AusBonsai

Anyone wish to hazard a guess what this tree may be. Probably a long shot, has a few small seedlings that have grown that could possibly be used for bonsai or maybe not. Can get closer pics if it helps. Cheers, Mitch

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I would hazard a guess at radiata been around the south coast area but I could defiantly be wrong

Currently in the nimbin area.
Hmmm radiata, not really common for bonsai then? Was more out of curiosity i guess. Always on the prowl haha. Thanks for your thoughts Matthew.

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I have a few radiata pines dug from the site of an old pine plantation that is now being developed as a housing estate. They do quite well when dug, I've had only one of several die after trying to do too much too soon with it. The others are all doing well. They respond well when treated much like JBP's. They back bud well, they are quite flexible and when trunk chopped a branch can readily be trained as a new leader, so it's puzzling why they are not used more for bonsai. Cheers, Frank.

Pinus radiata is relatively easy to identify. It is one of the few species that have 3 needles in each bunch so have a close look and see if the needles are in 2, 3 or 5s.
There are some really nice radiatas in Melbourne clubs so don't discount the species just because it is not a traditional Japanese species or because you have not seen any yet.

Agree with Raging Bull/shibui, if these are radiatas then get on board... the link below is one of my favourite Ausbonsai threads and should give you a bit of inspiration.
viewtopic.php?f=131&t=22510
Potential plus in radiata pine.

Ryceman3 wrote:Agree with Raging Bull/shibui, if these are radiatas then get on board... the link below is one of my favourite Ausbonsai threads and should give you a bit of inspiration.
viewtopic.php?f=131&t=22510
Potential plus in radiata pine.

Mate thanks for your comments and thanks for that link, great to see what can be achieved. Hopefully he'll get back on and point out his refinement techniques maybe. Excited about the possibilities but still got a lot to learn. [OK HAND SIGN]

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Ryceman3 wrote:.. the link below is one of my favourite Ausbonsai threads and should give you a bit of inspiration.
viewtopic.php?f=131&t=22510
Potential plus in radiata pine.

Thanks R3 - I really enjoyed this thread you referred too. Hopefully Miyagiman is still about and can update the story of that tree too.

I have tried these before collected from areas around Nimbin. They are Pinus elliottii, commonly referred to as slash pine. Can make ok Bonsai if you grow them really large but for the most part I wouldn't waste your time unless you find a really great trunk which you could potentially graft better foliage onto.

Growth is rampant, with up to three flushes per year, really large needles and often maintains a yellow complection in bonsai culture. I also suspect there may be some cross pollination in the area with the Mexican Weeping Pine.

shibui wrote:Pinus radiata is relatively easy to identify. It is one of the few species that have 3 needles in each bunch so have a close look and see if the needles are in 2, 3 or 5s.
There are some really nice radiatas in Melbourne clubs so don't discount the species just because it is not a traditional Japanese species or because you have not seen any yet.

Clusters of three. I guess it is a radiata.
Thanks for your input [THUMBS UP SIGN]

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Plenty to choose from.
The problem will be how many can I fit in my luggage back to Sydney haha

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So I guess the next question would be what be the best way to transport these. Dig up and soak roots then wrap in wet newspaper maybe?

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I am no expert on Pinus sp. but there are more then one species of three needle pine. Pinus elliotti can often show a 3 needle characteristic. As mentioned earlier I suspect some cross pollination in the area from P patula, which is also a 3 needle species.

Best of luck with your collection and transport. Getting as much fibrous roots and keeping them moist during transit shall help your cause, Digging these from open red soil in this area is hit and miss. Being from Wollongong you have access to some of the best Pine material in the country just up the road. There are also some great local freelance artists in the area such as Hugh Grant to source material from.

Now there's a couple of pine species I've heard of but not familiar with so I won't offer any suggestions on telling which is which.
P. radiata is quite good at budding from the trunk when it is cut as shown in the photos. It is likely that the other 2 species are closely related and have the same characteristics but it is useful for bonsai. Hopefully you can find a few older/thicker trunks than those little baby ones. in some areas where they are mowed regularly there are lots of quite old trunks all shorter than the mower.
re collecting:
I don't think you need to be too pedantic about protecting the roots after digging. I normally just pull them out, shake off most of the soil and throw into the back of the ute for the trip home. up to an hour uncovered would probably be OK, maybe longer. Obviously the more care you take the better the result so if you want to spend the time; dig, wrap the roots in damp paper, cloth, plastic bag, etc. Keep the tree out of the hot sun as much as possible between digging and repotting. I don't think there's any need to be misting the foliage but I usually remove any obvious excess parts before or just after digging the trees.
Some people try to keep as much native soil as possible on the roots. I find that soil in post causes far more problems than benefit so, as mentioned above I try to shake off as much as will easily come off without further damage to the roots. there will still be plenty of mychorriza left to recolonise after you pot up
There are also those who religiously soak roots after collection for various lengths of time in various concoctions. I don't find that is necessary and just trim off excess roots when I get home and pot up into my potting mix as soon as possible.

Good luck with your collecting.
Incidentally, I have had good success transplanting pines in both spring and late summer/autumn.

Some good info from shibui, who I am sure has dug a heap more pines then I have. I purchased some nice field grown pines from Shibui many years ago, which had been removed from his growing fields. He sent them all the way to northern NSW for me in the post. I agree that you should search for some more mature trees as suggested, if you have permission though to collect from the area take as many as you like as these are weeds.

I think for transport over that distance correct packaging of the roots as suggested will help a great deal in your survival rates. black plastic is great as it holds in moisture and collects light as heat for the rootball.