AusBonsai

Howdy.. although early days and waiting for dormancy, this old, old Euro Larch (50+ years) is in desperate need of a re-pot/root prune. The nebari is significant, measuring approx 10-12" at the base and a raised root system that had some old moss and soil within the root mass. The moss had copped a hit during a number of snowfalls last year in Winter and sort of never recovered leaving a crunky dryness around the roots and trunk. I've really had to be careful this season in watching that this old fella doesn't dry out. I've been concerned and wondering that when I root prune and repot, I will have be be careful around this section - ie; space between the roots and nebari - thinking that I will only scratch around and not remove too much of the soil from this area... A question I have is what sort of medium would replace this to enable moisture to penetrate and hopefully moss to regrow..My thoughts are that I sort of massage in some composted organic soil - perhaps with some composted manure and a little clay, almost muck like. Any advice would be appreciated.
cheers, Rob..

First of all ... Really nice tree!
Second... Where are you? Your profile says Mornington Pen but then you talk about snow??!?
I'm tipping you may have moved and if so, those who can give you advice on any changes to soil/care may need a heads up on where it is (roughly) you are. There's a lot to consider I would think, and knowing your location/weather conditions may be helpful... (In case you're wondering - I unfortunately am not one of those people).
Good luck with it - I really love Larch and I hope this one has its progression posted for years to come!!

Thanks Ryceman...
This old tree has some history. It comes from Tasmania where I purchased it last year. It's been around the traps and there will be people who have been around for a long time who will recognize it. Yes, I am on the Mornington Peninsula, and this year was the first for this tree on the mainland. It would probably fair better up in the hills where the Winters are colder. The Summer we've had was a struggle for a couple of Japanese Larches I have, although they have survived - friends of mine have lost a few that were fried in a couple 40+ days. I'm happy to say, this tree had performed admirably and is very healthy - although, I am still concerned that it will need a good cold Autumn for it to turn and so far, it's still like bloody Summer down here..!!
There is still some work to do on this tree - needs to be straightened so the massive first branch can lean down - I will guy wire it but really hard to get any bend since it's so lignified. The branch ends will also get a decent wire job. So - yes, happy to post progression shots with regards to this tree..From what I can tell, European Larch is rare - I have yet to see another here in Victoria in any Bonsai Nursery and would love to hear from anyone that has one..
Thanks to Chris Xepapas (Heritage Bonsai - Southern Tasmania) for being the custodian of this magnificent tree for god knows how long. I feel privileged to have it in my collection and will do everything I can to keep it in optimal health..

is there any way of halving(straightening) that trunk bend angle where it was chopped- then leaning it more forward on repot ?

There's no way to get a bend in the main trunk, way too solid. I would however like to get the lowest branch to drop below horizontal and may achieve this by guy wires and straightening it up when repotting as it leans to the side slightly. The top section doesn't concern me much as you only notice it when looking side on and plan on growing one of the top branches to fill the back some more.

Great tree!!! proberly the most mature euro larch ive seen in Aust . Very climate specific . They hate the HEAT and need decent winters. you have done a great job getting it this healthy . I see some great potential with a restyle however always hard going off pics . Grant Bowie has great knowledge of larch and im sure he'll chime in sometime

you can repot late winter or early spring just before bud swell. Ive taking 50-70% off root mass before on larch no issues but mine have no where near the age of yours

Robsterios wrote: A question I have is what sort of medium would replace this to enable moisture to penetrate and hopefully moss to regrow..My thoughts are that I sort of massage in some composted organic soil - perhaps with some composted manure and a little clay, almost muck like. Any advice would be appreciated.
cheers, Rob..

Personally I would avoid trying to replace that already compacted and stale soil close to the base with anything organic or clay based - I don't think that's going to help much. Trying to remove it completely would certainly be risky. I think you need to start by introducing air spaces to improve water penetration. I would try carefully piercing the area deeply with something like a metal skewer or a slender philips head screw driver etc. wiggle it around slightly to very gently open and break up the compaction a little without removing it and maybe try back-filling any areas that open up with something like a washed sand? Then repot as normal but a little deeper in the pot - for me, its sitting a little too high and there is too much exposed root. This might help encourage some healthier roots to form closer to the base? Then each subsequent repot you can try replacing some of the compacted stuff little by little?

