AusBonsai

Hello

I was given this tree as a gift 1 month ago, it was sold as a black pine but I don’t think it is and I am now leaning towards a Scots pine.
It is a 2 needle pine.

When it arrived at my place the needles were a healthy green and over 1 or 2 weeks the tips of the needles all over the tree started to turn yellow and since then it has remained the same.

It is completely root bound and I can hardly see any soil in the pot as it has been neglected for a very long time.

Not sure why the needles apart from stress have remained yellow.

Does anyone have any clues or tips to getting it back to green health at this time of the year???????
Should I just wait till July and repot?

A picture would be a good starting point for getting valuable feedback or suggestions. It could well be a mugo pine yellow which turns to yellow in winter.


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I can't seem to upload images because file is too big.
I don't post on here much so if someone could tell me how I can post some pics

Hello Leigh,

AusBonsai has a limit of 1MB per image, so we all must reduce our image's size before attaching to a thread.
A good all round file size for images is around 500KB.
A simple free app for resizing images is 'Image Resizer'. Once loaded onto your phone / computer it's as simple as right clicking on the image, select Image Resizer, then select a size around 800px x 600px.
On a Windows PC i generally use Paint. Either will work fine.

Kevin

Thanks Kevin !

Here’s a couple pictures of the pine.
Would love to know what species it is.

Those short, close packed needles look a bit like Pinus mugho but I think there are some short needle varieties of both scots and black pine. A look at the bark may help differentiate. I would also like to look at the soil and roots to see what you mean by

It is completely root bound and I can hardly see any soil in the pot as it has been neglected for a very long time

My guess, with so little to go on, is that it is starving. What fertiliser regime have you had it on (what sort, how often)
Not enough water could also cause yellow needles. Plants that are very root bound can be extremely difficult to water properly. The water just will not penetrate into the centre of the root ball and even though you think you are watering well the tree stays a bit too dry.
Root problems can also cause yellowing of needles. If it has been too wet some roots may have rotted. If it will slip out of the pot easily you can check the colour of roots. It is nearly time for repotting so you can solve the root bound and any other root problems then.
Another possibility would be not enough sun. I think pines should probably be in as much sun as possible at this time of year in most places.

Lots of possibilities I know but without further info or investigation it is hard to eliminate any of these.

shibui wrote:Those short, close packed needles look a bit like Pinus mugho but I think there are some short needle varieties of both scots and black pine. A look at the bark may help differentiate. I would also like to look at the soil and roots to see what you mean by

It is completely root bound and I can hardly see any soil in the pot as it has been neglected for a very long time

My guess, with so little to go on, is that it is starving. What fertiliser regime have you had it on (what sort, how often)
Not enough water could also cause yellow needles. Plants that are very root bound can be extremely difficult to water properly. The water just will not penetrate into the centre of the root ball and even though you think you are watering well the tree stays a bit too dry.
Root problems can also cause yellowing of needles. If it has been too wet some roots may have rotted. If it will slip out of the pot easily you can check the colour of roots. It is nearly time for repotting so you can solve the root bound and any other root problems then.
Another possibility would be not enough sun. I think pines should probably be in as much sun as possible at this time of year in most places.

Lots of possibilities I know but without further info or investigation it is hard to eliminate any of these.

Neil it could be a varient. Ive got a black pine in the garden that has been propagated to have yellow needles. Now if it originally a healthy green colour before and now yellow id be concerned.

Leighg wrote:

BE057BF3-9F69-48FA-BBCC-2CC42E16C074.jpeg

Thanks Kevin !

Here’s a couple pictures of the pine.
Would love to know what species it is.

That looks exactly like the one in a pot in my backyard which I bought from bunnings four years ago as a mugo pine Amber gold and it turns yellow depending on the severity of the winter and then back to green. I wouldn’t be too concerned but then again that’s my only pine


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Sorry for the late reply but I had a workshop booked with Maru Stemberger today and took the tree to him to get a professional opinion on the tree.

Turns out Shibui , you were right that it is a Mugo pine- it is a Golden Mugo pine that turns a golden colour on the tips during winter.

Good news then Leigh. I am now aware of another different variety too. Good call Akhi you picked it.

Hello all.

I don't want to hijack this thread, as it turns out that we were looking at a Mugo, but as it originally starts out about a potential JBP, I'd like to ask about my JBP if no-one minds.

Looking at mine at the moment, I have had a proliferation of yellowing needles on the uppermost parts of the tree, where I am anticipating good growth in the next few months; it is healthy, with good new growth further down, and candles ready to go nuts up top.

Looking at this from Shibui...

shibui wrote:My guess, with so little to go on, is that it is starving. What fertiliser regime have you had it on (what sort, how often)
Not enough water could also cause yellow needles. Plants that are very root bound can be extremely difficult to water properly. The water just will not penetrate into the centre of the root ball and even though you think you are watering well the tree stays a bit too dry.
Root problems can also cause yellowing of needles. If it has been too wet some roots may have rotted. If it will slip out of the pot easily you can check the colour of roots. It is nearly time for repotting so you can solve the root bound and any other root problems then.
Another possibility would be not enough sun. I think pines should probably be in as much sun as possible at this time of year in most places.

Lots of possibilities I know but without further info or investigation it is hard to eliminate any of these.

...and to answer his questions, I have used Powerfeed only a couple of times in the last four weeks, watered sparingly as the soil drains very well (perhaps only about once a week and my chopstick is still dampening when left in for about 20 mins) and isn't in full sun as I currently don't have such a location to put it in, other than where it's exposed to about 30mins late arvo sun (1530-1600 approx.)
Are we thinking...
a: not enough sun (it did come from a fully sun-exposed youth)
b: not enough water
c: not enough fertiliser
d: potential root issues, due significantly reduced amounts of sun

Finally, when checking the roots, am I looking for that black, sodden appearance if checking for rot?

I will check for root-bound conditions, but I wouldn't think so, given how readily the soil accepts the water and how well it drains.

Thank you in advance for any assistance you can render.

I don't think lack of sum would cause yellowing unless it is so sun deprived that the tree is actually dying and that's unlikely even with just a few hours a day of direct sun. lack of sun is more likely to cause long growth and darker green rather than yellow foliage.
If the tree was severely nutrient deprived a couple of feeds in 4 weeks may not be enough to make a difference yet, especially at this time of year when any changes are slow. Try a few more feeds, even weekly - pine roots are quite active now and should start taking in nutrients readily. Change in colour is usually quite rapid at this time of year for my trees if they are nutrient deficient and then fed well.

If the mix is as open as you indicate lack of water may be an issue but your chopstick moisture gauge indicates that moisture should be adequate so unlikely to be the cause.

Root issues is possible but relatively easy to check. Just tip the whole rootball out of the pot (assuming it will turn out reasonably easily?) and have a look. If my pines are any indication there should be plenty of white mychorriza fungus around the potting mix and plenty of active white new roots all round the outside too. Lack of active white root tips and/or soft, black roots shows root rot.

Photos are always a great help for diagnosing problems - and don't be afraid to start new threads to discuss your own tree or problem. New thread costs the same as tacking onto another one

Thanks Shibui.
I tried lifting it out as a whole, but it wouldn't lift that way, suggesting to me that root-binding/total root mass compaction might not be the issue.

I'll let you know how feeding goes after a couple of weeks, but for now here's a photo of the yellowing, just for the fun of pictures. [GRINNING FACE WITH SMILING EYES]

Check these yellow mugos ! I saw them today absolutely stunning