Collected Sagebrush (Artemisia Tridentata)

Hartinez

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Several threads on these, but I thought I’d start one with my experiences so far. In Taos, NM where my wife is from, there are acres and acres and acres....and acres of Sagebrush. I had been planning to dig some for years but only got to it this spring in late March. I collected 3 small just to see how it’d go. So far so good with new growth coming from each. Next spring I plan to dig a few much bigger plants.

from the get go, much of these have a natural tree like and very gnarly appearance. Their small leaves and flaky bark should make for great bonsai. The wood however is very soft and I worry I may deal with extensive trunk rot. We shall see.

when I collected these 3 I put one in a basic nursery can in a pumice heavy mix and 2 directly in to Chinese production pots I had. Also in a pumice heavy mix.
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Flowerhouse

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These look (and smell!) so good! I examined some really gnarly looking ones here, but the "wood" resembled old mop strands for lack of a better description, so I gave up. I'll have to keep checking on them, I guess. The other interesting plant we have here is Ericameria nauseosa (formerly Chrysothamnus). It can be a lovely little shrub and has an amazing range of color through the year, and its wood seems quite durable, but EVERY SINGLE SEED SPROUTS here, so my concience won't let me try it.
 

Hartinez

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You can else create great smudge sticks with these and burn as incense. It’s insane how many there are around my mother in laws house. Did I say there were acres of them?? 😂
 

Hartinez

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I decided to be bold with one of these. Although it was collected just this spring, it’s color is vibrant, it’s shoots were long and it has clearly rooted significantly in the pot. I trimmed back to a pleasing shape setting up branches for future growth and evelopment. With that said though, I’ve never had nor have i seen an significant info on cultivation of these as bonsai. This tree will either suffer or be free to grow and become spectacular. I plan to dig several more none the less come spring 2022. Especially considering how easy they were to dig and how many feeder roots were available.
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Hartinez

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Very cool. I like it a lot.
Thanks Fisher. I think is the foliage grows in and ramifys it’ll balance out the raw trunk and bark that much more. With as easy as it was to collect these, I can’t wait to get a big one next spring.
 

VAFisher

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Thanks Fisher. I think is the foliage grows in and ramifys it’ll balance out the raw trunk and bark that much more. With as easy as it was to collect these, I can’t wait to get a big one next spring.
I'm guessing they need a dry climate and would hate humidity?
 

Hartinez

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I picked up one this past fall. Seems to be doing well. I think if we can get the feeder roots, they will take off. It seems like they often have a strong tap root. Mine is in 100 percent perlite.

View attachment 378711
That’s a nice one for sure. Great trunk. Looks very strong. Have you pruned at all? Did you collect it or get it from someone who did collect it?
 

Hartinez

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I'm guessing they need a dry climate and would hate humidity?
I can’t say for sure. The live and deadwood is awfully soft, but so far I have kept the ones I collected very moist. I water often and even most a good amount. It would be interesting to see how it did in high humidity. These ones are from Taos NM though where snow fall is plentiful and the temps get very cold so it might do just fine in a high moisture content area as long as it got cold enough for dormancy. Again, I can’t say for sure though!
 

Hartinez

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Up at my mother in laws house there are thousands and thousands that look just like this, only they are packed in next to each other. I’m excited to try to go big next year. The beauty is if I kill a couple it’s no major loss. Because, did I mention there are insane amounts of these?
 

PiñonJ

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I'm guessing they need a dry climate and would hate humidity?
Ryan has kept them for several years at Mirai, so it doesn’t have to be dry. I don’t know how they’d do in prolonged heat with high humidity. Even though they are a high desert species, mine takes a lot of water in its bonsai pot.
 

Hartinez

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Ryan has kept them for several years at Mirai, so it doesn’t have to be dry. I don’t know how they’d do in prolonged heat with high humidity. Even though they are a high desert species, mine takes a lot of water in its bonsai pot.
Yeah mine can’t seem to stay wet enough! I may go with a more water retaining mix next year. I feel like the biggest issue you’d have to worry about is the wood rooting and crumbling.
 

PiñonJ

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Yeah mine can’t seem to stay wet enough! I may go with a more water retaining mix next year. I feel like the biggest issue you’d have to worry about is the wood rooting and crumbling.
When I repot next year, it’ll go into straight akadama. Right now, it’s in pumice with 20, or 25% garden soil mix.
 

ShadyStump

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I can find fifty of these in my backyard. Just haven't found one I like yet.
They tend to live in places where the soil is sandy and clayey, so in nature they get watered rarely but the soil retains moisture for a long time just inches below the surface- if that helps you get an idea of how they like their drinks. Some say they can hit a sort of semi-dormant period in the hottest part of the summer to retain strength, then start growing again in the late summer/early fall when the temperatures drop and it becomes a little wetter again. Get just a bit more in before the first freezes hit.
 

ShadyStump

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It appears that @hinmo24t didn't scroll all the way down that Wikipedia article he got the pic from.
Check this out! From all the way down at the bottom of the page.
Young_sagebrush.jpg
 
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