Scots Pine Backbudding

guffmeister

Hey! I've posted this question as a follow-up to another I asked in the Show and Tell forum, but I'm not sure when or if I'll get a response, so I thought I'd post it here.

I have a 20+ year old Scots pine that I want to back bud quite far back. I was wondering if you could suggest the best technique. I was thinking whether removing all last years needles would be enough, or whether I should cut off all this years growth in a attempt to get it back budding. It is very vigorous, but I also know it would be less reponsive as other pines like JBP.

I'll show you some pics, to see whether that changes anything. It also has two very low thick branches that are sacrifice branches. I need to get some more energy going to them tho induce more taper to the trunk.

Any ideas would be grand...

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Vance Wood

The best way to start the process of back budding is to remove all of this years new growth back to the point where it emerged this last spring. Do not remove all of the old needles. Scots are funny, sometimes they will produce new growth all over the place even if you cut off all and every thing, something absolutly not recomended ever. It is best to start out conservatively and work inward as you get the new buds to work with. Once you see how this tree is going to respond then your continue doing the same or you adjust your program.

Will_Heath

Vance hit it on the head, great advice. I would only add to feed well and regularly with a high nitrogen fertilizer. Also, be sure to allow full light to reach the inner branches, cutting back as Vance suggested will help and removing unneeded branches will also.


Will

Vance Wood

Will is correct, any kind of specific growth program will only work if the tree is healthy and well fed.

guffmeister

When would you suggest beginning removing the newest growth then? If I'm going to remove the odd bit as trial and error, should I start in spring as the new buds start growing, or should I start now?

Arnie

Can I suggest you buy a good book.

Theres a new one by Stone Lantern called Pines. Or Colin Lewis Art of Bonsai Design (Great advice on Scots)
Your Scots will respond well to the suggested treatment of black Pine in the Stone Lantern book.

You can remove 3 yr old needles this autumn and reduce buds to two
(the two strongest on the weak areas and the two weakest on strong areas - normally the apex) If the tree is strong you can remove all the mature candles next year....it will respond by backbudding as it has to replace the potential growth you have removed.

Mr Guff, read some good books and take it slowly until you have a little more experience with Pines. Have fun, when you get the hang of them they are very rewarding and quiet predictable.

Have a look at this thread. This was a raw Scots that I styled a few months back. It has a similar problem to yours that the growth is all out on the tips. Its possible to create a tree shape in the first styling by winding back the branches....then as you force back budding you cut back into the tree to the new growth when the buds burst. This is a technique to give you an instant tree with a future, although some will disagree with this idea.

Good luck with that Pine...have you joined a local club?

Arnie

http://forum.bonsaitalk.com/showthread.php?t=13058

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guffmeister

Thanks. I have a few pines, and I read a lot about them so I'm not a complete novice, but this is the first Scots Pine I have worked with. I have never had to make a small bonsai pine from a big bonsai pine either, so the mixture of the two are just making me confirm my suspictions before I go ahead and do anything.

Arnie

OK, so if you have some experience maybe you should consider that this material is never going to make a great tree - but is useful for the practice.

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Where theres a will theres a way

Vance Wood

Using this tree for practice is a plausable consideration. However, some of these "Dwarf Cultivars" do not respond in the same way the species does and any lesson you learn with this tree may be misleading when you attempt to work with a more suitable tree.

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