Japanese black pine seedlings progress

bonsaikc

I am currently repotting my three year old Japanese black pine seedlings into plastic mesh water plant pots. these pots will accelerate the growth of the trunks, since they allow for the passage of water and air very freely, and self-prune the roots as time goes on. I am very excited about their progress.
Notice several things about this actual size close-up. The wire marks were intentional, used to swell the trunk beyond its years. Later they will not be noticeable. Second, the adventitious buds low on the trunk must have been stimulated by the wire cutting in, as this tree has never been pruned. They are no more than 1-1/4 inch from the nebari, and will help increase trunk girth and taper as time goes on.

Read the full article here.

Chris

__________________
Sashi-no-eda.blogspot.com

Advertisement

bisco_bonsai

As always, very interesting bonsaiakc. I'm starting some field grown JBP from seed myself this year, and even though I know I'll be old and grey before they become bonsai, I still love starting seedlings just for the fun of it. Good luck with your JBP seedlings.
All the best,
JDL

bonsaikc

You needn't be old and grey, bisco, unless you are in striking distance of that end already. It all depends on the size trees you want. If you are looking for JBPs with 12 inch trunks, it can be done in the ground in as little as 15 years. Wait...how old are you now? LOL.

For instance, this pine was probably in the ground about that long, and its training has probably been going on for about, say, five to seven years.



It has a ways to go, but was displayed for the first time in January.

Chris

__________________
Sashi-no-eda.blogspot.com

bisco_bonsai

I'm 22, so that would put me about 42 to have a nice specimen (with no mistakes along the way). I'll probably be starting to grey by then, though, depending on how soon I get married ). My only problem is that I don't see myself staying in one place for that amount of time, so unless I could dig and replant the tree every time I move, it might get abandoned. It is a shame that you can't buy a large rootstock from a nursery like you can with deciduous bonsai and start from there. Every JBP I'ver ever seen in nurseries around here are composed of bar branches which swell the trunk and ruin the taper, and long sections of trunk with no branches at all. I guess growing them is the only way to go unless you're ready to drop some money. Thanks again for the article, it was an interesting read.
All the best,
JDL

bonsaikc

There are a couple of other techniques that I haven't tried yet... One can cut the main leader to just above the first lateral buds and then use the resultant branches as sacrifice branches. Done properly, this produces a tree with very dramatic taper. Another way is to work on the tree as a whole which produces much more slender trunks, so it's important to have good movement.

Chris

__________________
Sashi-no-eda.blogspot.com

gonzo865

Chris

could you show a picture these pots you're using. I'm very interested in the accelerated growth rate of trunks. At the moment I am about to start using wooden grow boxes. I've read how well they work in relation to trunk and nebari growth.

Ralph

bisco_bonsai

Yeah, I've often wondered which method produces the largest trunk with taper in the shortest amount of time. The "sacrificial leader" method or the "sacrificial lower branch" method (I'm sure they have better names). I would think that since the most aggressive growth in pines occurs in the apex, that the method of training the lower branches and letting the apex grow tall would produce the larger trunk quicker. I know that Mark Torrpa uses this method, and here's a good example in this picture of one of his stump fields: http://thegrowinggrounds.com/stump/stump.htm (3rd picture down). Anyway, I'd be interested in seeing the side by side results of both methods started at the same time with comparable stock; now that would be a cool experiment (maybe it's already been done?).
All the best,
JDL

bonsaikc

As soon as we get another sunny day I will show you the pots I am using. They are a simple plastic mesh pot found at any home store for aquatic plants. It seems from what I have read that growing in the ground and allowing the leader to go crazy is best for sheer massive trunk girth. Cutting the leader and using sacrifice branches seems to be best for impressive taper (not to be confused with reverse tapir-Carl I would give you reputation points every time I think of that if I could!). I hope to work up another batch of seedlings next spring and perhaps try both other methods, as my article is still a little one-sided.

Chris

__________________
Sashi-no-eda.blogspot.com

bisco_bonsai

I found some mesh pots as I was surfing the internet, just thought I would post the link: http://www.altgarden.com/site/pots/page1.html
All the best,
JDL