AusBonsai

Morning forumers, picked up this little guy and got so mystified by its bark and trunk I failed to ask what species it was!!! I'm guessing it's some sort of allocasurina (?). All I was told was to let it live it a pot of water - I have been doing that then taking it out for a few days. Once I get an ID I'm happy to check the wiki for care guides, but feel free to post tips if you like! Also should I be starting to remove multiple shoots growing from the one spot as pictured? Thanks in advance gurus

My guess is Casuarina torulosa

Looks like Allocasuarina torulosa - Forest Oak. Was previously known as Casuarina torulosa

Ring the supplier and ask. I did this from our local native tree suppliers. They were very happy to help. It was a grevillea, I would not have guessed as it has privet like leaves not needles. One get's so excited about a new find, I can understand your problem. As beginners, one can get confused with genus' and I have been several times, even with mis-labelling. For example Acer palmatum, or Japanese maple. There are heaps of different cultivars in that classification.

Cheers and good luck.

Good luck, that's a fantastic trunk

Hello Isitangus,

That is definitely Allocasuarina Torulosa. Remember that over summer, Allocas Torulosa needs a lot of water, especially if you have it in full sun... then add wind to that, and you can very quickly lose it. Generally in the wild, the tap root goes right down to the water table, or creek etc. Nice stock too, did you buy this from a bonsai nursery, looks like a nursery I know of. Best time to repot is March. Otherwise, if you miss that you can of course go for early spring. Never cut back Torulosa below the growth area, otherwise it can die back and you'll lose the beautiful trunk you have there. Don't wire the branches, it often kills the growth, best to clip and grow with this species, or just anchor branches with string. Try not to encourage moss at all, as once it gets hold it is very hard to remove from the delicate bark. It also encourages rot, so avoid the moss. Try to let the trunk be exposed to sun too. Careful when repotting, it is very easy to break off the beautiful bark. I wouldn't recommend taking off more than 30 - 35% of roots at repotting. Water HEAVILY or even leave in a shallow tray of water after repotting.

Thanks buddyman, I have it sitting in a shallow tray of water but it still gets watered. It comes out of the tray if I feel like it's been wet for too long, although I never let it dry completely.
I haven't done any wiring as yet-few pegs on immature branches but that's it.
What sort of fert should it get? It's had some miracle grow and light dynamic lifter, how heavy can I feed them?
It came from bonsai south-I went in for something different but saw the trunk line and picked it up instantly.

Yeah, I've brought a few Torulosa from there too.... quite a few. I just wish they would stock other varieties too. Yeah, I would have picked that up too, nice trunk. I am a sucker for any Casuarina, our home is like a Casuarina orphanage. I just fertilize with Osmocote Native Shrubs and Trees. It is slow release, so it wont hurt the tree. I don't believe in liquid fertilizer, because it isn't natural and you wouldn't really get this in nature anyway, just my personal preference. Was this the only one you bought? They were $30 for your size, and they have $12 sized ones too.

There are quite a few Casuarina varieties you can try if you like them.

Casuarina Distyla is a great variety to use, and also has a similar roughness to its bark, but it looks more like a crocodile and isn't as brittle, unike the corky segmented bark of Torulosa. A few experts say that Torulosa has the thinnest foliage, but I have a few Cunninghamiana that has just the same thin needle foliage and a tendancy to droop early. However, it doesn't naturally droop like Torulosa, and it does have a tendency to grow straighter than Torulosa.
Cunninghamiana is a definite one you should try. Very hardy, in fact I'd say the hardiest of all the Casuarina common varieties. It has beautiful bark as it ages.
Littoralis is another nice one to try. It gets nice segmented bark, and is much stronger than Torulosa.
Glauca is another beautiful species to try, but I think it only comes to glory when it is about 10 years old. It is such an underrated species.