Bald Cypress Collecting Trip (Embedded Pictures)

JohnG

Hello all... I had the opportunity last week to go BC collecting with a friend. It has been several years since we had been collecting together and we had a really good day! We collected 5 trees in total. These were some of the largest that we have ever tackled.

The first one...

46" from the soil line and 21" across at the soil. The tree is actually planted fairly deep to encourage more and better root development after the collecting.

This tree has very similar proportions to one of Gary Marchal's trees.
I would be tickled pink if I could create a similar tree in 7 years time

I imagine more of a flat-top style with this tree...thus the reason for keeping the long trunk. 40" from the soil and about 12" across the root base.


Just for fun we went for Mr. Big



I didn't actually measure the base of this one but I can tell you that it made all four sides of 3'x2' container bulge.


If you would like to see an album of pics from the trip click here.

I also put together a short video (still very rough) that talks about the process that we use to collect Bald Cypress. It appears that the upload to Google video has created a timing issue a significant loss of quality but I think it may be watchable if your patient enough

I would be interested in your comments and thoughts.
Thanks,
John

p.s. - Before you ask, we had permission

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Asus101

that is f**king awsome!

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subnet_rx

That's huge. I've been looking to start a bald cypress project, but I'm looking in the 18 to 24 inch range.

lagunamadre

Thanks so much for the post. I really enjoyed the video too. Interesting that you collect in May, and not while dormant in the winter. Never read that before. Thanks again. Larry

bwaynef

Man, it looks like you (and Ken?) had a blast. Hopefully your backs are forgiving you by now. I'm not exactly sure where you were, but it looks like you were there early (intact exif data says around 7:50am).

It looks like this wasn't your first dig as y'all came prepared. One thing I picked up from Gary earlier this year was that after collection, for at least a year, he buries his trees about 6" deeper than where he expects the final soil line to be. Do with that what you will.

One question: What are you planting these in soil-wise?

And finally, if you guys ever need a hand ...


ps. Here are a few pictures, some of which are world-class BC bonsai

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anttal63

awsome john look forward to their future.

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JohnG

Thanks for the replies guys...

Larry... over the years I have had the best success collecting BC from May to July... They are typically so full of energy that inspite of having most of their roots cut off and all of their foliage removed they come back strong within a couple of weeks with new growth. The only real troubles I have had collecting them was a result of collecting too early.

Wayne...Thanks for the tip all of these trees have an extra 4-5" of soil. The soil I used for these was Fafard 3B....peat, perlite, and bark. We actually didn't get out there until about 9:30 and were headed back home before noon. My camera's date and time are probably not set properly

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Ashbarns9999

John many thanks for sharing your adventure with us. I did watch the video all the way and found it very informative along with the pictures. Your blog is also a blast, thanks again.

Ash

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JohnG

Thanks Ash...I am glad you found it useful.
John

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