Bald cypress stump

Dale Cochoy

Sauce, You said:
"I don't believe that a BC can develop root rot, "

" Maybe in a potted environment this would not be an ideal set up but to say they will develop root rot seems a little far fetched to me."

" I may be wrong but I believe the opposite, they "tolerate" soil but love muck and water."

and I disagreed...... That was pretty much it.

"I will not standby and watch you twist my words around to suit whatever agenda you have. "

Agenda??, just trying to help dispell a few wrong notions..or maybe help out some non-Floridians who are thinking about how to overwinter BC.


"I am sure it doesn't matter but I lost what respect I had for you today. Good day Sir"

OOwwww! and a bad REP POINT to boot...
Bummer....I won't sleep tonight!
BTW, you might think about ordering that BC book, I know lots of Floridians who have it. Some with even more than one year in bonsai.

Regards,
Dale

__________________
________________________________
If you want to be Different....
You have to DO something Different!
__________________________________________

Some people NEVER take the time to do a job right the first time....
but, they always seem to make the time to do it over again...
____________________________________________
Dale Cochoy
Wild Things Bonsai Studio
Yakimono no Kokoro Bonsai Pottery
Hartville, Ohio

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sauce

In a very condescending manner which was totally uncalled for. When did overwintering come into the picture? Jorge is in Zone 9, and I am in Zone 9 winter is not a factor for us. Besides that over wintering was never a part of Jorges thread. Once again you are twisting and contorting the subject to suit your agenda. I don't know what wrong notions you are referring to since I was talking about nature and my trees. Can you tell me that nature is wrong or that my trees are not thriving and doing well? No you cannot. Do I need more than 1 year of experience growing bonsai to know how to grow trees? I think not. Been growing them pretty well for 30 some years now. I take that last statement as it was intended, an insult, no offense Dale but you are not God. Your comments have been condescending, hence the negative rep point that you're going to lose sleep over. You have twisted the subject matter around to fit your agenda (yes you have an agenda whether you want to admit it it or not). And now you go so low as to insult me. What's next?

kingkong

All right men, I have gone all your directions and it is an easy subject to get rattled about. I have 30 years experience with bc and have tried it all so sit back and enjoy. The purpose is to try and save bc from death. I have seen far too many ancient beasts murdered to not try to help this matter out. Here we go and I don't want any lip from some wise guy. This is a problem to solve and that's it.
Cypress make their living growing in depressions or solution holes full of water. With extended droughts, the water can disappear and the peat will burn for months, killing the bc. For this tree to florish in its natural habitat it must live in a pond and or a protected area. Now for the next step. This is a very fast growing tree and knows nothing but growing like a weed with a large root system to support this push upward. When we carve them out of the ground in the winter and put them in a tiny pot, cut 5/6 of the tree top off and equal amount of root ball, the bc will to your amazement bud out and try to start a new life. Here lies the problems. This severly trimmed tree must be allowed to then grow without any trimming or fuss for at least 2-3 years. The root scars will then heal over and the plant will repair all the cut offs. If you do not, any you proceed to trim the head the bc will weeken and slowly die. It might take 2 months or 2 years. Now rot. Yes the bc will rot and decay esp the sap wood and the larger root cuts compounded by growing in wet mucky soil. The ideal system is to plant in quality mix remembering they are growing in sand in the swamp, and set the pot on a shallow dish kept full of water. Leave foliage alone, let tree grow wild in ratio to root disturbance. You do not want the root cuts constantly sitting in water cause this is where the rot starts! If root cuts are 2 " in dia, then it's going to take a few growing seasons to heal. My healthiest bc are in bonsai mix with water always available on the bottom 10% of root ball. Good luck

Bonsaifreak

I feel bad and regret having started this thread which really was the product of my ignorance and curiosity about this species. I did not intend to ignite animosity amongst fellow bonsaians. I still believe all of us are on this for the pleasure, enjoyment and challenge of growing small potted trees

To my surprise, this severely chopped BC is starting to show some green buds coming out at the top. I stuck the woody cuttings I took from the chopped off top and they are also showing some new green growth. I hope these are signs of life, the question is for how long will they remain like that. If they are as tough as some have claimed them to be, I bet I will not loose my $40 (that's how much I paid for this tree at Home Depot).

Again, sorry for bringing up this controversy and thanks everyone for the invaluable pieces of information.

Jorge

__________________
"Always acknowledge a fault. This will throw those in authority off their guard and give you an opportunity to commit more."
Mark Twain

kingkong

Woody cuttings will sprout but will not root. Let the mother load grow unchecked to develop strong root system. It is late in the season but you might get a little development before the sap drops. I put pine tar on cuts to seal, keeps tree from dehydrating, keeps bugs out.

Vonsgardens

Jorge,
Hey, welcome to the world. I don't believe tha Kingkong has said anything here that hasn't been said elsewhere in the thread, but I am really looking forward to seeing pictures of Bald Cypress that have been in captivity for 30 years- should be great, must have unbelievable ramification and structure. Based on what you said about the little sprouts, good. Like was said above, keep them out of drying winds while they try and harden off- they normally take it pretty well, but when a bit dodgy always best to be a biy conservative.

John

kingkong

Pics are 209 kb + the limit here is 73 kb. Whats up with that?

kingkong

OK John, which thread talks about allowing tree to grow for 3 years or more un-touched? What do you put on root cuts and how bid are the roots you are cutting?
I will try to size down a picture. Hope it doesn't bore you.

Vonsgardens

I am looking forward to it. Most of the "old" cypress you see in displays have less than 20 yrs of work, even Guy's nice tree in the National Arboretum. So, I sincerely am looking forward to seeing what can be done. Really. There is even concern about the ability of cypress to spend long lives in bonsai pots, the more old trees in pots (old as in years in the pot) the better. No insult intended.