THE PINE PROJECT

[Ryceman3]

To complete the update for my pines, here is where the originals are at ...
The JBP are growing on OK. This is a pretty "ugly" phase in the development schedule ... with sacrifices branches being stripped of lower needles to allow light and air to access the lower regions where I am looking to develop usable branching/buds. This is going pretty well I think, but like I said ... the trees aren't looking their most attractive. I think when the lower buds and branches elongate/develop over the next year or so things will make more sense and look a little less pitiful! Really, I'm just trying to gain some trunk girth and maintain low growth - that is the essence of my plan.

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The JRP are also growing on OK. These have lots of branching developing. Not quite as rampant as the JBP in terms of overall growth, but I have no complaints.

JRP_01 0320.jpg

The Scots Pine are much more compact. I have essentially dione very little to these (or the Austrian Pines) over the summer. Just fert when I could and water. Definitely slower growing than the multi flush species above but they have a LOT of buds and branches that probably will need some attention soon.

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...and the Austrians are also plugging along in a similar manner to the Scots, albeit with growth that I would consider a bit coarser. Again, lots of branching and buds waiting to extend, they'll be fun to watch over the next few years.

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Not a lot planned for these over the Autumn/Winter period, just basic care and then I'll most likely have a peek at some roots as we get closer to spring.

I plan on heading down to check out my ground-growing pines very soon ... haven't sighted them for over a month so their progress will be interesting to discover...

[MJL]

Hey R3, Thanks for the update - I intend to add some bends to all of mine (Ex yours) in autumn/winter ... have you already done this? Looks from one of the photos like you have... perhaps I am too late to that party?


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[Ryceman3]

Hey R3, Thanks for the update - I intend to add some bends to all of mine (Ex yours) in autumn/winter ... have you already done this? Looks from one of the photos like you have... perhaps I am too late to that party?

Yeah ... I wired a few last year at the end of autumn, but only the JBP as they had trunks that were getting thick and I wanted to get some movement into them before it became too difficult. Link to a previous post from this thread below :
https://www.ausbonsai.com.au/forum/view ... 90#p266684

I didn't do them all though for a couple of reasons :
I'm looking for variety and doing stuff at different times will get you that.
There's a lot of low branching on some, and that means there's places to cut back to and use that branching for the new apex ... so wiring would be a little redundant as the part that would get wired is going to be chopped out in any case.
Wiring little pine seedlings is a pain in the a#$@ so I did a few and thought ... "that'll do for now".

I think that I'll be able to get movement into the Scots, JRP and Austrian pines if I wire them out this year - I might (probably should) do at least a couple of each to maintain the variety I speak of above. With the amount of buds on the Scots pine I'm not sure I'll get any benefit from it. Cutting back to those buds will get more "authentic" movement in the long run.
Not sure about the JBP now, some are quite thick, about 15mm or more but I think would still bend - but maybe not to the extent I got last year. If I were you I'd be thinking about getting some movement in, unless you're going for formal upright of course.

[MJL]

Cheers, I’ll definitely be wiring in some movement relative to future Shohin size or slightly larger - I’ll post some pics when I do it, hopefully I am not too late - I reckon they’ll bend


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[Ryceman3]

Last update for now, the ground grown stock ...
I went and checked them out over the long weekend and I was pretty satisfied with how they are travelling.
In terms of the JBP, when I compare them to the ones in pots I posted earlier I would say that they are in front (the ground grown ones) in terms of trunk girth/size. A couple have really taken off (pics of a nice one are below) and are definitely more advanced. The Austrian pine I think are also ahead of their pot-planted cousins, but I would say the difference between the JRP and Scots pine is negligible. Both pot and ground grown trees look the same for these in terms of development/trunk girth etc...
I think I have been reasonably lucky with these ground grown trees in that there has been a lot of rain around in January/February which is not normal. I reckon this helped them maintain vigour - I wish I had been around to give them a few hits of fert but all in all, no dead trees so nothing to complain about. The in-laws did well!

