[Jan] Callistemon sieberi

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Jan
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[Jan] Callistemon sieberi

Post by Jan »

2013-03-09_10.14.39_Callistemon sieberi.JPG
2013-03-09_10.14.08_Callistemon sieberi .JPG
2013-03-09_10.16.07_Callistemon sieberi.JPG
Callistemon sieberi
Original height of stock: 370mm (from top of pot to tip of tree - plan to reduce after April 1)
Where you obtained it from: Collected rural property 2010 (with permission)
Cost of stock: 1 enjoyable afternoon searching and collecting
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Jan
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Re: [Jan] Callistemon sieberi

Post by Jan »

A little history on this plant...

2010/08/21 Collected this Callistemon sieberi as one of two dug from the same spot in the paddock. It had a tall trunk but some new growth on the base. Plant was potted on 2010/08/21 into a green, rectangular plastic pot. Potted in seed raising mix/sharp sand/long stranded moss, mulched with long stranded moss. I misted plant, and mulch moss, whenever I visit the shade house, potting medium was kept moist.

2010-12-16 This plant was stable. Leaves green but no new growth as yet. Others collected at the same time had shot recently.

2011-02-18 Have moved this plant to a location with better light to try to encourage it to put out new shoots. While it still has some green leaves it is not thriving (snails/slugs eating new growth where it was on the shadehouse floor?).
Last edited by Jan on March 9th, 2013, 1:34 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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Jan
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Re: [Jan] Callistemon sieberi

Post by Jan »

Declared today "a day off to tend to trees" so have started on work my entries. This plant has had a branch/trunk chop to set it up for spring.
2013-04-26_10.38.35_BranchChop.JPG
Frosts have started in my area (-2C overnight earlier this week) so I will place a plastic grow tube over pot and plant and position it against a plastic watertank on the shed to moderate the growing environment - plastic tube to act as unheated glasshouse and watertank to use as thermal mass to moderate overnight temp. I hope these measures will give the plant time to set up buds for spring to improve ramification.

(Straw background is in place over a recently seeded bare area to encourage grass germination/growth - thought it made a handy background)

Jan
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Re: [Jan] Callistemon sieberi

Post by woody »

Hi Jan
thanks for the journey :tu2: , I'm intersested in what your plan is for it. Raft maybe? Or.....?
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Re: [Jan] Callistemon sieberi

Post by Watto »

Love the stump. Looking forward to the transformation.
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Re: [Jan] Callistemon sieberi

Post by Jan »

woody wrote:Hi Jan
thanks for the journey :tu2: , I'm interested in what your plan is for it. Raft maybe? Or.....?
Woody
Yes, Woody, it is a natural raft(roots at both ends) and I will grow it on as such.
Watto wrote:Love the stump. Looking forward to the transformation.
So did I, Watto, and I hope there will be a pleasing transformation in the end; not much going on now, as you would know working in the same climate, the -7 degree mornings and white frosts quietened everything down for a while but these softer damp days should be good for setting the plant up for spring.
2013-05-29_16.30.33_Callistemon Sieberi.JPG
I'll repot it soon in the hope of getting a bit of growth before then if I can find a mild enough microclimate for it.
2013-05-29_16.30.29_Callistemon Sieberi end.JPG
Carving the cut end is going to be tricky; nature has done such an outstanding job of the bare wood on the stump so far that I can't hope to match it. I'm thinking of carving and hollowing it out back to nearer the shoots, then burning it to get a more natural finish on it. The part blackened look should match in with the dark grey natural wood and the shadow background of the papery bark. I can take it into the shed to work out of the weather so could be a good winter day project.

Jan.
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Re: [Jan] Callistemon sieberi

Post by Jan »

2013-09-28_16.36.44_Callistemon sieberi .JPG
Warmer days = new shoots. I'm looking forward to pushing this one along a bit to try to get a couple of shots at improving the ramification this season. The carving still has to happen, I've been putting off sliding it out of its training pot and on to a tray to get at the end with power tools. I'll need to get too it soon before the days get hot and the excursion will dry the roots out too much.
2013-09-28_17.27.16_NewShoots.JPG
:fc: for a bit of time to spend on this project and the inspiration to make it look convincing.

