oak air layering project

Bonsai Barry

I air-layerd this oak today (10/7). I know it isn't the right time, but other events in my life dicated the timing. I'm hoping that the mild winters on the CA central coast will cut me some slack. I layered it using a rooting hormone.

Have anyone had experience airlayer a scrub oak? Any information would be helpful. I'm especially curious to the length of time needed to produce viable roots.

Photos: Photo #1 the tree before the cutting. The layer will be above the second straight secton
Photo #2: The cut encircling the branch
Photo #3: The finished job

Attached Images

	bonsai_10_06 013.jpg (32.7 KB, 81 views)
	bonsai_10_06 015.jpg (29.7 KB, 81 views)
	bonsai_10_06 017.jpg (31.5 KB, 84 views)

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Bonsai Barry

"Our talent lies in our choices."

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Bonsaifreak

I don't have any experience with oaks but I've read they don't propagate by air layer...

Good luck!

Jorge

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soonami

even in your mild mediterrean climate, now that it's past the fall equinox your oak is slowing down food production in preparations for hibernation, so the airlayer will likely fail. Also, even though your climate might be mild, it would still be far from the optimal temperature for roots to form.

But, it's worth a shot, worse case senario is that the airlayer fails, but at least you have already done most of the work by the time late spring rolls around

CScott

Yes, you can air layer live oak in California. Mine was done at the correct time and it rooted quickly (about 4 months). It was a branch on a tree and was about the size of your layer. My only problem with your layering is that there is not much moss around the cut. Have you successfully layered trees using this amount of moss? I tend to pile it on so there is at least a two inch thick layer of moss that also extends at least one inch above and below the layer cuts. Having said that, as long as you can keep it wet it may work.

Good luck,

Carmen

Bonsai Barry

Here's my question:
If an airlayer is going to take at least a year, then when is the best time to have the dormancy occur at the start, middle or end of the air layer?

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Bonsai Barry

"Our talent lies in our choices."

kingkong

This is good news about mossing oak. Lets say March 15 is the start of Spring. Layer should now be completed by March 15 on your host tree,in my case Bucida spinosa, and then ready or rooted by June 15, in that area?

soonami

For plants the year is really only from spring to fall, the growing season. For the rest of the year, the tree is mostly hibernating because it cannot absorb enough light energy to make photosynthesis efficient. So the year isn't our calendar year. Depending on the species and vigor of the tree, airlayering can take as little as 6 weeks in the growing season, or as many as 3 seasons.

During the dormancy period, the tree isn't producing hardly carbohydrates or hormones to induce callusing and rooting so it really isn't to the tree's advantage to be airlayered at the time. For most vigorous deciduous trees, one full growing season is really all the tree will need to be airlayered, so that's why when the leaves have hardened off and are fully absorbing sunlight is when it's best to airlayer.

gregb

Barry mentions that this is scrub oak. I have a scrub oak I collected in Arizona. It is a broadleaf evergreen, as many oak species are in Arizona. That means it does not lose its leaves like diciduous oak species do. Therefore, it may behave a little differently than deciduous oak species do. I suspect that California species are similar and that winter in that area of California isn't much different from that of Arizona. I would not give up hope of this layer succeeding provided you give it protection from temperature extremes. And don't let it dry out. Knowing that you may have not done it at the most opportune time should only motivate you to keep an eye on this one and give it the extra care it needs.