My two Leptospermum

[Mevans]

Unsure of the exact species of this Lepto, needs a bit of wiring on the branches midway up to make the trunk more visible from the front.
The front

180 degrees

90 Degrees


And then this lepto which has had copper coloured leaves in autumn/winter becoming burgundy or purple.
I'd say the trunk isn't quite thick enough compared to stand out compared to the branches, unsure of what to do about this. I'm unsure of where to take the tree in general, really.
Repotted yesterday to a new front, old soil was compacted and it was a bit rootbound.



The tree as I bought it at the start of the year, with a different front.


An idea I had for changing the angle to some kind of windswept style. Decided not to go with it this time.

[Ryceman3]

Wow, nice trees with great potential!
Just as a thought on ID for the second one, given the foliage colour and general look etc... I'd have a dip at Lept. Petersonii "Copper Glow".
The only Lepto variety I currently have is Laevigatum so can't offer too much in the way of advice - sorry. Hopefully others chime in because these look like great trunks and could become something special with the right care and direction.
Good luck with them.

[shibui]

I'd say that first one is one of the newer hybrids that came out a few years ago. There's a few with those lovely pink flowers and greenish centres and they seem to be quite tough and robust.

I'd say the trunk isn't quite thick enough compared to stand out compared to the branches, unsure of what to do about this. I'm unsure of where to take the tree in general, really.

There are a couple of strategies that can overcome the problems of thin trunks:
1. Ignore it. There are some very elegant bonsai with relatively thin trunks but thick trunks seems to be a bonsai fashion at the moment. can you resist fashion and do your own thing?
2. Reduce the height. Trunk thickness is only relative to the overall size so if you reduce height the trunk appears better immediately.
3. Time. The trunk will gradually thicken as the tree ages. Unfortunately most people are not willing to wait for the required time. Leptos do not really respond to many of the fast growth techniques we use for exotics because they often don't shoot on bare wood but giving it an oversize pot and plenty of feeding will increase the growth rate a bit.

[Mevans]

Wow, nice trees with great potential!
Just as a thought on ID for the second one, given the foliage colour and general look etc... I'd have a dip at Lept. Petersonii "Copper Glow".
The only Lepto variety I currently have is Laevigatum so can't offer too much in the way of advice - sorry. Hopefully others chime in because these look like great trunks and could become something special with the right care and direction.
Good luck with them.

Thank you kindly That ID seems to be spot on, a google image search brings up some very familiar looking examples of foliage. I haven't seen this tree flower yet which would be a great help in ID.
When repotting I erred on the side of caution by assuming this could be a L. Scoparium and so avoided reducing the roots too much.
One more photo of the copper colour.

[Max]

Melaleuca linariifolia ?????

[tgward]

great potential in that first plant(windswept) with trunk chop and the lowest branch as the new leader--air layer off that straight trunk above the first branch? -----perhaps

[Boics]

I like these tree's and the natural native potential that they offer.
My advise is to look at a few google images of these tree's for some futher inspiration - I think your close!
I suspect the ID tree may be Lepto Obovatum Starry Night. I've one of these which has been doing well.
viewtopic.php?f=82&t=23017&hilit=+starry
I'd be looking to cut this tree back to the last bits of green to promote some growth lower down the trunk/primary branches.

[Mevans]

Repotted to a new front.

[Mevans]

Thought I'd take some better photos in the sunshine this morning.

Click for big.


Gory closeup of the nebari, quite happy with the spread on the thicker roots. This shot isn't looking directly from the tree's front, just to show more of the roots.

[shibui]

The tree looks good. I notice you have some weeds (sometimes known as starweed) around your tree. It is VERY invasive. Spreads by both runners and lots of exploding seeds that can be spread several metres from the parent. It does look good but it is very likely to become a big pest in all your pots. I'd recommend eradicating it which, from experience, will take you quite a few years of diligent weed control.

[Boics]

Agree with Shibui.
He's always got an eye out for star weed!

[Pearcy001]

Agree with Shibui.
He's always got an eye out for star weed!

He must truely hate it. I can picture his face right now every time he sees it haha

Sent from my SM-G920I using Tapatalk

[Mevans]

I heeded your advice and have eradicated the starweed. (For now at least.)
It does look nice but it really did have a lot of runners for how small the starweed was, I'm sure it would have been all over the place given time.

I'll investigate some better companion / small cover plants that are suited to potentially crispy Perth summer conditions.


When it comes to the fine roots visible on the surface around the base of the trunk, should I have made more of an attempt to get the tree lower in the pot so that more soil would cover the roots and so have a harder time being washed away by watering?
Would it be a good idea to add more soil on top and then maybe some small rocks or a moss to hold it there? Do I possibly need to keep an area close to the trunk free of soil covering to help root water/air exchange?

[AGarcia]

You can put shredded sphagnum on the surface to protect the roots and promote growth.