Jan.
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Re: [Jan] Callistemon sieberi

Post by Dario »

Hi Jan, all of your Callistemon entries are top quality!
I agree with you about hollowing the end of the stump. A suggestion would be to not remove too much on the front of the stump (after hollowing out),but there seems to be a good natural line to follow as a starting point (see virt).
You could also extend the hollow into the dead portion of the main trunk, but I agree that the deadwood has so many interesting textures etc that you will not be able to match regardless how good at carving you are.
An idea for the main trunk in the future may be to leave the vast majority of the dead wood, but to just introduce a few small irregular shaped holes and maybe a thin longer one too (but to still hollow part of that trunk out so that any introduced holes will be featured).
I am really looking forward to see what you end up doing with the dead wood and the design of this great material. Best of luck!
Cheers, Dario.
c.jpg
The rough virt has the hollow extended into the top of the main trunk, but I have not done any of the holes I mentioned on the main dead wood.
The ends of the rhs stump would need to be worked more and possibly be pointed. Could do this manually with hand tools.
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Jan
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Re: [Jan] Callistemon sieberi

Post by Jan »

I made an appointment with my trees today (read her made time since "free" time was not looking like happening) and got on with a bit of tidy up work.

The cut on this stump was always going to have to be worked on to naturalise it and make it believable. I cut it back a bit in length then set too with a drill to hollow out the end a bit.
20131216_12.29.33_Stump carving1.JPG
The drill took out a lot of the material and then it was on with the Dremel and a rather aggressive burr to tidy up the result and make the edge uneven. I finished off burning it to tidy up the last of the rough stuff and hasten the process of giving it an aged look.
20131216_13.32.25_Stumpcarving2.JPG
20131216_13.32.56_Profie.JPG
I think this has improved the overall look. I've potted it on into fresh mix and added native osmocote to try to get it to put on a bit more branching before the end of the growing season. Now to find a pot...

Jan.
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Re: [Jan] Callistemon sieberi

Post by Jan »

20140325_083020_Callistemon.JPG
This Callistemon is due for a trim to promote ramification; I'm happy with the growth it has put on so far and am considering moving it to my repurposed fish tank to prolong the growth period once the weather starts to cool (We do serious cool, here).

I still haven't found the right pot for it (I've got my eye out for a long rectangle, but who knows shat it will end up in - I'll know it when I see it) but there's time yet.

Jan.
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Re: [Jan] Callistemon sieberi

Post by Jan »

20140621_103532_Callistemon.JPG
New growth so it is happy after the repot. Still haven't found "the pot", it is long and narrow so a bit hard to get the balanced look I'm after - but the search isn't over yet.
20140621_103740_Callistemon.JPG
A bit of a trim up while I'm here in the hope of a bit more branching,

Jan
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Re: [Jan] Callistemon sieberi

Post by kcpoole »

Nice, have you thought about putting on a slab or shallow tray?

Ken
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Re: [Jan] Callistemon sieberi

Post by Jan »

Yes Ken, I have a shallow oval pot in mind should I not find "the Pot", but these like a lot of water (they were river bank natives) so too shallow a planting or a slab would be hard to keep the water up to in our dry, warm summers.
Work limits watering options and they are still in their "temporary" home since moving so I don't have a automated system in place.

Jan
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Re: [Jan] Callistemon sieberi

Post by Jan »

I've decided to withdraw this one from the comp.

I still haven't found the pot, and don't want to transplant this one yet anyway as it is still recovering from being upended and trampled by a marauding wombat. I'm more concerned with the recovery of the plant. Happily, the damage was done in the cold weather, so having its roots out in the air until I came home from work hasn't killed it.

Needless to say, the wombat in question, which also has a bent for digging holes in the most inconvenient places, is far from welcome at my place!

I will continue to report its progress after the comp finishes.

Jan.
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Re: [Jan] Callistemon sieberi

Post by Watto »

That's a shame Jan - it was becoming one of my favorites.
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