AusBonsai

You need to give the tree a rest from all the procedures that are stressful to it...That is what they do in Japan every third year. Or delay some of them. The tree looks ugly but it replenishes its reserves and improves health.

Guy wrote:the taper and bark difference at the moment looks obvious-----interested to hear your technique to resolve that graft problem --will the reverse taper increase as the tree ages?

Guy,

Not sure whether the reverse taper will correct itself over time. I have a Yatsabusa with the same problem and both are still in training pots. At this point in time I am trying to balance styling with trying to grow out the reverse taper.

This year I am hoping to have time to make up a raised garden bed and plant them including pot,select a sacrificial branch and see if I can decrease the taper over a couple more years without loosing the existing structure.

Regards,
Peter

You will always have the graft union visible . Goggle some nishiki in japan and see some very mature trees with the graft. This is just a characteristic of the species and you either love it or not. Personally i like it and hope i get to see my only one mature .

don't nishiki develop on their own roots?

tgward wrote:don't nishiki develop on their own roots?

was this a dumb question?

tgward wrote:

tgward wrote:don't nishiki develop on their own roots?

was this a dumb question?

No such thing as a dumb question. The reason we graft is that there is something about the top of a tree we like, in this case the corky bark of the Nishiki, but something about the bottom of another, the strong root system of the standard black pine. So by combining the two, we get the best of both worlds. Nishiki's (and other unique species) often have weaker root systems and this can slow growth, make the tree more susceptible to death etc.

You see it quite often with junipers too. very fine foliage grafted onto coarse foliage base.

how bout developing roots much closer to the union and using those roots to fatten the base-(can you thread graft pines?)---suppose if you plant deeper it could cause collar rot