AusBonsai

Hi everyone, in my travels I seen a bunch of what I thought was young casuarinas' which would be perfect for collecting and twisting up and expermenting with. However, I had a closer look today, and it appears they aren't young casuarinas', but in fact they have been lopped and chopped at ground level, and then shot to life again. I don't know if you would class them as suckers, or as budding back, but I was wondering (in my lack of experience) if they would still be worth collecting a couple so make some shohin, or raft style bonsai? Here are a few pics I took with my phone, I am sorry about the quality. Any input is greatly appreciated.

Good evening Luke,

They look un-loved. It looks as though whomever owns the land wanted them gone.

If you have appropriate permissions from the land owner, then you should certain try to collect them.

Good luck and please let us know how you go .

My answer would be no. Roadside regenerative material or suckers. Either way you don't know how it will take, leave it alone. It would be easier to get hold of some forrestry tubes and grow them how you want to, a lot easier. I don't understand the reason for digging up native stock for the sake of a concept or for a cheap acquisition. If it is coming out of a residential location or is a weed in a farm or bush environment and you have permission I don't see why not. Unless you have very good reason and contacts that can give you the go ahead then you really need to question your motives. Just because it is on the roadside/pine plantation or looks like it should not be there does not give you the right to take it. Many people who have posted these topics don't even know what they are looking at and in some cases have already dug it up. All it takes is a post and a reply that it looks like good stuff and you have what you believe is justification to do as you wish.

Luke, if you see something in it and is worth your while then go for it.
If you don't see anything in it and you are just going to take a photo and ask what someone else would do with it, then don't worry, there is always something better, and usually free as well.
Personally, I would wait for something better to waste my time and money on, but if there is a good one there to suit what you want then go for it, you are the one on the ground. Remember they rot easily.

Nothing personal
Mick

Luke, if you can collect them along side a main road without getting yourself in any danger or trouble, take them mate. If it were me i'd take the lot

If it were me letm fatten up for a few more years, keep training them, then takem !!!

Craig wrote:Luke, if you can collect them along side a main road without getting yourself in any danger or trouble, take them mate. If it were me i'd take the lot

A long time ago, I went to a station master at Nunawading train station and asked him to let dig up some small radiata a long the track as I saw that they got trimmed off by the maintenance people. The station master told me that he did not have authority to give collection permission. But even if I did have appropriate permission from the council, he would not let me dig either due to safety concern. So that was that.

Radiata grow fast. They got pull out later.

My guess is these are suckers from the roots of a tree that has been cut down. Is there a stump in the first pic?
I they are suckers you will probably find that there is a long thick root with few feeder roots so not worth collecting in my opinion.
I also have to agree with Damian - try to avoid pillaging trees from the wild as few survive then no one gets to appreciate them at all!

What you see here is, as has been said suckers. They will be slashed again. So leaving them there will not help them. This is the sort of thing that forced me to go the the local C.A.L.M office and ask for permission to save them.

I was granted a Scientific licence to collect, so that now if I see something worth collecting and saving from the Slasher I can.

Cheers Pup

Pup wrote:What you see here is, as has been said suckers. They will be slashed again. So leaving them there will not help them. This is the sort of thing that forced me to go the the local C.A.L.M office and ask for permission to save them.

I was granted a Scientific licence to collect, so that now if I see something worth collecting and saving from the Slasher I can.

Cheers Pup

That was entirely my point, obviously they are not wanted, and will be slashed again, so I;m sure if I asked the council for permission, they would almost certainly allow it. But before I ask for permission, I thought I would ask here if anyone thought they could be useful. I don't mind trying something different, but I wasn't sure it they were of any use being suckers growing from a slashed stump.
Luke

Hi Luke
Asy say, they are going to go one way or another, so if they present an interesting trunk or feature then why not grab them if you can.

If they are justa big stump and nothing else them maybe not worth it. Having said that, I see lots of Large Casuarina Collected and carved in South east Asia, so even then why not

Ken

Luke308 wrote:
That was entirely my point, obviously they are not wanted, and will be slashed again, so I;m sure if I asked the council for permission, they would almost certainly allow it.

Now thats the second best laugh I have had all day. Good luck Luke but many of us find Councils not so co-operative in these matters.

Looks like a busy street so seems unlikely bypassing the red tape either. I saw at least twenty full size native pines ripped out of the ground in a paddock yesterday which was shocking. When will these idiots get it that the trees make the land better So what if you have to swerve thye header a little at harvest time

I think these guys would grow quicker in your yard than left where they are Good luck.

Does anyone on this forum know anything about conservation land management?

Damian Bee wrote:Does anyone on this forum know anything about conservation land management?

tell it to the councils and developers who bulldozer whole areas of natural bushland for new housing estates,!!!

Damian Bee wrote:Does anyone on this forum know anything about conservation land management?

You will notice I did go to the Conservation and Land Management to get my Licence, explaining that just slashing the trees and shrubs, on road verges is not saving them, but digging them up is.

I have told this story before, my neighbours son is the Manager of the Parks and Gardens for the local Shire. He spent 4 months marking trees in an area to be developed.
At the request of the developer.
1 month after they started to develop he went to see how it was going. You guessed it, all the trees were gone even the ones he had said were special heritage trees.

So that is land management because they paid a $50.000 fine and moved on.