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[MJL]

Hey R3,
Here's an update on some of your prodigy. I am not 100% sure I am doing things right but hey ... I have enough that I have stuffed some ... others should be OK. I think I was supposed to select out some the the new buds ... or is that a job for spring. I'll have to go back and look at the good PHUTU thread.
Logically, the plants are way shorter after a bit of wiring ... some a nearly a foot short but it is hard to see in photos.
Also - I know it is disruptive (especially because these trees are solidly growing into the ground under the pots) but in August I am going to repot them all into slight larger orchids pots with a looser mix and ready them for a good three years on in pot/ground growing.

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They all look healthy enough.

[Ryceman3]

Hey R3,
Here's an update on some of your prodigy. I am not 100% sure I am doing things right but hey ... I have enough that I have stuffed some ... others should be OK. I think I was supposed to select out some the the new buds ... or is that a job for spring. I'll have to go back and look at the good PHUTU thread.
Logically, the plants are way shorter after a bit of wiring ... some a nearly a foot short but it is hard to see in photos.
Also - I know it is disruptive (especially because these trees are solidly growing into the ground under the pots) but in August I am going to repot them all into slight larger orchids pots with a looser mix and ready them for a good three years on in pot/ground growing.
They all look healthy enough.

Nice MJL, all looks like you are getting some good progress... you are right, they look nice and healthy.
You can bud select now (back to two), probably most important for parts of the tree you plan to use in the final design to avoid taper issues etc... obviously on branches you see as sacrificial you can leave the cluster of buds as you want strong growth and any issues with taper are irrelevant.
On that note, I think it’s important to get the trunk structure right and look for potential branching that will be used in the end design. Equally important is to plan and develop sacrifice branches that thicken the trunk/tree overall. Ideally have more than one branch in mind as a sacrifice so you can chop back the original to the main trunk with another sacrifice ready in reserve. For me, the movement you have put in the trunks looks good. I need to do similar to some I have left up until this point - they love to grow dead straight if given the chance!

Repotting in August? Absolutely! Mine are not growing into the ground like yours, but my pots are solid full of roots right now so I imagine yours are no different. They are only young so you can be quite aggressive if required. Get those roots going on the right path and your work in the future will be significantly reduced. I will be doing the same (repotting into larger containers that is) this year too. From what I have read, trunk thickening accelerates over the next year or two pretty significantly so I think setting them up in a container with room to grow makes perfect sense.

Keep it up, these look great.

[tinto]

really impressive horticultural skills.

[Ryceman3]

With the deciduious repotted, it was time for me to get to the pines. I started with JBP, not sure how many I did - it was about a dozen or so, still a few left but here's a few pics to illustrate what stage they are at :

Comp JBP_0820_01.jpg

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I've got a few more to do over the next couple of weeks to get it out of the way. Not sure I have enough potting mix but we'll see how I go. Probably should have put in something for scale, I’ll rectify that when I next get around to updating.

[melbrackstone]

Wow, the growth has been fantastic! (Where are they all going to fit?)

[Ryceman3]

Thanks Mel, they are looking OK I think. I was a little disappointed with their progression initially, but I had a look back at where they started from after last repot and there has been enough advancement to be satisfied... I’m happy enough. I do have some bigger ones though, at least I think they are - haven’t seen them for a while, and it’ll be a while until I do get to see them so...
You never know!
Where are they going to fit? I built a new rack so I’ll be keeping more than I had planned, but a few will need somewhere new to live at some stage.

[MJL]

The roof forester continues his great work! Excellent update - incredibly dense mycorrhizae!

[Ryceman3]

... incredibly dense mycorrhizae!

Yeah MJL, lots of it... maybe too much?!?!?? When the mycorrhizae blooms like this it really does begin to clog the mix and make watering a much more labour intensive task to ensure proper amounts of water are getting through. Should be a bit easier for a while now after repot. First world problems though in the grand scheme of things.

[tgooboon]

How are you getting the mycorrhizae to start with. Did you add some earlier or has it come from a fertiliser like gogojuice or has it just self started?

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[Ryceman3]

How are you getting the mycorrhizae to start with. Did you add some earlier or has it come from a fertiliser like gogojuice or has it just self started?

It just self-started in one of my pines (bigger/older than these ones) so I took a bit from there and popped some in with a couple of these ones when I potted them last year. I didn't do all because I potted a few of these before the big pine, so hadn't accessed it ... but I would say it has spread to essentially all pots now (in varying amounts). I'll be interested to see if there is any/ how much in the other pine species - so far I have only looked at the JBP.