Dont worry. Brush the yellow needles out and all will go back to being fine.

Randy