Hi there Rob, this is quite a nice tree it certainly has a nice base and lower trunk. I'm a fan of Larch, I have quite a few, the majority are Japanese Larch from nursery stock, but I do have 10 or so European Larch, from nursery stock and a few that I collected from an old private garden in the early 2000s that would be a similar size to yours. I even have a Siberian Larch somewhere, which I only just remembered now.

I sold the largest one of the collected Euros in December to a new member on the forum (wish I hadn't now ), it is a pretty good example of the potential that Larches have to be rebuilt and renovated by removing large branches. I'll PM him and get him to take a few snaps.

You should be able to grow Larch on the Mornington Peninsula, it is not too hot in summer, but like anywhere, even where I live in the mountains, if you get careless or take unnecessary risks, it will cost you.

JaseH made a really good point about potting a little deeper and covering the finer roots a little more, this is particularly important with Larch.
Check out this thread in you hadn't already: viewtopic.php?f=129&t=11889

Cheers,
Mojo

Nice old tree. I agree that it is too high in the pot. To be safe, at the next repotting, I would concentrate all my efforts on the region directly beneath the trunk. This is always the spot where trouble starts on very old trees in compacted soil. Tease out the extremities of the root ball just a little but under the trunk, pick off as much old soil as possible using a tooth pick and a pair of tweezers if you have to. Until there is nothing there but roots. Then repot so that most (not all) of the nebari is covered. I would also use pure gravel or pumice or growtsone or something like that under the trunk. At the next repot you can be more thorough.
Good luck and keep us posted!

Great tree Rob. Love it.

In answer to your question about where to buy them in Melbourne, I got a Japanese Larch at the conifer garden nursery on Mt Dandenong in December 2014.

They did say they were having trouble sourcing viable seed at the time so not sure what they have now. They also told me they had sold a few older specimens (to bonsai enthusiasts) that they had been using for propagation purposes that had big trunks only a couple of weeks before I was there Would have been happier not to hear that.

I have been successful in striking 7 out of 12 cuttings I took from my tree in early January.

Theo


Sent from somewhere on planet earth using an iPad!

Sir Theodore wrote:Great tree Rob. Love it.

In answer to your question about where to buy them in Melbourne, I got a Japanese Larch at the conifer garden nursery on Mt Dandenong in December 2014.

Thanks Theodore - yes, Japanese Larch is fairly common and some good tree's including young stock can be found around the traps...It's the European Larch that is not so common and other than Mojo's comments above, I have yet to see other examples....cheers....

Robsterios wrote:There's no way to get a bend in the main trunk, way too solid. I would however like to get the lowest branch to drop below horizontal and may achieve this by guy wires and straightening it up when repotting as it leans to the side slightly. The top section doesn't concern me much as you only notice it when looking side on and plan on growing one of the top branches to fill the back some more.

a first rate tree would look good from every side--
'if it were mine"-------- I would definitely try to reduce that angle which could give more options for branch placement-bit of raffia,some reo bar, couple of clamps , some wire, slowly over a couple of seasons-

In terms of moving larger branches consider "the notch" technique (I might have made that name up).
Simply put it involves removing a wedge/notch of trunk / branch to reduce the mass and aid movement.

For example you might cut a triangle close to the trunk from the bottom of the branch you wish to lower.
When "notched" you will more easily be able to move the trunk into place - with luck the notch will heal and often can aid in keeping the branch in place.

I have used this technique with decent results with trees that spring back and don't like to hold their shape as well.

tgward wrote:a first rate tree would look good from every side--

Hmm...I do agree, less angle on the apex would be better...these posts have got me thinking about what I considered to be impossible - ie; getting a bend in a few places including the apex... personally, I'd be too stressed and nervous about wedging/notching with the possibility that the branch die as a result and would lose what would be never recoverable. These branches are old and dam solid...